Airlines ramp up campaign to abolish APD
UK airlines are joining forces to push forward with a campaign to get rid of Air Passenger Duty.
At a meeting in London tonight, industry leaders, including former First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond MSP and trade body the British Air Transport Association, will call for APD to be abolished across the UK during the next Parliament.
BATA believes growing public and political concern, coupled with the devolution of powers over APD to Scotland, brings a new and unique opportunity to get the tax axed.
"The UK still has the highest tax on flying in the world by some margin. The next Government should finish the job, put this damaging tax on trade, tourism, families and businesses out of its misery, and abolish APD in the next Parliament," chief executive Nathan Stower will say in his speech tonight.
BATA will cite Northern Ireland and the Netherlands as examples of how passengers are prepared to travel across land borders to take advantage of differences in flight taxes.
It will urge the UK and Scottish governments to learn from the Northern Ireland experience.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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