Ed Balls urges Chancellor to protect UK airports against Scottish threat
Shadow chancellor Ed Balls has urged the UK Government to work with the Scottish government to ensure that airports in England are not disadvantaged if air tax is reduced or abolished in Scotland.
Whilst he welcomed Chancellor George Osborne’s announcement in the Autumn Statement that air passenger duty for children would be abolished, starting from next year in the UK, Balls said there was a danger English airports could lose traffic to airports in Scotland if the government there goes ahead with its pledge to eventually ditch the tax altogether.
It was recommended last week by the Smith Commission, set up in the wake of the no vote on Scottish independence, that Scotland should be given the power to set its own APD. As the Scottish government is known to be in favour of getting rid of the tax, Balls said this could lead to passengers travelling from Scottish airports instead of those in the north of England.
Balls asked the Chancellor to work with the Scottish government, and Scottish airports, to make sure airports in England, especially in the North, are not disadvantaged.
Meanwhile, Edinburgh Airport urged Westminster to fully devolve APD to the Scottish Parliament ahead of the General Election next year.
Gordon Dewar, Chief Executive of Edinburgh Airport, said: "While we welcome this announcement and believe it’s a step in the right direction, especially for families, the rate of APD in the UK is still too high and continues to have a damaging effect on the country’s aviation industry.
"We need to reduce costs in order to be more competitive with Europe and support business travellers and inbound tourists who help drive our economy.
"We need to act quickly and we see no reason why Westminster can’t fully devolve APD to the Scottish Parliament ahead of the General Election in 2015."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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