Glasgow Prestwick calls for devolution of APD
Glasgow Prestwick Airport is calling on the Government to scrap the APD tax and devolve it to the Scottish government.
The airport’s chief executive Iain Cochrane condemned the tax, saying it has cost the Scottish economy more than £130 million per year in passenger spend.
He said: “We are calling on the UK Government to abolish APD or at the very least have it materially reduced or rebated.
“The impact of APD is simply devastating. Since the doubling of APD from £5 to £10 in 2008, we estimate the loss of inbound tourists through Glasgow Prestwick to have cost the Scottish economy over £130 million per annum in passenger spend alone.
“We estimate that abolishing APD would secure over 750,000 additional passengers per annum through Glasgow Prestwick Airport and we strongly believe that all other Scottish airports would see a strong growth in passenger services, giving the Scottish economy a very welcome boost.”
Cochrane asserts that, based on the current APD rates, these 750,000 passengers would generate £4,500,000 in APD revenues.
He went on: “If abolished, the economic benefit would far exceed the APD revenues foregone. We estimate, based on the findings of our 2008 report on the economic impact of our airport, that these passengers would generate over £18 million per annum of Gross Value Added from over £80 million passenger spend in Scotland alone creating between 500 and 750 jobs, the majority of which would be in the tourism industry.
“If, as we suspect, there are equivalent opportunities at all of Scotland’s airports, the abolition of APD would have a transformational benefit to the Scottish economy.
“We firmly believe that the Scottish Government is best placed to determine the balance between APD and the economic benefits of aviation growth. We are therefore today calling, not only for the abolition of APD but for the devolution of the matter to Scottish Government to permit a joined-up approach to economic development which relies significantly on connectivity.”
The government consultation period on APD ends today.
by Dinah Hatch
Dinah
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