Industry urged to sign e-petition against APD rise
Multicom boss John Howell has launched an e-petition calling for a freeze on Air Passenger Duty ahead of the Chancellor's Autumn Budget statement next week.
Howell is urging everyone in the travel industry to support the e-petition calling for George Osborne not to go ahead with his plans for a double-inflation rise in the air tax for 2012.
His call comes a week after four airlines, British Airways, easyJet, Ryanair and Virgin Atlantic called on the government to ditch APD altogether. Multicom said it supported the calls for the abolishment of APD, but Howell said he believed the case had yet to be made for it to be scrapped.
“I very much welcome the intervention by the four airlines and their joint approach to the problem. For far too long we have failed as an industry to lobby government effectively and it is high time we presented a more united front," he said.
“However, we have a long way to go to convince government that there is a case for abolishing or even reducing APD but we can at least seek to minimise any additional damage by calling for another freeze."
Howell said calls for a further freeze were more likely to be heard by the government if the industry supported his e-petition in large numbers. At least 100,000 signatures are needed for it to stand a chance of it being debated in parliament.
Details of the e-petition can be found at http://www.multicom.co.uk/pages/our-activities/petition-for-a-freeze-on-air-passenger-duty
“I hope every tour operator, airline and travel agent will encourage its staff to support our campaign and encourage them to sign the e-petition," added Howell.
“If we can reach the magic 100,000 mark before the Chancellor stands up to make his budget statement on November 29 it will send him a very strong and powerful message on behalf of our industry.”
By Linsey McNeill
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
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive
Euromonitor International unveils world’s top 100 city destinations for 2025