Air travel costs are up...by the price of an in-flight drink
INCREASED AIR PASSENGER DUTY IS BACK TO 1996 LEVELS Following Gordon Brown's Pre-Budget Report this afternoon, the speculation that there would be an increase in taxation via air passenger duty (APD) has been confirmed. But responsibletravel.com points out that this simply reverts to 1996 APD levels, before the Chancellor's 2000 APD cut. It didn't halt the rise in air travel then so why should it work now? Justin Francis, Managing Director of responsibletravel.com, said: "Is the Chancellor to be applauded for merely undoing his actions of 6 years ago? It is time for serious measures and he has failed to deliver on nearly every count." He refers Mr Brown to responsibletravel.com's 8 golden rules for evaluating any UK or EU emissions reduction scheme. Reviewing the Chancellor's announcement in the light of these 8 rules reveals a missed opportunity to effect real change. We assess his performance: 1. Do something soon Mr Brown gets one tick for acting promptly. We must reduce our total CO2 emissions by 60% (UK Government policy) or 80% (Conservative's view) before 2050 and with air travel set to more than double again by 2030 (180m flights to 475m flights: 2003 Aviation White paper) action must be swift. To reduce emissions enough to meet Government targets we must fly significantly less. Gordon Brown's price increase in APD from £5 to £10 is insufficient to deter frivolous air travel. We already know this to be the case because APD was set at these rates back in 1996 by Kenneth Clarke and it did nothing to halt the increase in air travel. Gordon Brown actually halved APD rates for economy class passengers flying to most European countries in 2000 which means that today's announcement merely reverts APD to 1996 levels. (See Notes to Editors) £5 extra on short haul flights is the equivalent of a Kronenbourg 1664 and a packet of Maltesers on an easyjet flight (source: www.easyjet.com). It isn't going to break the bank and it won't put people off flying, particularly when a flight with easyjet from London to Edinburgh leaving tomorrow morning costs just £49.99 (including taxes) while taking the train at the same time sets you back at least £111.00 (source: www.thetrainline.com). Even with the extra £5, the plane is still cheaper than the train. 3. Calculate flights' CO2 emissions properly Calculating emissions on miles flown does not allow for factors such as take off and landings - which are relatively highly polluting. Mr Brown has made no move to address this and therefore low cost airlines will continue to be falsely subsidised. 4. The scheme must create incentives for greener airlines An increase in APD alone will not motivate airlines to go green and the Chancellor has failed to recognise this. Airlines need to be independently audited on their emissions and financial incentives (via tax or emissions trading) given for reductions. 5. The solution should help support CO2 reduction initiatives Attacking one of their key industries, and one that puts a value on pristine (CO2 absorbing) forests and natural environments, we make it harder for them to invest in their own lower carbon futures. We need a 'fair trade' scheme to reduce flying significantly, but one that makes allowances for developing countries' relative dependence on tourism. In seeking to curb emissions, the Chancellor should not be investing in further airport expansion schemes. In today's Daily Telegraph the CAA was accused by Barry Humphreys, Virgin Atlantic's route development director, of being, "...more of a lapdog than a watchdog" towards BAA, allowing the consortium to tax airlines more in order potentially to fund airport expansion. 8. Properly audited CO2 offset schemes are not a substitute for CO2 reduction, but they are a valuable way to address necessary emissions No mention has been made in the pre-budget report of properly audited offset schemes and their role in lower carbon futures. www.responsibletravel.com has been offering them to clients since early 2001.  ----------Ends---------- Notes to editors: 'APD was introduced by the Conservative government in November 1993 and introduced on 1st November 1994. According to the then Chancellor, Kenneth Clarke "air travel is under-taxed compared to other sectors of the economy. It benefits not only from a zero rate of VAT; in addition, the fuel used in international air travel, and nearly all domestic flights, is entirely free of tax" [1]. The rate was set at £5 for flights to most European countries [2] and £10 for other flights. In his November 1996 Budget statement, Kenneth Clarke stated that "air travel has also been undertaxed, because it has proved difficult--still proves difficult--to get international agreement to tax its fuel" [3] and announced a doubling of APD to £10 for flights to most European countries and £20 for other flights from 1st November 1997. Gordon Brown halved APD rates for economy class passengers flying to most European countries to £5 in his 2000 Budget, claiming that this would introduce "a new, lower and fairer air passenger duty"[4].' (source: Friends of the Earth, Media Briefing, November 2003 http://www.foe.co.uk/resource/briefings/air_passenger_duty.pdf) responsibletravel.com is an on-line travel agent - based in Brighton, England - launched in 2001 for travellers who want more real and authentic holidays that also benefit the environment and local people. responsibletravel.com markets carefully pre-screened holidays from over 270 leading worldwide tourism brands and businesses. More about the company here. Contact: Justin Francis press@responsibletravel.com 07787 555088 (m) |
