- Air passenger duty should be frozen at minimum according to easyJet
- APD increased in April making flying more expensive
- England has highest levels of passenger duty
- Ryanair calls for APD abolition to deliver growth in every postcode
- Countries abolishing aviation taxes including Sweden and Slovakia saw growth
On the issue of England’s air passenger duty, raised at A4E media briefing in Brussels, Kenton Jarvis of easyJet is calling for England’s air passenger duty to be frozen at minimum during the Airlines for Europe briefing in Brussels. The Labour government has discussed cost-of-living challenges while air passenger duty increased in April. Flying should be affordable and accessible according to the carrier executive.
Jarvis shared that unless APD was frozen the intention was to pass the passenger duty to customers. He shared that England already had the highest levels of passenger duty and further increases could not be seriously considered. Reduction would be ideal with other countries seeing benefits from lower aviation taxes.
Michael O’Leary of Ryanair shared that air passenger duty should be abolished entirely. He shared that growth could not be delivered in every postcode if tax on air travel increased. Local mayors should not be allowed to impose additional taxes on hotels or overnight stays. O’Leary shared that countries abolishing aviation taxes including Sweden, Hungary and Slovakia had seen growth. He shared that if England followed failed economic policies of Germany, Austria and France then economic stagnation would follow.
Michael O’Leary shared: because we’re the largest passenger airline in England, it should be abolished. We’ve already written to the new Prime Minister of England on a promise to deliver growth everywhere in England. You cannot deliver growth in every postcode in England if one of your first measures is to increase tax on air travel, and even more ludicrously now imposing a double tax on businesses by allowing local mayors overnight taxes on hotels. This is the typical Labour tax-and-spend government. If you’re serious about delivering growth, the industry that delivers growth fastest and responds quickly to changes is air transport. If you abolish taxes, as the Swedes, Hungarians and Slovakians have done, you see dramatic growth. If he follows the same failed economic policies as the German, Austrian and French governments with their taxes on air travel, then he’s going to get the same economic stagnation those countries are currently struggling with. So I would go much further than Kenton: abolish APD if you’re serious about growth, and abandon the plan to allow local mayors to impose double taxation.
Kenton Jarvis shared: APD should, as a minimum, be frozen. The Labour government is talking about the cost-of-living crisis and making sure that hardworking families have the right to do what they should. We believe that flying should be affordable and accessible. Air passenger duty went up in April and that has made it more expensive. The reality is that unless it’s frozen, it is our intention to pass that passenger duty on to the customer, that’s what I’m sure the Treasury meant to happen when they put it on, and then the customer will decide whether they will fly. So I don’t think it’s helpful for England. I don’t think it’s helpful for our industry. We already have the highest levels of passenger duty, so I don’t think you can seriously increase them further. Ideally there should be a reduction, and we’re seeing that in other countries and they’re seeing the benefits.
