The team at Newcastle Airport is encouraged by the Chancellor George Osborne’s decision to reduce air passenger duty (APD) on direct long-haul routes from Northern Ireland airports.
The Chancellor will lower the rate of APD from £60 to £12 per person on the Continental Airlines daily route to New York from Belfast, the airport’s last remaining transatlantic link, after serious concerns the airline would be forced to cease the service.
Graeme Mason, planning and corporate affairs director at Newcastle Airport, said: “If the Government can pull out all the stops to protect an air link serving Northern Ireland, then it can do the same for the North East. We have said before that APD should be abolished or reduced significantly across the whole country.
“Any differentiation based upon geographical criteria, which appears to be the case with the Northern Ireland proposal, would be unfair and possibly illegal under EU State Aid Regulations. Also, where would it end? Would Scotland and Wales also be successful in arguing special circumstances? A much fairer, and probably legal, approach would be to give all regional airports a stimulus by varying the rate of APD between congested and non-congested airports, thereby protecting the interests of all disadvantaged regions.”
In June 2011, Newcastle International responded to the Government’s consultation on the Reform of Air Passenger Duty set out in the March Budget to lobby government for a radical change to how the aviation tax is applied on a national level. This response included outlining the impact on regional economies, and how the devolution of APD to administrations would affect the North East.
A group of regional airports joined together to propose that the government replace APD with an Airport Congestion Tax which would be charged at a higher rate from the most congested airports in the UK.
Business leaders and airlines have voiced their support in the campaign to reform APD.
James Ramsbotham, chief executive of the North East Chamber (NECC), said: “If the announcement is the sign of a more flexible approach, and recognition APD can be damaging to some airports, then we welcome it. If, however, it is a sign that control of rates of APD is to be devolved to Wales and Scotland then we see this as truly worrying and inequitable.”
George Osborne will give a speech on 29th November when it will become evident if the airport’s response on APD has been heard. The announcement yesterday sets a precedent for Newcastle International in the campaign against the damaging aviation tax.