Air passengers hit by first wave of APD hikes

Despite a wave of criticism from within the travel industry, the first of two rises to Air Passenger Duty (APD) came into effect at all UK airports yesterday.

Under the new system Economy passengers must add between £11 and £55 to the cost of each flight from the UK, with further rises slated for November 2010.

Although the controversial tax has been billed as an environmental levy, the government has steadfastly refused to demonstrate how the funds are to be distributed.

The new APD system is split into four bands corresponding to distance travelled.

Flights in Band A (for destinations under 2,000 miles from London) now attract a levy of £11 – up from £10 – while in Band B (2,001 – 4,000 miles) the tax has risen from £40 to £45. The tax on Band C flights (4,001 – 6,000 miles) has also spiked from £40 to £50.

In the highest charging category, Band D (more than 6,000 miles), passengers are now hit by a £55 levy – and all of these fees are doubled in premium cabins.

"These APD rises will put pressure on jobs and damage local economies reliant on tourist expenditure both here and abroad when we are already suffering from the impact of the recession," commented Mark Tanzer of the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA).

They will also hit families particularly hard, with a family of four headed to Thailand now having to find an extra £200 in order to afford their annual holiday.

Worst of all, the controversial levy is set to rise yet again next November, when the tax on a flight to Australia will skyrocket to £85 per person. In Premium Economy that will double to an almost incomprehensible £170, forcing many to cancel travel plans.

A spokesman for the Treasury defended the APD hikes, telling the BBC that the tax will be "an important contributor to the public finances" during the recession.

© Cheapflights Ltd

Comments

[mr/s d&p wright]

Another rip-off by this Labour government. Let's get them out at the next general election before they tax the air we breathe.

[Malcolm]

I think they are already taxing the air we breathe via "green taxes".

[Jon]

Is there an online petition which we can sign to show our anger at this - typical Brown - move?

[william]

The spokesman's comment says it all - an important addition to the public finances. It will never be used for the reasons it was supposedly introduced. They will probably try to bribe us in some way to vote for them, collecting money under false pretences once again. In the public domain it's called fraud and our feet would not touch the ground on the way to prison.

[The Cheapflights Team]

Dear Jon,

The Telegraph is organising a petition, which we support. If you go to the Daily Telegraph website and email your name and address (with postcode) they will include it in their petition to the Government.

Kind regards,

The Cheapflights Team