Easyjet supports green air taxes

Read more about: air travel, emissions, flights, taxation

The budget airline Easyjet has announced its support for a green tax on air travel. The carrier says current air passenger duty should be scrapped and replaced with a tax based on the amount of carbon dioxide produced on each flight.

It believes such a tax would mean Easyjet passengers would pay less than they do with passenger duty.

Ministers say including aviation in the EU’s carbon trading scheme is the best way to ensure meeting emission targets.

‘Ineffective tax’
The BBC’s transport correspondent Tom Symonds said Easyjet’s routes were relatively short compared with full service carriers and it used newer aircraft.

This meant the no-frills airline believed its carbon emissions would be lower per passenger than many of its rivals, he said.

“We should all demand a more intelligent approach to flying.”
Andy Harrison
Easyjet chief executive

Earlier this year, the government came in for heavy criticism from the UK’s leading airlines for doubling the UK Air Passenger Duty (APD).

Easyjet described the charge as “an ineffective environmental tax” which failed to recognise that some airlines have more efficient planes than others.

In its latest report, Towards Greener Skies: The Surprising Truth About Flying And The Environment, Easyjet has urged the government to bring in a tax based on aircraft types and distance travelled.

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