Sign up to E-News
Response to the government’s pre-Budget announcement relating to environmental taxation
Benedict Southworh, director of the World Development Movement said:
“We warmly welcome the announcement today that the government is to replace air passenger duty with an environmental tax on planes. For the first time taxes on aviation will be linked to carbon dioxide emissions.
“The challenge for the UK government is now to set taxes on planes at a high enough rate to halt the growth in aviation. The aviation industry pays no tax on fuel and no VAT, and so effectively receives a subsidy of over £10 billion a year from the British taxpayer.
“Aviation accounts for 13 per cent of the UK’s contribution to climate change and is the fastest growing source of UK emissions. To prevent climate change having a catastrophic impact on the world’s poor, the UK has to halt the growth in emissions from aviation.”
ENDS
For comment or interview please contact:
Kate Blagojevic
Press officer, World Development Movement
0207 820 4900/4913, 07711 875 345, Email:
Notes to Editors
The World Development Movement campaigns to tackle the root causes of poverty. WDM believes that charity is not enough and aims to change the policies that keep the developing world poor. It is a democratic and politically independent organisation with 16,500 supporters and 70 local groups across the UK.
Print this page
