U-turn on aviation tax a 'huge blow' for Glasgow Airport

The Scottish Government has announced it is abandoning plans to cut air departure tax after declaring a climate emergency.

The SNP's flagship manifesto policy to halve the air duty before abolishing it altogether has been scrapped, with ministers saying "reducing air departure tax (ADT) is no longer compatible with more ambitious climate targets".

The u-turn follows pressure from opposition parties who questioned how a policy to reduce a tax on flying was compatible with the Scottish Government's decision to announce a climate emergency.

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Scottish Labour had secured a vote on the issue set for Wednesday, claiming the policy was a £150 million tax cut for the airline industry and the richest in society.

The vote posed a dilemma for Nicola Sturgeon's Government, with the Scottish Greens expected to join Labour, the Lib Dems and members of the First Minister's own party in opposing the cut to air departure tax.

Instead, Finance Secretary Derek Mackay announced on Tuesday that the Government is dropping its backing for the tax reduction.

Derek Provan, chief executive of AGS Airports which owns and manages Aberdeen International and Glasgow airports, said: "The Scottish Government’s decision to abandon its manifesto pledge to cut aviation tax is a huge blow for our airports and for Scotland’s connectivity.

"Over the course of the past year alone, we have seen the withdrawal by airlines of almost 30 routes from Aberdeen and Glasgow airports because of Air Passenger Duty (APD).

"We need only look to Inverness, which is currently exempt from APD, to see how airlines can and do respond.

"British Airways withdrew capacity at Aberdeen whilst adding services in Inverness which benefits from the lack of APD.

"By dropping plans to cut this tax on passengers we are missing a very real opportunity to secure new routes and, more worryingly, maintain existing services which play a vital role in supporting our economy.

"Together with the wider industry we have always said growth in aviation can and must go hand in hand with action on the environment but scrapping this policy will do nothing to reduce global CO2 emissions.

"As a global sector by nature the only way to achieve this is through international action, and that’s why over 190 countries have signed up to a carbon offsetting scheme that will address increases in total emissions from international aviation above 2020 levels."

Environment and Climate Change Secretary Roseanna Cunningham explained the Government was assessing all its policies in light of the new climate change targets announced last week.

Ms Cunningham added: "Following the First Minister's declaration of a climate emergency last week, and the recommendations from the UK Committee on Climate Change, we have moved quickly to increase Scotland's emissions reduction targets - which will now be the most stringent in the world.

"Scotland has already shown global leadership by including a fair share of international aviation and shipping emissions in its statutory climate targets, and the fact is that aviation emissions contribute a relatively limited amount to Scotland's overall carbon emissions - so while we are making this commitment as the first step to meeting the climate emergency, no one should be pretending that this is job done."

Scottish Greens parliamentary co-leader Patrick Harvie said: "Greens have led the case against this ill thought out tax giveaway from the moment it was first proposed, so we very much welcome the Scottish Government's huge u-turn on this issue.

"Today, Greens have lodged amendments to the climate change bill to deliver net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.

"If parliament is serious about tackling the climate emergency then it's vital that an ambitious target is set, and that we are willing to take more decisive policy decisions like scrapping this proposed air tax cuts to back it up."

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