EasyJet's aviation tax proposals

EasyJet would like to see air passenger duty (APD) scrapped. (Someone tell them that that battle has already been fought, and lost.) Their reasoning is that, if there is to be a tax on travel, instead of it being levied on individual passengers, it would be better, for environmental reasons, to levy it on individual flights, irrespective of how many passengers they carried. They believe that this would discourage airlines from operating flights with half-empty planes.

Well, yes. But what stops an airline from charging its passengers a premium on flights that are bound to be below full capacity? Even if not that, the airline would still find another way to pass on the cost to the passenger. That, after all, is what generally happens in business.

Easyjet has recently acquired some new aircraft, and would like to see older planes with more CO2 emissions taxed at a higher rate. I suppose it makes sense, but I am yet to be convinced that more environmental taxes are needed anywhere at all, least of all in the aviation sector.

Friends of the Earth have no such reservations. For starters, they would like to see VAT on air travel. They obviously do not realise that, as VAT paid in the course of a trader's 'economic activity' can be reclaimed by the trader, the only person who is out of pocket VAT-wise, will be the poor passenger who is taking a non-business flight. So charge VAT all you like, businesses will just reclaim it, as it is revenue-neutral for them. The only person taking the tax hit will be the holiday maker. Not very sensible now, is it?