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Pilots disappointed at delay on air passenger duty decision

Pilots have long been calling on the government scrap air passenger duty and have expressed disappointment that a decision has been pushed until after Britain’s exit from the EU.

In yesterday’s Autumn Statement it was announced that, given the ‘strong interaction’ with EU law, the government ‘does not intend to take specific measures now, but intends to review this area again after the UK has exited from the EU.’

This is despite a PwC report last week that said abolishing APD would boost UK GDP by 1.7% and create 61,000 new jobs by 2020.

BALPA General Secretary, Brian Strutton, said:

“Last week’s figures from PwC show just how beneficial scrapping this unfair tax would be to the economy as a whole.

“While it’s encouraging that the government is open to reviewing air passenger duty, pilots are disappointed that once again they are left waiting for a firm decision on if it is to be scrapped.

“BALPA has been calling for an end to APD for many years and especially post-Brexit we need to ensure the British aviation industry remains competitive.”