North East told to stop moaning about airport tax
Oct 19 2009 by Adrian Pearson, The Journal
“But we can’t sustain public services unless we have a viable tax base and APD is part of that.” His comments come just days after economists at the ippr North think-tank warned the region will see tens of thousands of public sector redundancies as the Government embarks on a series of indiscriminate spending cuts.
And despite Lord Adonis’s promises the region will benefit from continued transport funding as a result of such taxes, his department’s own spending plans for the decade after 2014 do not list Tyneside roads, airport and port as national infrastructure assets.
As a result the region will be far down the queue when it comes to future Government investment. If the duty is increased passengers will see ticket prices increase by up to £40, while family holidays could be £300 more expensive than at present.
Bosses at Newcastle Airport hit back at claims the tax is needed to offset the environmental impact of increased flight numbers. Graeme Mason, head of planning and corporate affairs, said airlines were already set to pay as a result of the European Emissions Trading Scheme set to be introduced in a few years.
“There will be a large regional impact from the APD increases and yet the justification for these is already dealt with in the trading scheme.”
The North East Chamber of Commerce has also questioned Lord Adonis’s justification for tax increases.
Ross Smith, head of policy at the Chamber, said: “The North East is not going to be advanced in anyway by threatening our connectivity. We need to be growing our success in international trade by doing all we can to strengthen our international links.”
