Aviation

At present, the aviation industry pays no fuel tax, and there are plans to expand several airports.

Government efforts to reduce aviation’s impact on the planet rely on cleaner fuels at some uncertain but certainly distant date in the future. The only way to reduce emissions from aviation now is to fly less.

We want to see emissions from aviation reduced now. To achieve this, we need:

• To substantially reduce domestic flights
• Commitment by Government departments and businesses to a ‘rail by default’ policy for UK and near-Europe corporate travel
• A tax on aviation fuel
• A new ‘super’ rate of Air Passenger Duty to apply to private jet passengers, and private flights to lose their VAT-free status
• Cheaper rail travel to compete with domestic aviation
• Mandatory labelling of airline tickets with comparison carbon emissions by other transport modes.

“To help reduce carbon emissions from domestic aviation, we need to see Government policies which ensure rail is always the easier and cheaper than flying so that more people can choose the train over the plane.” Silviya Barrett, Director of Policy and Campaigns, Campaign for Better Transport