UK air passenger tax stays but legal challenge possible

Several Caribbean Tourism Ministers in London for the World Travel Market met yesterday with UK parliamentarians and were told that the APD would not be scrapped and they would simply have to put measures in place to cope with it.

LONDON, England, November 12, 2009 – Britain has made it clear that the controversial air passenger duty (APD) that went into effect at the beginning of this month won’t be rolled back. But one Caribbean Minister is suggesting there are grounds for a legal challenge to the tax.

Several Caribbean Tourism Ministers in London for the World Travel Market met yesterday with UK parliamentarians and were told that the APD would not be scrapped and they would simply have to put measures in place to cope with it.

One of the region’s ministers, Senator Allen Chastanet of St Lucia, said he intends to fight what he described as an illegal tax increase.

The revised APD regime places countries in bands, with those closest to London paying the lowest tax. It places long haul destinations like those in the Caribbean in one of the highest bands, with economy class passengers facing a tax of £50 (US$73) per ticket, with the amount increasing to £75 (US$110) next year. The proposed tax for premium economy, business, and first class tickets, will be double those amounts.

Chastanet says a paper has been submitted to the British government requesting that Caribbean countries be viewed as a group, so that that tax for flights to the region would be calculated based on the distance between Britain and Bermuda, which is the closest island to London.

The St Lucian Tourism Minister said some of his regional counterparts have also raised the matter with the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

“One of the aspects of this tax which cannot be ignored is the fact that it’s a proportional tax, meaning on distance, which means technically the British government is charging a tax over people’s airspace,” Chastanet explained.

“We are leading a charge with the Americans and also the Canadians at the next ICAO meeting to say that this is an illegal tax. We are going to try everything we possibly can to show that this is not the way forward.”