SCOTLAND’S airports, airlines, business and tourism organisations have requested a meeting with the First Minister following the announcement Air Departure Tax will not be introduced until next year.
Taxation powers over aviation were devolved to the Scottish Parliament in 2016, with proposals to replace air passenger duty (APD) with ADT, set at half the current rate.
The SNP have a long-standing policy to cut the new tax by 50% before eventually scrapping it but there are legal challenges with EU approval needed under state aid rules to provide an exemption for the Highlands and Islands.
READ MORE: Air departure tax plan grounded until 2020 as problems persist
AGS Airports, which owns Aberdeen and Glasgow airports, Edinburgh Airport, Airlines UK, CBI Scotland, Scottish Chambers of Commerce, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, SCDI, Scottish Tourism Alliance and the Scottish Passenger Agents Association have co-signed a letter in which they express concern over the lack of consultation.
The letter to Nicola Sturgeon says: “Strong connectivity drives a range of activities that underpin successful, sustainable modern economies, from inward investment to exporting, productivity and tourism. Unfortunately, when benchmarked against European countries of a similar size, it is clear that Scotland’s connectivity lags.
"All of us share your ambitions for Scotland to become a ‘carbon neutral’ economy by 2045, however, this decision will do nothing to further that goal.
"Given the lack of consultation ahead of the decision on ADT and the lack of recognition of the huge steps the aviation industry is taking to tackle CO2 emissions, we are requesting a joint meeting to better understand how the Scottish Government can support an industry that has such an important role to play in strengthening Scotland’s global standing.”
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