Air travel tax challenge fails
Federation of Tour Operators case thrown out
A High Court judge has ruled against The
Federation of Tour Operators (FTO) and two of its members after they sought
to challenge the legality of the government’s environmental tax on air travel –
air
passenger duty (APD).
The legal challenge came on the back of a £50m bill for the tour operators
that could not be passed on to customers.
The FTO and the two members had argued that existing bookings should have
been exempt from the tax as they had been given insufficient notice of the tax
rise
However judge Stanley Burnton said that APD was ‘a proportional measure’ to
cut environmental damage from aircraft emissions and was aimed at reducing air
travel below the level at which it would otherwise be, and thereby reducing the
damage caused to the environment by such travel.
They cannot appeal the ruling.
Further reading:
Air passenger duty ‘illegal’, court told
Silverjet boss slams air tax plans