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Airport Operators Association response to Smith Commission proposals on Air Passenger Duty

In response to today’s announcement by the Smith Commission on the devolution of Air Passenger Duty to Scotland, Darren Caplan, Chief Executive of the Airport Operators Association, the trade association for UK airports, said:

• “UK levels of Air Passenger Duty (APD) continue to be the highest in the world, and represent a growing barrier to trade, investment and tourism.
• “The AOA supported the Treasury’s removal of APD for the longest flights in the 2014 Budget, but the fact remains that at a time when our international competitors are either freezing or abolishing their respective air taxes, overall levels of APD in this country are still at record high levels, and are increasing year after year.
• “A cut in APD anywhere should be matched by a cut everywhere in the UK. The AOA will continue to make this case to the Treasury in the months ahead.”

For further information please contact Tim Alderslade on 078 5533 7616 or timalderslade@aoa.org.uk.

ENDS