Lucy Huxley, editor of the UK’s Travel Trade Gazette (TTG) is behind a Fair Fares campaign to stop the UK government from imposing new Air Passenger Duty (APD) rates that would increase the cost of travel to the Caribbean. The ADP system structure would mean that customers flying to the Caribbean would pay a higher rate than those flying to any point in the US. “And at 150 pounds a head in premium economy, it will mean an extra 600 pounds for a family of four going to the Dominican Republic after November 2010,” she points out in an editorial in the 16 January edition. She makes the point that at times when cost-conscious consumers are looking to get the best-value holidays, the increased APD could put them off going to a particular destination altogether, prompting them to opt for somewhere in a cheaper (but not necessarily nearer) band instead. She says the proposed APD structure would penalize travelers and be “seriously damaging” for the Caribbean.
As reported in TTG, the Association of British Travel Agents is lobbying the government to get the system changed in this spring’s Budget before the rules come into force in November. Andy Cooper of the ABTA says they have called for the system to be changed to three bands – 0-2,500 miles, 2,500-5,000 miles and 5,000 miles and above – and calculated purely on distance rather than by capital cities. The APD structure was conceived to push airlines to become environmentally friendly. Ricky Skerritt, tourism minister of St. Kitts complains that instead it will end up penalizing a region that is already one of the most environmentally friendly in the world.
To participate in the campaign against this measure, see www.ttglive.com/travelgivesback