SDLP Economy spokesperson Sinead McLaughlin has called on the UK government to end Air Passenger Duty on flights between the North of Ireland and Great Britain.
She said this was needed to ensure the viability of Belfast City Airport and the continuation of links between the North of Ireland and regional GB airports in the wake of the collapse of Flybe.
Said the Foyle MLA: “The principle of Air Passenger Duty on internal flights within Great Britain makes sense to encourage passengers to travel by train and to reduce carbon emissions.
“But that logic does not apply to the North of Ireland.
“We are reliant on air links to get to Great Britain. So for us, APD is just an extra tax that makes it more expensive to fly and puts strain on our regional airports – both Belfast City Airport and the City of Derry Airport.
“To protect our regional connectivity we need APD to end on flights between NI and GB.
“The Highlands and Islands of Scotland are recognised as being reliant on air connections, so APD is not levied on their flights.
“Exactly the same situation applies to Northern Ireland, yet we are treated differently.
“This is discriminatory against Northern Ireland and demonstrates the UK government is less concerned about us than it is about the north of Scotland. That discrimination has to end.
“We want to protect Belfast City Airport and also the City of Derry Airport.
“One risk is that a new airline or airlines brought in for regional connections between Belfast City and GB regional airports will offer fewer destinations than Flybe provided.
“Removing APD on these flights would be likely to make more routes more attractive to more airlines to keep Northern Ireland’s vital regional connectivity open.”
