Air Travel
Air travel has become a routine expectation for many in Britain and low cost carriers have made mass travel a reality as never before. Yet we now know that airplane engines are one of the most destructive ways of putting emissions where they do the most environmental damage. As mass aviation has grown, so has the size and number of flights and for residents near busy airports this means growing levels of air pollution, noise and disturbance.
Whilst the damaging effects of aviation are becoming clear, we are also
faced with another legacy. Air travel is big business.
The economy has come to depend on swift transport of people
and goods. Hundreds of thousands of people are employed in
the aviation industry and many more depend it through related businesses such as
tourism. It is an important contributor to GDP, both directly and indirectly,
and a major employer particularly in the South East. The
dilemma which faces policy makers therefore is to accept the need for air travel
on the one hand, but also to accept the imperative of sustainability on the
other.
Air passenger duty is trumpeted as a “green” tax yet it was introduced by
the Tories to fill a hole in the budget and has little or no impact on airlines.
A tax on airplanes rather than passengers would encourage
airlines to become more environmentally efficient. In
particular, if it was related to the emission level of the aircraft, as we
propose, it would lead to more fuel efficient engines and discourage planes
being flown when half empty.
We would impose duty on aviation fuel and press for an international
agreement to extend emissions trading to aviation.
Whatever the actual instruments used, the aviation industry must accept
the principle that ‘the polluter pays’. The true cost of
flying must be reflected in the price – there is no alternative.
We have to accept there is a price to pay because our desire for
unlimited, low cost air travel is environmentally unsustainable.
To be sure these are tough choices for any government.
How much easier to accept that there is always another election coming up
and we can give consumers what they want and worry about the future
later. Liberal Democrats must and will face up to these tough
choices.
