21 March 2012
Osborne resists demands of roads & aviation lobbies for lower taxes
Transform Scotland comment on UK Budget
Transform Scotland [1], the sustainable transport alliance, today (Wednesday 21) welcomed Chancellor George Osborne's decision in today's UK Budget to resist calls for further cuts to taxes on aviation and road use.
Transform Scotland director Colin Howden said:
"The last few weeks have seen concerted efforts by the roads lobby for lower fuel duty, and the aviation industry for cuts to Air Passenger Duty. So it's welcome that George Osborne has resisted their demands. Cutting fuel taxes would only have increased the country's unsustainable levels of oil dependency. [2]
"Last year's Autumn Statement already included a massive cut in fuel duty which will cost the UK Government almost £5 billion in tax receipts. [3] For its part, the aviation industry avoids around £9 billion of tax each year because it doesn't pay fuel tax or VAT. So it's only fair that its complaints about APD, which is trivial in scale in comparison, have been rejected."
The Budget does include tax increases for company cars. But the announcements on planning and road-building do not apply in Scotland (although they seem generally pretty damaging).
ENDS
Notes to Editors
[1] Transform Scotland is the national sustainable transport alliance, bringing together rail, bus and shipping operators, local authorities, national environment and conservation groups, businesses and local transport groups - see <http://www.transformscotland.org.uk/members.aspx> for details.
[2] See <http://www.transformscotland.org.uk/cutting-fuel-duty-would-deepen-our-dependence-on-oil.aspx> for more background information, including links to Green Alliance and Policy Studies Institute reports on fuel duty.
[3] See 'Autumn Statement 2011' document, available at <http://cdn.hm-treasury.gov.uk/autumn_statement.pdf>. Table 2.1, Measure 7 ('Fuel duty'), shows that the cost to the Treasury of the fuel duty cuts announced in that statement cumulate to £4.825 billion.
END OF NEWS RELEASE