Secretary of state for culture, Olympics, media and sport Jeremy Hunt has said it is “not the time” to go to the Treasury to ask for a reduction in Air Passenger Duty.
The comments come as the UK travel industry braces itself for the UK government to raise APD further in its autumn forecast statement on November 29.
Speaking after this year’s World Travel Market opening ceremony, Hunt said: “We are trying to put the UK’s economy and finances back into shape. This is not the time to be going to the Treasury to introduce measures that could introduce costs to the economy.”
He added: “Next year we will see the biggest tourism campaign in our history to promote the UK. The government is doing its bit in difficult economic times.”
The World Travel Market 2011 Industry Report (pdf) reveals APD is having an impact on holiday plans of UK consumers. A total of 8% of holidaymakers would stop flying and a further 37% would reduce the number of holidays based on a poll of more than 1,000 holidaymakers in the report.