THE Scottish and UK Government must work together to introduce a tax on private jets, according to the Scottish Greens.
The party’s transport spokesperson Mark Ruskell has called on the governments to cooperate in the rolling out of the Air Departure Tax (ADT).
In 2017, the Scottish Parliament passed legislation to replace Air Passenger Duty with the ADT after the powers to introduce a tax on the carriage of passengers from airports in Scotland was devolved.
However, the Scottish Government said the legislation is yet to be enforced due to the UK Treasury’s refusal to allow an exemption for lifeline flights covering the Highlands and Islands.
Yet a recent report from Oxfam argued that the tax could be applied almost immediately if the two governments cooperated.
Ruskell has written to the Scottish Government’s Minister for Connectivity and Agriculture, Jim Fairlie, and the UK government’s Under-Secretary of State for Transport, Mike Kane, calling for a meeting to resolve the stalemate and urgently bring in the tax.
Oxfam’s report found that since 2019 there have been 54,746 private flights in Scotland.
The charity argues that an ADT on private jets could raise more than £21 million a year, which could be funneled into funding for public transport such as scrapping peak time rail fares.
“There are few things in this world as wasteful, needless and destructive as private jets,” said Ruskell.
“It is absurd we are allowing multi-millionaires to pollute the world around us at such an obscene rate.
“Private jets are used as a decadent and extravagant sign of wealth and status, transporting some of the wealthiest people in the world from one destination to the next.
“There is no justification for them, especially at a time when global temperatures are rising.
"The truth is that we cannot even begin to tackle the climate crisis without drastically reducing the number of flights that are taking off and landing every day, both here in Scotland and around the world.
“A private jet tax is long overdue, but it will take political will and our governments working together.
“For far too long we’ve had a stalemate, with Holyrood blaming Westminster for inaction while UK ministers have refused to engage.
“We need to get it solved as soon as possible so that we can finally deter flights, permanently end peak rail fares and raise vital funds for public transport.
“The Scotland I want us to build is one where rail is always an affordable, accessible and reliable option, not one where private jets are flying overhead as the super-rich disregard our climate and pollute our planet.”
It comes after a transport expert said the Scottish Government’s trial removal of peak rail fares was “not long enough” to assess its benefits.
