Labour's net-zero ‘flight tax' set to raise cost of family holiday

Telegraph

3 days ago

Labour's 'flight tax' on airlines will add more than £50 to the cost of a family holiday within a decade, analysis shows.
Net zero rules introduced by Sir Keir Starmer mean planes must be filled with at least 2 per cent sustainable fuel, which will rise to 10 per cent followed by 22 per cent by 2040.
The Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) mandate means airlines that do not comply with the green policy face heavy fines likely to be passed on in part to passengers.
Costs associated with the new levy are expected to reach £4.5 billion by 2035, according to a new analysis by Public First.
This works out at £12.79 per passenger per flight leaving the UK, adding £51.16 to the average overseas holiday taken by a family of four.
The impact of the policy is expected to hit Britons as soon as 2027, with its cost hitting £200 million in that year.
'Ludicrous net stupid zero'
By 2030, this figure will have ballooned to £1.5 million, the equivalent to £4.64 per passenger per flight – making a holiday for a family of four £18.56 more expensive.
Richard Tice, the Reform UK deputy leader, told The Telegraph: 'This is yet another egregious tax on working citizens to pay for the ludicrous net stupid zero. A Reform government will scrap all this nonsense.'
Greg Smith, a Tory transport minister, said: 'Labour said the transition to green aviation would cost pennies but now families are being hit with soaring ticket prices to fund Ed Miliband's net zero experiment.
'It's not just weekend getaways being priced out. It's regional airports under threat, tourism on the ropes, and British families paying the price for Labour's ideological fantasy.
'The truth is net zero by 2050 is impossible without bankrupting our country and Labour's plan to chase it will ground British families before it ever lands.'
80pc cost could be passed to consumers
The Government's own impact assessment of the green mandate found that as much as 80 per cent of its cost could be passed on to consumers.
Labour claims the pledge to use more sustainable fuel will support thousands of jobs while cutting the UK's transport emissions on the way to becoming a 'clean energy superpower'.
The figures come as ministers were urged to relax red tape that means SAF cannot currently be made from non-food grade British-grown wheat.
Phil New led the Government's independent review into the future of SAF and urged it to consider British bioethanol as a credible and scalable option.
Mr New said: 'Ethanol made from British-grown milling wheat, which would otherwise be exported as animal feed, can be processed into SAF in a way that meets the emissions reductions required by the UK's standards.
'Home-grown, low-carbon aviation fuel industry'
'This is a real opportunity to create a home-grown, low-carbon aviation fuel industry that supports British agriculture, strengthens fuel security and helps us meet our climate ambitions.'
Ben Hackett, managing director at Vivergo Fuels, added: 'The UK has the capability today to produce sustainable aviation fuel from home-grown non-food grade wheat – supporting British farmers, reducing carbon emissions, and improving our energy security. But outdated regulations are blocking this from happening.
'It makes no sense that ethanol from British wheat can be blended into petrol for cars, but not used to make jet fuel, especially when other countries are already moving ahead with this technology.'
The analysis by Public First also found the UK could require the output of seven large-scale bioethanol plants by 2035 to meet growing domestic demand for SAF.