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£1 passenger protection levy ‘sparks row’
A plan for a £1 levy on air passengers to provide protection against scheduled airline failure has sparked a “massive row” within the Government, it has been reported.
As the scheme’s supporters look for the measure to be included in the Aviation Bill, which receives its second reading today, The Independent reported a split between the Department for Transport and the Treasury.
The Treasury is arguing that it is a superfluous piece of regulation and that customers themselves should ensure they are covered, the newspaper reported on Saturday.
This is despite the scheme, which is being proposed by the Civil Aviation Authority, winning support of most of the travel industry and the House of Commons Transport Committee. The DoT is understood to also back the plan on the grounds that it would replace existing regulatory law which is unsatisfactory because it only covers a proportion of passengers, the newspaper reported.
But British Airways and Ryanair oppose the idea of the levy, with a spokesman for the UK carrier quoted as saying: “We are a well established airline and it is unfair that our customers should have to fund compensation for those who choose to travel on less established airlines. Due to our passengers volumes, we would have to provide the lion’s share of the funding to provide proection against other airlines’ bankruptcy.”
A spokeswoman for Ryanair reportedly said: “It is like asking Chelsea to give points to relegated teams at the end of every season or like asking Labour to give seats to the Tories after every election win. The proposal is stupidity personified and we totally oppose it.”
Report by Phil Davies
Phil Davies
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