That the Parliament notes the news that the airline, Norwegian, will be withdrawing a route to Connecticut from Edinburgh due, it believes, to delays in the reduction of Air Passenger Duty (APD) or Air Departure Tax (ADT); understands that the airline will also be reducing the number of flights to Rhode Island and Stewart, north of New York City; believes that this is the first time that an airline has said that it is cutting flights due to APD; accepts that there are arguments on both sides of APD and that there are legal complications; considers that one of Scotland’s key strengths is its tourism industry, and looks forward to further consideration of a reduction in APD, which it believes will bring with it significant potential benefits to the sector and the number of international flights into and out of Scotland.
Supported by:
Jeremy Balfour, Michelle Ballantyne, Bill Bowman, Miles Briggs, Alexander Burnett, Donald Cameron, Jackson Carlaw, Peter Chapman, Maurice Corry, Murdo Fraser, Jenny Gilruth, Maurice Golden, Jamie Greene, Jamie Halcro Johnston, Rachael Hamilton, Alison Harris, Liam Kerr, Gordon Lindhurst, Tom Mason, Margaret Mitchell, Edward Mountain, Graham Simpson, Alexander Stewart, Adam Tomkins, Brian Whittle