Environmental campaign group Possible is urging the Chancellor to close tax loopholes benefiting private jet users, arguing that fairer aviation taxation could raise hundreds of millions of pounds for public services.
The campaign comes ahead of the government’s upcoming Budget, with Possible highlighting what it describes as a stark disparity in how ordinary motorists and wealthy private jet passengers are taxed.
The group are urging supporters to ask their MP to lobby the chancellor to address the current iniquity.
Currently, private jets pay no fuel tax, no VAT, and in many cases no passenger tax at all, despite flights costing up to £10,000 per hour. The group argues that someone driving to work often pays more tax on their journey than a billionaire does for a private jet flight.
While the government announced last year that it would increase the higher rate of Air Passenger Duty (APD) for private jets by 50% in 2026-27, campaigners say this doesn’t go far enough. Even after the proposed increase, the higher rate of APD will be just £142 for journeys up to 2,000 miles – a fraction of the cost of flights that can run into tens of thousands of pounds.
Perhaps more significantly, the campaign has revealed that only around a quarter of private jet passengers currently pay the higher rate of APD, with three-quarters paying the same rate as premium economy passengers or nothing at all.
In a letter to the Chancellor, the campaign has outlined several policy options the Treasury could consider, including:
- A much larger increase to the higher rate of APD for private jet flights
- Closing the loophole that allows most private jets to avoid APD entirely
- Creating a new super-high APD band for the most polluting aircraft
- Introducing a high rate of kerosene tax specifically for private jet fuel
The campaign frames the issue as addressing three interconnected challenges: generating revenue for underfunded public services, tackling climate change by taxing high-pollution activities, and reducing inequality by ensuring the wealthiest pay their fair share.
‘It’s time for this government to realise that the public won’t tolerate one rule for the rich and another for everyone else,’ the campaign states, adding that while schools, hospitals and councils struggle for funding, ‘the super-rich are flying around in untaxed luxury.’
The proposals have gained traction as the government faces difficult decisions about how to fund public services while meeting its climate commitments and addressing cost-of-living pressures on ordinary households.
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