LIVERPOOL John Lennon Air-port is joining forces with other airports in the North of England to push the Government to rethink plans to hit the airline sector for £500m in extra taxes.

The airport’s managing director Neil Pakey says Air Passenger Duty (APD) is making it hard for UK regional airports like JLA to win new routes by adding to the cost of tickets.

Economy passengers pay £10 APD on low-cost flights to Europ-ean destinations and £40 for long-haul flights after taxes doubled last year and now Mr Pakey says airlines cut back on routes from the North as a result. He says Northern airports are more sen-sitive to higher costs. The Govern-ment plans to reform APD paid by individual pass-engers with a new tax on planes. Airlines say the Government could expect to earn another £500m in taxes as a result.

Mr Pakey says UK taxes on avia-tion already make airports in the UK less attractive destinations compared to the continent. He says JLA and other airports want to make clear to Government that any further tax rises will make the UK even less com-petitive.

In April British Airways said it was ending its Manchester to New York route after 40 years, a move Mr Pakey says was down in part to increasing APD and said: “BA pulling out of Manchester-New York after 40 years was a water-shed. We are encouraging the Government to look closer at the potential economic impact on the regions of these changes.

“We’ve got aspirations of con-necting Liverpool to longer-haul destinations. We’re talking to a number of airlines. But when discussions come back to UK taxation policies it worries us.”

JLA plans to work with Man-chester, Blackpool, Newcastle airports as well as sister airports Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield and Durham Tees Valley.

Visit www.ldpbusiness.co.uk for more analysis of airline taxation

alistairhoughton