DAVID CAMERON has killed off any hopes of a tax cut for passengers flying from regional airports – despite a reduction in Northern Ireland.

The Prime Minister ruled out a rethink over looming hikes to air passenger duty (APD), increases that have been fiercely fought by the owner of Liverpool's John Lennon Airport (JLA).

The Treasury plans to raise an extra £900m from the tax by 2013, which means a rise seems certain in an announcement expected in the Chancellor's autumn statement, next month.

Yet, last month, the Government announced a cut in APD for long-haul routes from Northern Ireland airports, after warnings that the tax would kill off the daily service between Belfast and New York.

Quizzed, at Westminster, about the different treatment for Northern Ireland, Mr Cameron replied: "I understand the arguments. We do want successful regional airports.

"I'm happy to look at what will help regional airports, but we have a national taxation system and that would be difficult to change.

"We have made an exception for Belfast and devolved air passenger duty for a very specific reason. They have a different situation, with a land border with the Republic and a choice of where to fly from.

"I'm not sure there is a read-across from Belfast to Newcastle, I'm afraid."

APD is split into four bands; ranging from £12 for an economy-class short-haul flight to £85 for long-haul destinations, such as Australia.

Chancellor George Osborne was forced to dump plans to charge APD on a per-plane basis, rather than a per-passenger basis, because they fell foul of international law.

Any hike in APD in Britain will be imposed as the air industry is included in the EU's emissions trading scheme (ETS) – threatening regional airports with a "double whammy".

Peel Airports Group, the owner of JLA, has put the combined tax burden at £3.6bn by next year – far higher than the "environment cost" of flying, which it put at £2bn.