Green travellers: holidaymakers carbon conscience

Air passenger duty on short-haul flights would need to almost quadruple to discourage British holidaymakers from flying, according to new research from Halifax Travel Insurance.

Air passenger duty currently set at £20 for short-haul flights, would need to increase to £78 to discourage Britons from flying abroad. The £40 duty on long haul flights would need to increase by more than three times - to £128.

Halifax Travel Insurance’s research found that millions of Britons are already taking proactive steps to reduce their carbon footprints. One-in-four (26%) Britons vowed to take more holidays in the UK instead of travelling abroad. Where it is feasible to do so, a further 5.8 million Britons will use more environmentally friendly forms of transport, such as trains or ferries to reach foreign holiday destinations.

One-in-ten Britons would consider making a financial donation in a bid to offset the carbon emissions from their holiday, a facility increasingly offered by many of the leading airlines. A further 4.2 million (one-in-ten Britons) are simply intending to reduce their annual holiday air miles to minimise their impact on the environment.

However, not everyone feels so strongly. The majority of Britons (54%) won’t be taking any proactive measures to minimise their holiday carbon footprint.

Bill McGuire, Benfield Professor of Geohazards and Director of the Benfield Hazard Research Centre, commented: “Airline emissions are undoubtedly a major contributor to climate change. The rapid increase in short-haul flights, paired with the advent of low cost airfares, has driven this issue to the top of the regulators agenda – and with low cost long haul flights set to be the next growth area it will only get worse. Halifax Travel Insurance’s research indicates that current initiatives to reduce British holidaymakers’ carbon footprint, such as the Chancellor’s decision to increase air passenger duty, aren’t sufficient enough to discourage Britons from using aeroplanes. Future green taxes for air travel will need to be set at far higher levels if they are to act as a sufficient deterrent to significantly reduce the number of holidaymakers flying abroad.”

David Rochester, Head of Pricing, for Halifax Travel Insurance, comments: “It’s encouraging that nearly half of Britain’s holidaymakers are proactively planning to minimise their own holiday carbon footprints, but there’s still alot more to be done to convince and educate the rest.”

The research findings will make interesting reading for European regulators, given the EC is expected to announce green controls that will push the price of a short haul ticket up by £5 by 2020. The increase is anticipated as a result of civil aviation being brought within a new EU emissions trading scheme. However, Halifax’s research reveals an increase of £5 would only discourage 10% (3,655,000) of Britons from taking a short-haul holiday flight.

Londoners (17%) are the most likely to make a financial donation to offset their carbon footprint, compared to just 5% of those living in the Midlands. Holidaymakers from the North West are the most likely to holiday in the United Kingdom, rather than travel abroad to minimise their carbon footprint.

Air passenger duty would have to be increased to over a hundred pounds (table one) on short-haul flights to discourage Londoners from flying. However, it would have to increase by just £55 to discourage those living in the North West from taking short-haul flights abroad. To discourage Londoners from taking long haul flights air passenger duty would need to increase by £147, compared to just £107 for those living in the North West.