Domestic flight duty to be cut

RISHI SUNAK is planning to cut air passenger duty for flights within the UK in the Budget, as part of the Government’s drive to ‘level up’ the country and cement closer ties within the Union.

The move will coincide with a hike in the rate for long-haul destinations such as Australia, South Africa and Japan as the Treasury tries to burnish its ‘jet zero’ environmental credentials ahead of next month’s COP26 climate summit in Glasgow.

The duty, which is currently levied in two bands – under 2,000 miles and above 2,000 miles – is paid by airlines, but is usually passed on to their customers. The maximum levied per passenger, which is already due to rise to £554 next April, is likely to go even higher for destinations more than 6,000 miles away.

The Chancellor is also planning to help ‘level up’ the country by spending £6.9 billion on improving rail, tram, bus and cycle networks in English big city regions.

Mr Sunak is also considering cutting the tax on beer from kegs and sparkling English wine to protect pubs and vineyards from the economic damage wrought by Covid, and imposing a residential property developer tax to pay for the removal of flammable cladding from high-rise buildings. The levy would be paid by housebuilders with profits of more than £25million who hoard land.

Mr Sunak is also expected to announce £3billion of investment in education, including the quadrupling of places on skills bootcamps and more classroom hours for up to 100,000 16- to 19-yearolds studying ‘T levels’.