It’s time to stop being incrementalist on private jet tax
Former chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a 50 per cent increase in Air Passenger Duty (APD) for qualifying private jets in the 2024 Autumn Budget (Alamy)
4 min read
Targeting the private jet habits of the super-rich is a no-lose policy for Labour.
Ahead of the first Budget with Andy Burnham in No 10, it’s clear that improving living standards, tackling the cost of living and rebuilding trust in politics are at the heart of this government’s priorities.
Against the backdrop of the challenges we face at a domestic and global level, addressing these issues will not be easy.
The question is how the government will fund the reforms and support needed to turn the country around. It’s clear to many that there will be a need for revenue-raising tax reforms, and ensuring those reforms do not fall on ordinary working people is going to be critical. Instead, those with the broadest shoulders should carry a greater burden.
There are many ways to do this that will be no doubt subject to much media and political speculation, but one easy win for this government would be to focus on private jet users.
The UK is often dubbed the European capital for private jets, accounting for 15 per cent of European private jet emissions. The UK ranks sixth for the most registered private jets in the world, with private jets accounting for around one in 10 flights in the UK. These are not records that should fill us with pride.
Private jet usage by the super-rich is one of the most glaring examples of social and environmental injustice. In just one hour, a private jet can emit two tonnes of CO2: a quarter of an average person’s emissions over the course of an entire year. The average private jet emits up to 14 times more CO2 per passenger per mile than an average commercial flight, with the average occupancy of a private jet at 2.5 passengers and the average net worth of their owners at €1.3bn.
Private jet flights pay no duty on fuel, meaning that a nurse or care worker driving to work is paying more tax on fuel than a billionaire is flying to the south of France
In a summer that has been marked by extreme heat events, wildfires and drought, with warnings that 2027 could be the hottest on record due to a “supersized” El Niño event, it is critical that policy reflects the scale of the challenge and inequity behind its causes.
Despite the outsized environmental impact of private jets from a small, highly wealthy group of individuals, their usage is currently very undertaxed. Private jet flights pay no duty on fuel, meaning that a nurse or care worker driving to work is paying more tax on fuel than a billionaire is flying to the south of France.
Meanwhile, despite changes made by the previous chancellor to air passenger duty (APD) on private jets, this tax still only makes up, on average, less than two per cent of the cost of a typical private jet ticket, while it makes up on average 43 per cent for an economy ticket on a passenger plane.
While the changes made by the previous government increased private jet APD by 50 per cent and closed loopholes for private flights paying lower tax rates, they clearly did not go far enough. Analysis shows that increasing APD for private jets to similar levels to economy flights could raise up to £1.2bn, while taxing private jet fuel at even just twice the levels motorists pay on fuel duty could raise an additional £200m.
Private jet taxes are not an area where we need to be incrementalist. Politically, targeting the private jet habits of the super-rich is a no-lose situation for the Labour government, with the UK polling as one of the most supportive countries for tougher policies in this area.
New polling by More in Common shows four in five Brits support higher private jet taxes, with particularly strong support among Labour voters and Labour switchers. In fact, it gives us another opportunity to show voters whose side we are on while others get funded with dodgy money from the very people flying on these jets.
Higher private jet taxes can tick multiple boxes for this government and are the sort of low-hanging fruit that should come naturally to us as a party committed to social justice. With the PM attending COP in November and the Chancellor exploring options to raise crucial revenue to deliver on this government’s priorities, ensuring private jet flyers are paying their fair share and boldly tackling one of the most obvious examples of wealth inequality should be firmly on the table.
Martin Rhodes is the Labour MP for Glasgow North
