BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – COUNTRIES within the Caribbean region are set to benefit from a recent announcement made by the United Kingdom (UK) Government to lower the contentious Airline Passenger Duty (APD), which has long been seen as a hindrance for tourism in the region.
According to the UK Government, the lowering of APD would be to the advantage of Caribbean island destinations, which have for an extended period complained about the discriminatory nature of the measure and the burden it has on tourist arrivals within the region.
Based on a report published on Rjrnewsonline, the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osbourne, made this announcement during his annual budget presentation to the House of Commons on Wednesday (Mar. 20).
Osbourne revealed that the Caribbean region has been put into the same band for duty as that of the United States. This means that passengers travelling from Britain to Caribbean destinations will now pay the lower rate of duty, which has long applied to those travelling to the United States.
The impending changes would see taxes being lowered to £71 tax on long-haul tickets and £142 charge on seats in premium cabins from its current hefty price of up to £97 in economy and £194 in premium class.
This comes as welcome report for Caribbean countries which have been lobbying for the change, with Jamaica being the vocal voice.
The changes will take effect from April 2015
