The European Union

In 2005, the European Union introduced a plan to slightly increase taxes. They wanted an increase in tax to raise money for a poverty reduction pledge. Millennium Development Goal is the name of the pledge in which there would be a 50 percent poverty reduction and hunger, universal primary eductaion and the reduction od child mortality by two-thirds. Even though this plan has nothing to do with making the environment better, it shows how an increase in tax would affect flyers. With a slight increase of anywhere between $1.20 and $12.40 (depending on the distnace of the flight), between 707.8 million and 3.443 billion dollars would be raised. Now this would raise alot of many to help meet the goals set by the MDGs but it would not have such a decrease in travel. Air travel would only decrease by 3-4 percent in the Euorpean Union.This proves that the only way to lower or stop air travel would be to unbelievably raise the tax which would then hurt the economy.

Development non-governmental organizations say that introducing a greater tax would make it possible both to generate “predictable and stable resources for development”, and to “redress the negative effects of globalization, such as pollution and financial speculation.”

The Secretary General of the Association of European Airlines said “Already, large portions of our cost base are controlled by our suppliers and service providers. To try to squeeze out of our already heavily-taxed industry an additional sum equivalent to eight times the annual profit is wholly inappropriate.”