Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to alter the rates of air passenger duty; and if he will make a statement.

At Budget 2015, the Government announced that Air Passenger Duty (APD) rates would increase by RPI from 1 April 2016. Additionally, the Government introduced an exemption from APD for children under 12, which will be extended to include children under 16 from 1 March 2016.

In February, the Government announced that we will publish a discussion paper exploring options to support regional airports affected by APD devolution by the summer. The discussion paper will consider options to devolve APD within England, vary APD rates by regions within England, and provide aid to regional airports.

Since 2010, APD has only risen with inflation, representing an effective price freeze on short-haul rates since 2012.