The hon. Gentleman makes a valid point on how counter-productive taxes such as APD are when it comes to inward investment and the attraction of Britain as a place to do business.
Martin Craigs, chief executive of the Pacific Asia Travel Association, has stated:
“The UK is an island trading nation, air services are the vital lifeblood of modern global commerce. The UK Air Passenger Duty is now the world’s highest by a wide margin. It is certainly turning away tourism and trade from the world’s fastest growing economic region”,
which, of course, is Asia-Pacific.
APD also acts as a deterrent to British businesses that are looking to exploit lucrative business opportunities elsewhere in the world, and particularly in emerging markets. Businesses in my constituency, including small and medium-sized enterprises, provide more than 80% of local jobs. They are hit hard by APD. They want to export more, but APD is a barrier.