A UK lobby group set up to represent the travel industry over climate change will launch next month.
The group, named Flying Matters, is chaired by former CBI chief Sir Digby Jones and includes airport operator BAA, airline British Airways, easyJet and Virgin Atlantic, as well as aerospace companies Airbus and Rolls-Royce . The coalition will also represent trade unions, including T&G, and travel agents .
The move follows criticism that has been aimed at the airline industry from environmentalists over the carbon emissions they cause and the resulting impact on climate change .
Currently, only carbon emissions resulting from UK domestic flights are included in government emissions figures, while figures from international flights departing from UK airports are excluded.
Chancellor and soon to be Prime Minister Gordon Brown doubled air passenger taxes on flights in December 2006, shocking the air travel industry. Airlines pointed out that the tax was not directly linked to plane emissions.
Politicians are being allowed to levy opportunistic "green taxes" due to industry officials losing the debate on climate change .
The lobbying group, which will have its own website, will try to influence the media and politicians .
The industry points out that fuel efficiency improvements have led to a 70 per cent reduction in emissions per kilometre flown over the past 40 years, but further improvements in fuel efficiency are much harder to achieve.
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