Virgin offers ‘tax-free’ flights to Cancun – Telegraph

Its “APD free” sale takes place this weekend and will save a family of four visiting the Mexican resort £324.

Sir Richard Branson, Virgin’s founder, described APD – which is paid by all passengers flying from a UK airport – as a “disgrace” and claimed that the Government will collect around £600 million from the tax during July and August – equivalent to £10 million per day.

“In an Olympic year, it is obscene for the Treasury to be taking £10 million every day from visitors and British holidaymakers alike,” he said. “This suffocating tax has rocketed way out of control. Years of above-inflation increases have hit passengers hard, are hitting the economy hard and are impeding our recovery from the recession.”

Following the most recent rise in the tax, an eight per cent hike made in April, a family of four travelling to Europe must pay £52 in APD, while those flying farther afield are hit even harder. The cost of APD for a family of four flying to the United States or Egypt, for example, is £260; for those travelling to the Caribbean or South Africa, it is £324; and a family visiting Argentina or Australia must pay £368. Those figures are doubled for those flying in premium-economy, business- or first-class cabins.

via Virgin offers ‘tax-free’ flights to Cancun – Telegraph.

Strange Random Tax Quote:

You must pay taxes. But there’s no law that says you gotta leave a tip. – Morgan Stanley advertisement

Related articles

• Virgin Atlantic celebrates new Cancun route with tax-free tickets (dailymail.co.uk)
• Virgin Atlantic planning Heathrow to Moscow flights (guardian.co.uk)
• Flight tax rise comes into effect (confused.com)
• Air Passenger Duty: flights from London could face higher tax (telegraph.co.uk)
• Sir Richard Branson Does A Rapid About Turn On All Things Green (toryaardvark.com)
• Pressure mounting to lower flight tax (express.co.uk)
• Taxpayers Alliance backs anti-APD campaign (abtn.co.uk)
• Taxpayer’s Alliance calls for end to APD ‘burden’ (telegraph.co.uk)