ABTA says delay to replacement of air departure tax is "disappointing"

The Association for British Travel Agents says the delay to the replacement of the air departure tax is "disappointing" and a "missed opportunity".

The Scottish Government wants to replace APD with a new devolved Air Departure Tax (ADT) in Scotland from April next year.

However, it said EU legal issues were delaying the progress.

Opposition parties say they believe that the Scottish Government is just preparing to back down from plans to cut the new tax.

Alan Wardle from ABTA says: "It is disappointing that the Scottish Government feels like it needs to take this decision. That 50% cut that has been promised would really help travellers, and it would really help businesses who are seeking to gain connectivity across the world.

"Scotland's got relatively poor connectivity when you compare it to countries of similar size, countries like Ireland. So cutting ADT like this would really give Scotland a boost in terms of having more flights. That would allow more people to go on holiday for cheaper but it would also particularly boost businesses.

"It's a tough time for the travel industry at the moment with the pound being weak against the euro and dollar. But it is a resilient industry, it will continue to bounce back. But cutting air passenger tax and air departure tax would really help."