Pollution tax not to National’s liking

UK departure tax overshadows Key's meeting with Brown
Prime Minister John Key's first meeting with Gordon Brown has been overshadowed by Britain's controversial new air-departure tax that the travel industry says threatens the billion-dollar UK tourist market.
Mr Key told Mr Brown that the tax was of "significant concern" to New Zealand and said he will continue to pursue the matter with the British government. "The UK is our second largest [market] for tourism and it would put quite a significant impost on those travelling to New Zealand. Given that tourism is our largest export earner, I am quite concerned about the proposal," Mr Key said after his meeting overnight New Zealand-time with Mr Brown at Number 10 Downing Street. Hospitality Association of New Zealand chief executive Bruce Robertson said the passenger tax was "clearly of concern". "I would consider this to be a protectionist measure - anti-trade ... they're using the guise of sustainability and conservation as a measure of putting in a trade barrier, and that's really at odds with all the discussions at APEC last week. "This is a trade barrier to make it more difficult for Britons to travel long distance and, effectively, will be encouraging them to stay at home. In the tourism sector, this will be seen as a trade barrier."

No Bruce this is a pollution tax, you know to try and deal with that global warming problem that ACT doesn’t believe man made pollution creates? I find it fascinating that out of a 952 word news story on this tax there is only 14 words explaining why it is being implemented, the Herald doesn’t even try and mention that this departure tax is a response to the emissions pollution created by that travel, in fact they have re-written this entire story from the one they published to completely diminish the environmental rational for this tax, the reason being because the right wing have no answer whatsoever to the pollution that results from the brand of consumer capitalism they love to champion and as such they totally ignore the issue completely. Well as much as nACTional want to deny global warming is man made and that we will throw the years and years of work on the ETS out the window, luckily other countries take the threat seriously and as such are now implementing an emissions tax, something our right wing friends who voted for change will have to start accepting, even if they despise the green movement.