Green party boss Lorna Slater has called on the UK to copy France - and look at banning domestic flights where other forms of travel are available. The Lothian MSP - who is also a Scottish Government minister - insisted the new French policy was “exciting”.
And Slater hit out at Tory ministers for the levels of subsidies provided to airlines, which she said had made it cheaper to fly from Edinburgh to London than to take a train. It comes after French lawmakers voted last year to ban short-haul flights where there is a rail alternative.
Speaking to the Record, Slater said: “It's exciting what France has done to ban flights where there's domestic travel available. This is not a devolved matter. This would be for the UK Government. I would, of course, be delighted if the UK Government was to make that happen.
“We would need, obviously, emergency services and so forth, and of course, in Scotland, we have a lot of island communities that would still need those services. So, I think that's a conversation that we need to start having, absolutely, and I'm excited that there are some countries that are having that conversation.”
“And it's unfortunate, for example, that in the UK, because of the way the UK has decided to subsidise aviation, that it's cheaper to fly from Edinburgh to London than it is to take the train.”
The Scottish Greens co-leader - who is Scotland’s Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy and Biodiversity - added: “I really wish that wasn't so - I wish the UK Government would change their stance on that.” Slater is currently in Montreal for the UN COP15 biodiversity summit.
Aviation is an area excluded from the SNP and Greens’ governing cooperation agreement - meaning Green MSPs can take a different stance to their Nationalist colleagues. Flying accounts for around 2.5 per cent of global carbon emissions - although other gases and water vapour trails created by aircraft also impact on the climate.
France originally wanted to ban eight short-haul routes - but for now, the European Commission has only approved three, between Paris’s Orly Airport and Nantes, Lyon, and Bordeaux. The EC says France may prohibit commercial flights where the same journey can be made in less than two-and-a-half hours by train.
In the UK, aviation is almost entirely reserved to Westminster - although Holyrood does have powers to set its own rate of air passenger duty, which it has never used. As Chancellor, Rishi Sunak was heavily criticised by green groups when he slashed the duty on domestic UK flights by 50 per cent just days before the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow.
Weeks later, he handed over an extra £4.3million in subsidies for short-haul routes. The full cost of handouts to the industry - including support during the pandemic - comes to an eye-watering £7billion.
A Department for Transport spokeswoman said: “Domestic air travel is vital for connectivity and the UK economy, and our Jet Zero Strategy shows we can achieve net zero emissions from UK aviation by 2050, without directly limiting demand for aviation.”
To sign up to the Daily Record Politics newsletter, click here.
READ NEXT
-
Green party boss Slater admits scathing report is a 'wake up call' for Scot Gov on climate change
-
Return of beavers to Scotland hailed as global example by Scots nature minister
-
Lorna Slater in car crash interview over content of Scottish independence speech
