One of the benefits of tax competition is that there is a feedback mechanism that tells politicians they made a mistake. If taxes are too high in one jurisdiction, politicians lose money as economic activity shifts to another jurisdiction. The latest example of this liberalizing process comes from the United Kingdom. The Labour government just imposed new taxes on airline travel that will boost ticket prices by as much as $159 — even if London is the hub for travel elsewhere. As the Wall Street Journal explains, this is good news for other nations since airline customers now are looking to use cities such as Amsterdam as their gateway to Europe:
You may want to steer clear of London. Thanks to a new U.K. ticket tax that took effect February 1, passengers who fly into or through London airports will pay new taxes and fees that can add up to $159 to the cost of a ticket. This levy was the brainchild of Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown and is being applied retroactively. So even if you bought your plane ticket last year, you’ll get socked with the tax surcharge. The tax has infuriated both U.S. and British airlines, to say nothing of their passengers. “It’s a major league headache for all our air carriers who fly to London and are trying to collect this retroactive tax,” says Jim May of the U.S. Air Transport Association. A spokesman for British Airways, which has been struggling financially, calls the new tax “completely unfair.” Ryanair’s Web site describes Mr. Brown as “greedy Gordon” and his tax as “the great plane robbery.” The new tax comes on the heels of other highly publicized problems at Heathrow, including a breakdown in the baggage handling system and security delays. Consumeraffairs.com reports that one consequence is that more and more American travelers are investigating Amsterdam as an alternative hub for discount flights in and out of Europe.
