Airlines raise 'significant concerns' over Labour's plans to charge tourists who don't need a visa £10 to visit UK

  • Visitors who benefit from a 'visa waiver' could be charged £10 entry fee
  • Labour believe charge will cover cost of 1,000 extra border guards
  • Airlines believe charge will mean UK is 'unattractive' in tourism terms 

By John Hutchinson for MailOnline

Published: | Updated:

Plans by Labour to charge visitors from the US and 55 other countries who don't require a visa to enter the UK have been met with dismay by airlines. 

Under the proposals, nationals in countries enjoying a 'visa waiver' system of fast-track permission to enter the UK will be hit with a charge of around £10 per visit, which the party said would more than cover the £45 million cost of 1,000 extra border guards.

That is a similar sum as the US charges for its equivalent service and Labour said tourism experts did not anticipate it would have any impact on the numbers choosing to travel to Britain. 

Under Labour's plans, passengers who don't require a visa to enter the UK could be met with a £10 entry fee (File Photo)

Under Labour's plans, passengers who don't require a visa to enter the UK could be met with a £10 entry fee (File Photo)

But Nathan Stower, chief executive of the British Air Transport Association (BATA), voiced serious concerns over the proposals.

'While we welcome the desire to improve the customer experience for passengers arriving at the UK border, airlines have significant concerns about this proposal,' he said

'Visitors from countries like the USA and Australia already pay the highest air passenger tax in the world to fly to the UK – £71 from next April – contributing billions of pounds to the Treasury. Adding yet another charge will make the UK more uncompetitive in attracting tourists, businesses and inbound investment.

'It is not clear how this proposed charge would be collected. The vast majority of visitors from those countries that are not required to obtain a visa to enter the UK, such as the USA, do not currently provide information to UK authorities ahead of their visit. 

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper believes changes need to be made on the UK's immigration policy

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper believes changes need to be made on the UK's immigration policy

It might not just be your passport you need to show to enter the UK, but also an extra £10

It might not just be your passport you need to show to enter the UK, but also an extra £10

'Furthermore, if more money were to be raised from airline passengers alone, it would only fair for this to fund improvements in the border at airports and not at other ports of entry such as Calais.'

Regular increases in the cost of general visas since 2010 - from £68 to £83 - had not resulted in reduced visitor numbers from countries not benefiting from waiver arrangements, aides said.

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced the plan as part of a wider program of wider reforms she believe needs to be introduced to the UK's policy on immigration. 

As many as 5.5 million travellers a year will be subject to the new fee - more than two in five of those from America, with Australians and Canadians the next largest groups.

 

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