Return ticket for peak rail fares ‘a damaging climate dead-end’

Last week, a new paper by Oxfam Scotland revealed that a tax on those choosing to use super polluting private jets from airports in Scotland could raise up to an estimated £21.5 million per year to invest in green initiatives, such as continuing to scrap peak fares until at least April.

The scheme scrapping peak fares comes to an end in Scotland today.

Campaigners say that the luxury lifestyles of the super-rich are fuelling the climate crisis and those responsible must be compelled to pick up the bill for fair climate action.

First Minister John Swinney says a private jet tax is a “welcome suggestion“, but campaigners argue that he must urgently engage with the UK Government to give this tax full clearance for take-off.

Jamie Livingstone, Head of Oxfam Scotland, said: “The return of peak rail fares is a short-sighted and damaging climate dead-end that hits commuters and the climate alike. While rail passengers are punished, thousands of private jets continue to soar above Scotland, spewing unnecessary pollution, virtually without penalty. Scottish Ministers must lift their eyes to the skies to find bold but fair solutions – such as a tax on private jets – to fund essential climate action, like green travel, investing in a fairer future for all of us.”

The extreme inequality of private luxury travel is fuelling the climate crisis. Let’s fight climate inequality. Ask the Scottish Government to get onboard. Take action now: https://bit.ly/TaxLuxuryTransport 

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For more information and interviews, please contact: Rebecca Lozza, Oxfam Media and Communications Adviser, Scotland and Wales: rlozza1@oxfam.org.uk / 07917738450  

Notes to Editors

• Read Cleared for take-off: a private jet tax for Scotland here: https://oxfamapps.org/scotland/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Cleared-for-Take-Off-Oxfam-Scotland-Discussion-Paper-1.pdf
• It is estimated that the removal of the ScotRail Peak Fares Rail Removal Pilot will save the Scottish Government £40 million per year. As such, the estimated £21.5 million that could be raised annually by a Private Jet Tax in Scotland, based on the number of flights recorded in 2023, could have covered the cost of extending the Pilot until the end of the 2024-25 financial year.