We can keep Britain flying while tackling climate change

It’s no surprise why people don’t want to turn back on flying. For millions of people, it offers an escape on holiday and an opportunity to explore new places. For others, it’s part of doing business. And for the half a million people employed by Britain’s aviation industry, people’s passion for jet-setting pays their bills. A world without planes would be smaller, separating families and businesses, with many communities deprived of a major employer locally.

But with technology and innovation, we can keep Britain flying while reducing our contribution to carbon emissions. Sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) can cut a flight’s emissions by around 70 per cent, and this year Virgin Atlantic will attempt the first-ever net zero emission transatlantic flight. If we can drive the development and deployment of cleaner fuels and planes rather than shut down the aviation sector, it’s entirely possible that we will fly to net zero.

With its Jet Zero Strategy, the government has opted for innovation over restrictions. However, we don’t yet have the right policies in place to foster these emerging technologies and industries. We also risk losing SAF factories to competing countries, with President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act offering enormous tax breaks for these businesses to move and grow in the USA. That’s why I’ve co-signed a manifesto with over 30 Conservative parliamentarians, providing ministers with policy ideas that would accelerate jet zero innovation.

Firstly, investors need the confidence to develop and produce SAF here in the UK, so we can quickly move away from polluting jet fuel. While five factories are planned here, the industry is only on track to meet half of the government’s target for at least 10 per cent of aviation fuel to be sustainable by 2030. We need to replicate the success of the Contracts for Difference scheme that scaled up our offshore wind industry and drove costs down over time. Creating a price support mechanism to give producers a guaranteed price will win much-needed investment for this sector, creating 6,500 jobs, adding £1 billion annually to the economy and cutting 3.6 million tonnes of carbon a year by 2035.

Secondly, the industry must pay for these schemes, not the taxpayer. We propose airlines fund the price support mechanism through a strengthened UK Emissions Trading Scheme, with free passes to pollute phased out to raise the money needed. This means that should the market price for sustainable fuel drop below the fixed price, any top-up subsidy is paid using airlines’ tax receipts. If more cash is needed, ministers could consider expanding existing flying taxes to cover ETS-exempt long-haul flights – not to discourage demand but to fund the industry’s future.

Finally, competition is needed to clean up domestic aviation, securing the future of small regional airports which connect every corner of Britain. Replicating the £1 million transatlantic competition for the first zero-emission flight would be an easy start. Requiring the already subsidised public service obligation routes, such as between Scottish islands and Glasgow, to be zero emission by 2030 will further spur innovation. If these ideas succeed, the government should consider a target for all domestic flights to be zero emission.

I urge ministers to consider these proposals. They’ll help secure the future of the UK’s aviation sector and put us on course to meet jet zero by 2050. Importantly, they’ll win public support for net zero by proving that ending our contribution to climate change needn’t mean sacrifice or lost economic growth. On the contrary, by backing British innovation, we can win investment, create better-paid jobs and keep flying without the climate impact.