British airways pulls jobs plan

British Airways today said it would axe plans to create 400 British jobs after the Government said it will continue to impose air passenger duty on flights.

The news came as the bosses of Britain's biggest airlines including BA condemned the Government's consultation on flight tax as "a sham and waste of taxpayers' money". The Treasury is to up the levy on flights by 8% this spring, despite pleas from Carolyn McCall of easyJet, Willie Walsh from IAG, Michael O'Leary of Ryanair and Steve Ridgway of Virgin Atlantic to scrap the tax, which raises £2 billion a year in revenues.

The aviation bosses said: "We are left with a tax that has already cost 25,000 jobs, is doing increasing damage to the prospects for economic recovery and sends a message to the world that Britain is a difficult and expensive place to do business."