Net flight tax scrapped in blow to ‘flight shame’ movement

Sweden is set to scrap its zero net tax on air travel in a bid to revive its ailing economy.

The country that coined the term “fly shame” will scrap its aviation tax from July 2025 in a bid to cut travel costs and boost economic activity.

Energy and Business Minister Ebba Busch said the decision was dictated by economic concerns.

She said: “It is very important for a large proportion of Swedish businesses to maintain their national airports, and a minority of EU countries impose aviation taxes, which makes it a competitive disadvantage.”

At a joint press conference with the prime minister, Linda Lindberg of the Sweden Democrats added: “This will lead to lower prices for travellers and an increase in demand, which will make airlines more competitive.”

Sweden’s economy shrank by 0.3% between April and July, according to official data released last week. The country is still recovering from last year’s recession, which saw its economy shrink by 0.3% in 2023 and real incomes fall.

The decision to scrap an aviation tax that is likely to increase carbon emissions is part of Stockholm’s draft budget for 2025, which is also expected to include money for infrastructure upgrades and tax breaks for exports to boost the economy.

The airline ticket tax was first introduced by the then-centre-left government in 2018. At the time, former Financial Markets Minister Per Bolund said the policy was part of a “shift towards green taxes, where we raise taxes on emissions and cut taxes on labour”.

The current fare to and from Sweden is 76 kronor (£5.60) per person.

The tax was introduced around the same time as the “fly shame” movement, with climate activists calling on the public to give up flying to cut emissions and save the planet.

The movement originated in Sweden, where it is known as “flygskam”, and climate activist Greta Thunberg helped popularise it by famously travelling by boat from Plymouth to New York in 2019 to speak at the UN climate conference.

Visits to Swedish airports fell by 4% in 2020, a year after Thunberg’s trip, with authorities blaming flight shaming and a ticket tax for the decline.

Sweden’s first right-wing government in eight years took a stand against the anti-aircraft movement after coming to power in 2022.

Infrastructure Minister Andreas Carlson said there was “no reason to feel ashamed about flying” as he announced government plans in February to invest more than 1 billion crowns (£76m) to support airlines.

The new administration’s stance has angered climate activists.

Last year, the government was accused of “deliberately increasing emissions” after it cut funding for environmental measures by 259 million crowns and introduced tax cuts on diesel and petrol.

Daniel Kihlberg, climate director at the Swedish Society for the Protection of Nature, has criticized the decision to scrap the aviation tax. He told Aftonbladet on Tuesday: “It’s completely upside down and the government is completely abandoning climate policy.”

Norwegian Air shares rose 6.4 percent in Oslo following the announcement.

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