Walloon government blocks additional passenger tax at Charleroi Airport
On Thursday, the Walloon government refused to allow the city council of Charleroi to introduce a 3 euro tax on each passenger departing from Charleroi Airport. Last month, the low-cost airline Ryanair announced a significant reduction in its operations at the airport, citing the additional tax as one of the reasons for this decision.
The move followed an "economic analysis", Walloon minister-president Adrien Dolimont said on Thursday. "The airport is a huge development tool. Taxing it, as the mayor of Charleroi is doing, is economic stupidity," explained Economy minister Pierre-Yves Jeholet.
According to Local Authorities minister François Desquesnes, the Walloon Region is legally entitled to intervene in matters of local taxation. Local authorities "enjoy a certain degree of autonomy to levy taxes, but within the limits of proportionality", he said.
Ryanair announced last month that it would cut 1.1 million passenger seats in Belgium, mainly at Charleroi Airport. At the time, CEO Michael O'Leary explicitly pointed to both the federal flight tax and the passenger tax introduced by the city of Charleroi. He said he would reverse the decision if the city got rid of the tax.
"A clear political choice"
A spokesperson for the city, which is led by the socialist PS, described Thursday's refusal as "a clear political choice not to help Walloon cities". "The Region would have been better off using its bazooka against the federal embarkation tax, instead of putting all its energy into fighting a Walloon city," the spokesperson said.
Charleroi could still take the case to the Council of State, but it is unclear if it will do so. According to the city, the Walloon government has not yet clarified whether it intends to abolish the tax itself or require the city to revise its budget, two options with different legal consequences.
According to L'Echo and De Tijd, the Walloon government has also written to prime minister Bart De Wever to request a review of the planned increase in the federal air tax. In the letter, the government criticised the "lack of prior consultation with the Walloon Region". MR and Les Engagés, however, are part of both the Walloon and the federal governing coalitions.
© BELGA PHOTO VIRGINIE LEFOUR
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