the filthy rich

Flying shame: the scandalous rise of private jets

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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jan/26/flying-shame-the-scandalous-rise-of-private-jets

It was a Labour spokesperson who said the prime minister was behaving “like an A-list celeb”, after Rishi Sunak made his third trip by private jet in 10 days. Last week, he flew from London to Blackpool in a 14-seat RAF jet – a 230-mile journey that would have taken about three hours by train. The week before, he did the same to Leeds, which he could have done in two and a half hours by train, but which wouldn’t have looked nearly so glamorous – to go by the ludicrous photograph of him looking important and being saluted as he boarded the aircraft.

Private planes are up to 14 times more polluting, per passenger, than commercial planes and 50 times more polluting than trains, according to a report by Transport & Environment, a European clean transport campaign organisation. “It goes against the fact that the government has committed to net zero by 2050,” says Alice Ridley, a spokesperson for the Campaign for Better Transport. “They have said they want to see more journeys by public transport, walking and cycling. Taking a private jet is extremely damaging for the environment, especially when there are other alternatives that would be far less polluting and would also be cheaper.”

Private planes carry far fewer passengers, while about 40% of flights are empty, simply getting the aircraft to the right location. Flying short distances also means planes are less fuel-efficient.

“A private jet is the most polluting form of transport you can take,” says Matt Finch, the UK policy manager for Transport & Environment. “The average private jet emits two tonnes of carbon an hour. The average European is responsible for [emitting] eight tonnes of carbon a year. You fly to the south of France and back, that’s half a year in one trip.”

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Zahawi’s tax evasions point to a more fundamental problem for the Tories

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/e/zahawis-tax-evasions-point-more-fundamental-problem-tories

TORY chairman Nadhim Zahawi’s tax problems are a bigger headache for the Prime Minister than he has yet acknowledged.

Zahawi pleads that it was mere carelessness that saw him forced to pay HMRC nearly £5 million in unpaid tax (inclusive of a penalty) while he was, er, the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Financial sloppiness isn’t a great look for a chancellor, but in Zahawi’s defence he’s admitted to it before. It was after all a “genuine mistake” that saw him claim thousands in expenses to heat the stables for a horse-riding school on his Warwickshire estate.

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Labour rails at Conservative “corruption and cronyism,” but the fundamental issue is more basic still. This is a government of the rich, for the rich, by the rich and it is making us poorer.

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/e/zahawis-tax-evasions-point-more-fundamental-problem-tories

Continue ReadingZahawi’s tax evasions point to a more fundamental problem for the Tories

Nadhim Zahawi ‘agreed on penalty’ to settle tax bill worth millions

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https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jan/20/nadhim-zahawi-agreed-on-penalty-to-settle-tax-bill-worth-millions

The Conservative party chair, Nadhim Zahawi, agreed to pay a penalty to HMRC as part of a seven-figure settlement over his tax affairs, the Guardian has been told.

The former chancellor, who still attends the cabinet, has been subject to extensive questions in parliament and the media in recent days after it emerged he agreed to pay millions to HMRC in December after a settlement with the tax agency.

The Guardian has now been told that the former chancellor paid a penalty imposed by HMRC – part of an estimated £5m tax bill.

Penalties are applied if someone does not pay the correct tax at the right time.

Asked repeatedly about the penalty, Zahawi’s spokesperson did not deny one had been paid. Nor did they offer any explanation or clarification about the sums involved.

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https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jan/20/nadhim-zahawi-agreed-on-penalty-to-settle-tax-bill-worth-millions

How I cost Nadhim Zahawi £3.7million

The former chancellor’s tax avoidance scheme, which has left his political career in the balance, was uncovered by an independent tax expert who Zahawi then tried to frustrate through legal means. Here’s how he did it

DAN NEIDLE

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CE Delft – CO2 emissions from private flights to the World Economic Forum

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https://www.greenpeace.org/international/ce-delft_co2-emissions-from-private-flights-to-the-world-economic-forum/

CE Delft – CO2 emissions from private flights to the World Economic Forum

Summary of report

New analysis commissioned by Greenpeace International shows that 1,040 private jets flew in and out of airports serving the Swiss mountain resort of Davos during the week of the 2022 World Economic Forum (WEF), causing CO2 emissions from private jets four times greater than an average week.

The research, conducted by Dutch environmental consultancy CE Delft, found that the number of private jet flights to and from airports serving Davos doubled during the 2022 World Economic Forum meeting compared to average weeks, causing CO2 emissions equivalent to about 350,000 average cars in the same time period.[1] The researchers attribute about every second flight to the meeting itself.

Of all these flights, 53% were short-haul flights below 750 km that could have easily been train or car trips, with 38% flying ultra-short distances of under 500 km. The shortest flight recorded was only 21 km. According to the analysis, countries with the highest number of arrivals and departures out of Davos airports included Germany, France and Italy.

The issue of private jets garnered global public attention last year after several public figures faced criticism for taking ultra-short trips by private jet. The analysis released by Greenpeace International comes days before political and business leaders head into Davos to attend the 2023 World Economic Forum, with its self-proclaimed goal of wanting to tackle climate change and other “ongoing crises” calling for “bold collective action”.

Private jets are not regulated in the EU, even though they are the most polluting mode of transportation on the planet per passenger kilometre.[2] For the first time, in 2022, several EU countries spearheaded by France have started to push for an EU-wide regulation of private jet emissions. Greenpeace is calling on a ban on private jets and short-haul flights with train alternatives in the EU.

Continue ReadingCE Delft – CO2 emissions from private flights to the World Economic Forum