Bell Pottinger Group, including Bell Pottinger Public Affairs, has worked for Emirates Airlines since 2000, providing an integrated communications and government relations service.

Bell Pottinger has worked with Emirates to ensure that its brand is recognised nationwide amongst target audiences and that it is regarded as a conduit for the UK doing business in the Gulf and vice versa. Bell Pottinger Public Affairs has provided Emirates with political intelligence and monitoring, stakeholder mapping and message development on a range of issues.

Most recently, we helped Emirates to argue its case on HM Treasury proposals to reform the fiscal regime for the aviation industry from a per passenger duty to a per plane duty. The policy had certain serious anomalies, often the case with tax policy, and was not capable of meeting its objectives.

The new proposed per plane Aviation Duty regime, based on Maximum Take-Off Weight of planes and distance flown, could have seriously harmed existing and future direct long haul air transport links from the UK regions and the UK aviation and manufacturing industry. Under HM Treasury per plane proposals, several of Emirates’ routes to the Gulf from UK regional airports would be threatened.

Emirates felt that adopting Maximum Take Off Weight (MTOW) as a preferred methodology could hurt the very aircraft that would contribute the most environmental improvement going forward. They also felt that the proposal was counter to the stated Government policy of making best use of limited airport capacity given larger aircraft make better use of limited slots and fly more people further using less fuel and emissions. New, advanced aircraft such as the A380 (an aircraft with significant UK manufacturing input) of which Emirates is a major purchaser are, by deliberate design, heavy aircraft. Yet they carry anywhere from 350 to 650 people and are extremely efficient in terms of passengers carried per flight. Their fuel economy and emissions are dramatically lower than other aircraft and comparable technology.

Regarding distance travelled, Emirates felt that the Treasury’s proposed Aviation Duty did not recognise the economic contribution of, and the lack of transportation alternatives for, medium and long-haul aviation. Thus, a bias against long-haul aviation would have hurt some of the UK’s export markets and punish much of the developing world.

Emirates objectives were to ensure that any reformed duty regime did not disadvantage Emirates’ A380 and wide-bodied fleet and would enable them to continue to invest in and grow their UK routes.

Bell Pottinger Public Affairs assisted Emirates to draft its response to the HM Treasury consultation. Using our political expertise and insight, we developed and implemented a meeting programme with MPs with an interest in Emirates’ UK business. We helped Emirates build a coalition of advocates within Parliament on the APD issue, through a series of meetings and other events. As a result of the lobbying campaign, an influential grouping of MPs supported Emirates’ response to HM Treasury’s consultation and took their case to Treasury ministers, demonstrating a level of political support for Emirates’ concerns.

Emirates’ case was a persuasive one given the anomalies in the Government’s policy, and the combination of industry and Parliamentary pressure had the desired effect. The 2008 Pre-Budget Report included a commitment by the Government to reform the existing air passenger duty regime rather than proceed with a per plane duty as a direct result of Emirates’ and other industry campaigns. Whilst the outcome remains a serious tax on the aviation industry, the worst elements of the proposal have been emolliated.

Emirates’ public affairs team is based in Dubai and covers all global markets in which they operate. Consequently, being able to instantly tap into Bell Pottinger’s expertise and capabilities was critical in making the case against a per plane duty. In addition to helping them devise an effective lobbying strategy and messages, we dealt with all administrative and logistical requirements around the campaign - essential given the competing geographical priorities for the Emirates team and the time difference and journey duration between the UK and Dubai.