Sweden's government said Wednesday it plans to propose a controversial tax on airline tickets to compensate for the lack of VAT on international flights and the low price airlines pay for greenhouse gas emissions.

The tax would range between 80 and 430 kronor (between 8.40 and 45 euros, or $8.8 and $48) per ticket depending on the length of the flight, deputy finance minister Per Bolund told reporters.

The proposal would be included in the 2018 budget bill, and the tax would take effect on January 1, 2018.

"It's an example of green tax reforms," Bolund, a member of the Green Party, said.

The centre-right opposition is fiercely opposed to the move. It fears airlines could move their routes to neighbouring countries, and companies with head offices in Sweden could move abroad.

But Bolund said the minority left-wing government expected parliament to pass the proposal, as it was "highly unlikely" the minority centre-right opposition would collaborate with the far-right to vote down the budget bill.

Poland clears airport plan for takeoff
Warsaw (AFP) March 15, 2017 - Poland's government approved Wednesday plans to build a large new airport outside the capital Warsaw that it hopes could become a passenger and cargo hub for central and eastern Europe.

Development and Finance Minister Mateusz Morawiecki told reporters that the project foresees the airport serving up to 50 million passengers per year.

That is four times the number of passengers Warsaw's main airport served last year, and would place, and put it in competition with Madrid's Barajas airport for sixth place among European airports according to 2016 figures.

One of the EU's fastest growing economies, Poland has seen rapid passenger growth in recent years. It registered 30 million air passengers in 2015, and estimates suggest this number could double to 60 million by 2030.

Plans call for the new airport to be located between Warsaw and the central city of Lodz and open in 2027-28.

Although the government has not put a price tag on the project, experts estimate it could cost around seven billion euros ($7.4 billion).

Morawiecki cited studies suggesting the airport could serve up to 180 million passengers per year with connections to neighbours Ukraine, Belarus and Russia as well as the Baltic states and the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

That would put it far out in front of Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson airport, which was the world's busiest last year at just over 104 million passengers.

Morawiecki also suggested the airport could become an air cargo hub for China's One Belt, One Road initiative, or modern-day Silk Road, for goods exported by from the Asian giant to Europe.

Morawiecki has become the mastermind behind the expansion of state involvement in the Polish economy since the October 2015 victory of the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party.

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Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific sees first loss in 8 years
Hong Kong (AFP) March 15, 2017
Hong Kong's troubled flagship airline Cathay Pacific on Wednesday posted its first annual loss since the height of the financial crisis as it was hit by "intense competition" and a drop in demand from business travellers. The firm is struggling despite an expansion of international air travel in the region as lower cost carriers, particularly from mainland China, eat into its market share. ... read more

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