Business

Ban UK domestic flights and subsidise rail travel, urges transport charity

Published

9 months ago

October 11, 2021

THN

Ban UK domestic flights and subsidise rail travel, urges transport charity

Domestic flights should be banned and long-distance train fares subsidised, transport campaigners have urged, highlighting the relative environmental and financial costs of air and rail travel.

The Campaign for Better Transport (CBT) called on ministers to outlaw internal UK flights if an equivalent train journey took less than five hours and to resist calls for any cut in air passenger duty.

Mandatory emissions labels on tickets and a frequent flyer levy should also be introduced, the charity said.

The demands came before the 27 October budget, in which the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, may decide to cut taxes on domestic flights in response to pressure from the aviation industry, a possibility mooted by the prime minister earlier this year. Such a move could, however, prove an embarrassment a week before the UK hosts the Cop26 climate conference in Glasgow.

The proposed ban would not affect isolated communities or the longest UK air corridors, but would hit flights such as Manchester to London, London to Edinburgh and Birmingham to Glasgow. Passengers should be offered cheaper train tickets, while anyone taking more than three international flights a year would be required to pay a frequent flyer levy, the campaign proposes.

Paul Tuohy, the chief executive of CBT said: “Cheap domestic flights might seem a good deal when you buy them, but they are a climate disaster, generating seven times more harmful greenhouse emissions than the equivalent train journey.

“Making the train cheaper will boost passenger numbers and help reduce emissions from aviation, but any cut to air passenger duty – coupled with a rise in rail fares in January – will send the wrong message about how the government wants people to travel and mean more people choosing to fly.”

British Airways now offsets carbon emissions on all domestic flights and there are hopes that short-haul electric planes could operate internally within 15 years. However, “jet zero” ambitions remain some way from reality and CBT argues that major internal routes are feasible by direct train instead, with similar journey times once airport journeys and formalities are factored in. However, ticket prices are often prohibitive.

In a staged “race” carried out on Friday from central London to Glasgow city centre, Tuohy took the plane and – including airport transfers and check-in – arrived in five hours 17 minutes, two minutes before the former transport minister Norman Baker, who travelled by train. CBT said the train journey emitted less than one-sixth of the carbon emissions of the flight – 20kg compared with 137kg – but cost twice as much at £109 v £52.

Rail fares have risen steadily above inflation for well over a decade. A walk-up return ticket to travel on morning train services between London and Manchester now costs £369.40, while an off-peak return is £94.50 between the capital and northern England’s biggest city.

The government has not announced a decision on further rail fare increases, but should they follow the RPI+1% formula the cost could increase by another 4.8% in January. Ministers are keen to reduce rail subsidy after spending an additional £8bn to cover lost revenue during the pandemic.

Passenger numbers have returned to around 65% of pre-Covid levels, according to the latest Department for Transport figures.

Business

Nigerian govt to auction N225bn bond as search for funds continues

Published

5 days ago

June 20, 2022

Harmattan News

Nigerian govt to auction N225bn bond as search for funds continues

Federal government bonds worth N225 billion would be auctioned today, Monday, June 20, 2022, by the Debt Management Office (DMO) at the primary market.

The debt instrument is being sold by the central government to raise funds to finance the 2022 budget deficit and in today’s exercise, the DMO is offering the notes in three tenors.

The debt office is anticipated to sell the FGN bonds at double digits to make the asset class more attractive to investors.

In a circular published on its website and obtained by The Harmattan News, all three maturities are re-opening, meaning they are from the previously sold bonds.

The circular noted that N75 billion worth of a 10-year bond with maturity in 2025 would be offered for sale at the auction. Another N75 billion worth of a 10-year note maturing in 2032 is up for grabs and N75 billion worth of a 20-year instrument with maturity in 2042 would be sold.

Intending subscribers would be expected to reach out to primary dealer market makers to buy the bonds for N1,000 per unit subject to a minimum subscription of N50 million and in multiples of N1,000 thereafter.

The interest would be paid by the government semi-annually, while the bullet repayment will be done on the maturity date.

Business

Debt servicing doubles, hits N896bn in three months – DMO report

Published

5 days ago

June 20, 2022

Harmattan News

Debt servicing doubles, hits N896bn in three months – DMO report

Nigeria’s debt servicing bill has increased by 109 per cent to N896.56bn, findings by The harmattan News have shown.

As a result, the country has also spent N3.83tn on debt servicing payments in 15 months, according to data obtained from the Debt Management Office.

While a total of N2.93tn was spent on debt servicing payments in 2021, a total of N896.56bn was spent in the first quarter of 2022.

Meanwhile, between October and December 2021, Nigeria spent N310.5bn on domestic debt servicing, while it spent $286.35m (N118.9bn) on external debt servicing, giving a total of N429.4bn.

However, between January and March 2022, Nigeria spent N668.69bn on domestic debt servicing, while it spent $548.79m (N227.87bn) on external debt servicing, giving a total of N896.56bn.

The official exchange rate of the Central Bank of Nigeria, which showed $1 =N415.22 as of June 15, 2022, was used for the external debt servicing.

This indicates the amount the country spent on debt servicing rose by 109 per cent from N429bn in December 2021 to N896bn in March 2022.

Nigeria’s debt position worsened in the first quarter of this year as the country’s debt stock rose by N2.04trn to hit N41.60tn from the N39.56tn recorded as of December 2021.

Between January and March 2021, Nigeria had spent N612.71bn on domestic debt servicing, while it spent $1bn (N415.22bn) on external debt servicing, giving a total of N1.03tn.

From July to September 2021, Nigeria spent N808.49bn on domestic debt servicing and $520.78m (N216.24bn) on external debt servicing, giving a total of N1.02tn.

Speaking at the launch of the World Bank’s Nigeria Development Update titled ‘The urgency for business unusual,’ held recently in Abuja, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, had expressed concern that the fuel subsidy regime was hurting Nigeria’s ability to service its debts.

She said, “Already we have borrowing increasing significantly and we are struggling with being able to service debt because even though revenue is increasing, the expenditure has been increasing at a much higher rate so it is a very difficult situation.”

The International Monetary Fund had warned that debt servicing might gulp 100 per cent of the Federal Government’s revenue by 2026 if the government fails to implement adequate measures to improve revenue generation.

The IMF’s Resident Representative for Nigeria, Ari Aisen, disclosed this while presenting the Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Economic Outlook report in Abuja.

According to an IMF official, based on a macro-fiscal stress test that was conducted on Nigeria, interest payments on debts may wipe up the country’s entire earnings in the next four years.

Aisen said, “The biggest critical aspect for Nigeria is that we have done a macro-fiscal stress test, and what you observe is the interest payments as a share of revenue and as you see us in terms of the baseline from the federal government of Nigeria, the revenue almost 100 per cent is projected by 2026 to be taken by debt service.

“So, the fiscal space or the amount of revenues that will be needed and this without considering any shock is that most of the revenues of the federal government are now, in fact, 89 per cent and it will continue if nothing is done to be taken by debt service.”

Business

IMF: Nigeria’s economy gaining strength — but inflation will remain high

Published

1 week ago

June 17, 2022

Harmattan News

IMF: Nigeria’s economy gaining strength — but inflation will remain high

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says inflation will remain high despite the ongoing economic recovery in Nigeria.

The Washington-based institution said this in a statement issued after completing a series of meetings between its team led by Jesmin Rahman, mission chief for Nigeria at IMF, and Nigerian authorities.

The meeting was held on June 6 and 10, 2022, and discussions centred on recent economic and financial developments and the economic outlook for the country.

The IMF described Nigeria’s economic outlook as “challenging” with high food prices raising food security concerns.

“Regarding the economic outlook, GDP growth is projected at 3.4 percent (y/y) in 2022 while inflation is expected to remain elevated,” the statement reads.

“The fiscal deficit of the consolidated government is expected to remain high at 6.1 percent of GDP due in great measure to costly petrol subsidies and limited tax revenue collections.”

Nigeria’s inflation reached 17.7 percent in May, led by a renewed surge in food prices exacerbated by the war in Ukraine.

Recently, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) raised the benchmark interest rate to 13 percent to contain inflationary pressures.

“Economic recovery continues to gain strength on the back of services and agriculture with GDP growth reaching 3.6 percent (y/y) in Q1 2022,” the statement adds.

“Regarding the external sector, the current account deficit narrowed significantly in 2021, helped by import compression and higher net oil balance.

“However, the improving trade balance, which has continued so far in 2022, is having a limited impact on Foreign Exchange (FX) strains with the exchange rate premiums in the parallel market staying in the 35-40 percent range since October 2021.

It listed downside risks in the near term to include further deterioration of security conditions, elections, low vaccination against COVID-19 and higher global interest rates.

On the upside, the IMF said steady private sector recovery and further broadening of growth, the start of operations at the Dangote Refinery and decisive steps to mobilise revenues, in line with the strategic revenue growth initiative (SRGI), could spur inclusive growth and development.