The UK government has come under increasing pressure to devolve air passenger duty (APD) in Scotland ahead of two major sporting events in 2014.

Scottish government officials have joined forces with tourism chiefs and airport bosses in calling for the controversial aviation tax to be removed before the Commonwealth Games are held in Glasgow and the Ryder Cup takes place at Gleneagles.

APD was introduced in 1994 and the amount that travellers are charged to fly into the UK has been revised several times since. Unsurprisingly, tourism leaders have been lobbying against the tax for a long time, as they think it causes people to think twice about visiting Britain.

Now, there are real concerns that spectator numbers at the two high-profile Scottish sporting occasions could be damaged as a direct result of the levy. In fact, a recent study showed that APD could cost the Scottish economy £210 million a year in lost tourism revenue by 2016.

"Scotland will welcome the world in 2014 courtesy of the Commonwealth Games and Ryder Cup, and yet we are in the absurd situation of increasing costs for people who intend to visit Scotland," commented transport minister Keith Brown.