Low budget airline Ryanair confirmed today that it will refund the £13 travel tax for children under 12 who are on flights departing the UK from 1st May 2015 as per the the decision of UK Chancellor George Osborne to abolish children's APD from 1st May next year.

However, Ryanair said that it has gone the extra mile to let children can fly tax free six weeks earlier, from 27th March 2015 so families can save more for the Easter holiday. The move will cost the airline £2 million.

Ryanair's chief marketing officer, Kenny Jacobs, said: "Ryanair welcomes Chancellor Osborne's decision to scrap APD for children under-12 on flights departing the UK from 1st May 2015. To ensure even greater savings for the millions of UK families flying Ryanair at Easter, Ryanair will refund APD for all children who check in on flights departing the UK from 27th March 2015 onwards. Families flying Ryanair already enjoy the lowest fares and fantastic discounts with our "Family Extra" service and this will ensure even more UK families make even greater savings next Easter flying with Ryanair.

“While we welcome this partial reduction in APD, we call on the UK Government to abolish APD, and allow UK tourism to return to growth and become competitive once more. Tourist traffic in Ireland has risen by almost 10% since APD was abolished in April, with the VAT received from the additional tourist spend far exceeding the loss of APD. The UK should follow suit and axe the tax for all."