The controversial £1 per vehicle drop-off charge at Edinburgh Airport is to be examined by the European Union, the BBC reports.

The charge, which was introduced in October 2010, applies to every vehicle, including taxis, that drops passengers off outside the terminal.

Now, Conservative MEP Struan Stevenson has written to officials seeking clarification over whether the fee was permissible under EU law.

According to the BBC, the EU Transport Commissioner has said the issue will be examined.

Mr Stevenson said: “Edinburgh Airport’s £1 fee for drivers dropping off passengers at the terminal building was a shock to the city’s beleaguered travellers when it was introduced last year.

“Now it looks like the airport’s operators have shocked the rest of Europe too by pioneering these money-raking antics.

“Though Edinburgh Airport was amongst the first to exploit drivers in this way, a number of similar schemes have cropped up in British airports recently.

“I’d welcome any light the EU’s transport directorate can shed on the appropriateness of such creeping charges.”