Don’t shut off whole countries in fight against Covid, WTTC urges

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has warned governments that further countrywide border closures could seriously jeopardise global economic recovery.

Instead, it is urging authorities to introduce localised measures, and only when necessary. This would avoid blanket restrictions and prevent stalling the fragile economic recovery, it said.

WTTC says it supports the opening of city to city ‘air corridors’ between global financial centres, such as London and Frankfurt and New York.

This would help restart business travel which is crucial to kickstarting the economic recovery, it added.

It’s announcement came as several countries around the world are considering reintroducing travel restrictions due to local spikes in coronavirus cases.

According to the latest statistics from Johns Hopkins University in the US, the worldwide Covid-19 death toll has passed 606,000 while the number of confirmed coronavirus cases has now gone above 14.5 million.

WTTC President & CEO Gloria Guevara said: "Governments should not close off access to other countries in their entirety. Only regional border measures should be imposed if essential, so that the recovery of a country’s whole economy is not jeopardised in future.

"The establishment of ‘air corridors’ between financial centres where infection levels are low, such as between London and New York, would provide a vital boost to business travel and aid the economic recovery.

"Enforcing country-wide restrictions is a blunt instrument which benefits no one; neither travellers, the local population, the economy or the travel and tourism sector which has been left reeling from the impact of worldwide travel restrictions.

"Such measures could undo the significant efforts to revive travel and tourism, which has recently shown encouraging signs of emerging from the worst of the pandemic, and which in turn has brought hope to millions of people around the world who depend upon the sector for their livelihoods.

"Taking a more carefully calibrated approach to strategically combating coronavirus spikes with local measures rather than country-wide closures, will contain Covid-19 and preserve a country’s attempt to kick-start their economy by continuing to attract travellers to unaffected areas."

Ms Guevara said travel and tourism was critical to economic recovery, generating one in four of all new jobs last year.

"Our 2020 Economic Impact Report shows that during 2019 the sector supported one in 10 jobs of all jobs (330 million total) and made a massive 10.3% contribution to global GDP.

"Restoring business travel, especially via transatlantic flights, is key to help kickstart the economic recovery," she added.

WTTC research shows that for two of the world’s top business centres, business travellers account for one US Dollar in every three spent in New York and one pound Sterling out of every four spent in London.

WTTC has also called for more consistent Covid-19 travel rules to be adopted by European countries to counter confusion by travellers and holidaymakers who faced a baffling array of different types of travel rules advice.

The organisation has been concerned that the uneven patchwork of Covid-19 national border restrictions would deter travellers and suppress the resurgence of the travel and tourism sector, putting 16 million jobs at risk.

Research from WTTC shows that every 2.7% increase in travellers would generate or recover one million jobs in the sector.

"Governments working together with the right coordinated measures could stimulate an increase in travel by as much as 27%, recreating a massive 10 million jobs in travel and tourism," it said.

WTTC also recently issued a ten-point Traveller Guideline for Safe & Seamless Travel, including testing and contact tracing.