Industry leaders make fresh plea as desperation grows

Industry leaders have stepped up their increasingly desperate – and so far futile efforts – to win sector support from the Government and pleaded with ministers to stop eroding consumer confidence.

In another letter to Rishi Sunak, the ABTA-led Save Future Travel Coalition implored the Chancellor to step in with support when he delivers the Budget on 3 March.

The industry is approaching 12 months with little or no income, the Coalition said, and warned the potential loss of the summer 2021 season would deliver a ‘seismic blow’.

Frustration has mounted in recent days, not just over the lack of support, but with the language used by ministers regarding overseas holidays and the confusion it is causing.

AITO warned this week that ministers are ‘frightening’ the public into ditching the prospect of a foreign trip and leaving operators and agents which rely on international bookings with little or no trade.

During the Covid press briefing last night, Prime Minister Boris Johnson reiterated that it was ‘illegal to go on holiday’.

Business leaders acknowledged that ‘public health is the priority’ but told the Chancellor ‘comments from senior Ministers about not booking summer holidays are misjudged’.

"It is too early to make such predictions which only serve to further erode consumer confidence," the Coalition said.

In the March budget – if not sooner – the Coalition urged Sunak to expand the grant schemes, extend support mechanisms such as furlough and business rates relief into the next financial year, and to draw up a recovery roadmap.

The lobby group described liquidity as ‘the single biggest challenge facing travel businesses’, and pointed out that existing grants schemes do not address the trading consequences of severe restrictions on international travel.

"With the vaccine rollout progressing well, companies need help to bridge the gap and survive through to recovery," it told Sunak. "To save jobs, salary support must be kept in place until recovery in the sector is gathering pace."

ABTA Chief Executive Mark Tanzer said the March budget was crucial.

"Government policies to curtail international travel have had a devasting impact on the industry," he said.

"Despite its significance to the UK economy and its recovery, travel has become the forgotten sector, and businesses are running on empty due to a lack of tailored financial support from the UK Government.

"The Chancellor has an opportunity to address this in his Budget. Supporting the sector through this time of crisis will payoff for the taxpayer and the wider economy."

It is estimated that one in six travel jobs have been lost or put at risk.

And while data from the Office of National Statistic showed travel has been the hardest hit industry, other sectors, including hospitality, culture and the arts, have received support while travel has been neglected.

Advantage Travel Partnership Chief Executive Julia Lo Bue Said remarked: "While the policy measures introduced, such as quarantine, travel corridors, testing, and localised restrictions on travel, are understandable from a public health perspective, they also diminish consumer confidence and damage trade.

"Yet, to date, these measures have not been combined with tailored financial support targeted at addressing the consequences of these policies for the businesses affected – as a result our members are under enormous pressure.

"We need Government to address this as a matter of urgency and work with the industry to develop a roadmap to reopen travel."

UKinbound Chief Executive Joss Croft said: "Many businesses are stuck between a rock and a hard place – they can’t trade to generate income but they’re also shut out of support.

"Businesses in the travel sector, including destination management companies, coach operators, and tour operators, as well as many others, are entirely excluded from existing grants support packages.

"The UK Government needs to show they value the UK’s world-class travel and tourism industry."

Business Travel Association Chief Executive Clive Wratten said the sector has been ‘almost entirely forgotten’.

"Alongside our colleagues in the leisure industry, we are asking the Chancellor to set out targeted support for our industry in his Budget," he said.

"If we are to be a global Britain, business travel must commence at the earliest safe date and there needs to be an industry to support this vital economic contributor. Without targeted support, many businesses will rapidly collapse and thousands of jobs will be lost."