TUI Travel chief executive Peter Long has told MPs that the UK was the most fragile of the operator’s 25 markets in terms of consumer confidence.
Speaking at a reception in the Houses of Parliament, Long told transport minister Theresa Villiers that TUI faced a "huge headwind" in its battle to offer 6.5m Britons affordable holidays due to rises in fuel prices, increased taxation and sterling’s weakness against foreign currencies.
Holidays played a major part in the happiness of the nation, said Long, but he said TUI needed help from the Government in terms of fair taxation and legislation to keep prices down.
"We want to take more customers on holiday," he said. "If the government helps us to keep the cost of holidays to the lowest level we will sell more holidays, we will make more profit and we will pay more taxes."
In particular, Long repeated TUI’s plea for the Government to replace air passenger duty with a per plane tax, which would reward charter airlines that operate modern, fuel-efficient aircraft with high load factors, he said.
Villiers responded saying the Government was very much aware of the burden APD placed on the holiday and aviation industry and that it was consulting on reform – especially with regard to the banding system that means passengers travelling to Barbados pay more than those flying to Hawaii – but she gave no suggestion that APD would be reduced.
By Linsey McNeill
