Speaking after the government announcement this evening (October 15) on it’s updated quarantine-free travel list, ABTA has spoken out, calling the decision a “major blow” and saying that it “again demonstrates that travel businesses are effectively being forced to close by the Government’s measures”.
An ABTA spokesperson said: “The removal of Italy from the travel corridors list is a major blow for many winter operators in the UK travel industry, and again demonstrates that travel businesses are effectively being forced to close by the Government’s measures to control coronavirus – yet, unlike other sectors such as hospitality, travel has received no sector specific support.
“As the furlough scheme winds down, it is vital that the Government focuses on restarting travel and that tailored support is made available for travel businesses. Recovery of travel depends on the urgent introduction of a testing regime, which will provide an additional mitigation to keep destinations open, as well as fully regionalised travel corridors, and a move back to country specific Foreign Travel Advice. Without these measures, we will continue to see travel businesses failing and tens of thousands more jobs will be lost.”
