The government is being urged by the head of International Airlines Group to follow through on a pledge to relax visa rules for Chinese businesses and tourists.
Willie Walsh, chief executive of British Airways owner IAG, has written to home secretary urging her to introduce a new ten-year visa for Chinese visitors, fulfilling a promise made more than two years ago.
It read: “We need a step change on China. We make it hard for Chinese tourists to visit.
“The USA charges £119 for a ten year visa while Britain charges £767.
“Making it easier for Chinese businesses and tourists to come to the UK is critical to boosting our economy and enhancing global trading links, especially post Brexit.
“We continue to lose out on the new jobs that Chinese investment and affluent tourists bring.”
His comments come ahead of prime minister Theresa May’s visit to China.
IAG is also calling for the government to implement two proposals from the UK China Visitor Alliance – that new biometric visas issued by Schengen countries be recognised by the UK and granting visas to the parents of Chinese students studying in the UK, according to the Press Association.
The UK issued 480,000 visas to Chinese tourists in 2016 while France, Germany, Italy and Spain together issued 1.5 million.
The Schengen visa costs €99 and offers free access to 26 countries, putting the UK at a “competitive disadvantage”, IAG said.
China’s burgeoning middle class are increasingly travelling overseas, with around 122 million trips in 2016, up 4.3% on the previous year.
The UK and China recently signed a bilateral agreement that raises the permitted number of weekly flights between both countries from 40 to 150.
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