Comment: The trade will be hoping for sympathetic ears in government

As schools returned in earnest this week and the peak summer travel period started to wind down, the industry was preparing itself for a challenging autumn and winter.

There remains an underlying sense of positivity, buoyed by strong customer resilience and a sense of release for consumers and trade alike after the pandemic shutdown.

But nobody will be blind to the seriousness of the economic squeeze which is only set to tighten over the coming months as exchange rate pressures also grow.

It remains to be seen precisely what measures the new prime minister will introduce to mitigate rising energy costs, and we should find out more today (Thursday).

But all in the industry are hoping for meaningful action not just to help businesses navigate the road to recovery, but also to ease the nationwide pressure on disposable income.

The confirmation of Liz Truss as PM earlier this week prompted the inevitable calls from industry associations to engage and appreciate the value of travel and tourism to the economy.

And after a frustrating and fractious period of government relations, those associations and trade bodies will be crossing their fingers for sympathetic ears at both the DfT and the Home and Foreign Offices.

The industry’s engagement with government and the challenges and opportunities ahead will be among the topics discussed at Travel Weekly’s Future of Travel Conference later this month.

As part of an outstanding speaker line-up, we will also be hearing from both Google and ITV on consumer trends, and it will be fascinating to get their take on the outlook for the industry.