Industry lobbying is set to ramp up in the next fortnight as the sector makes a final plea for financial support despite a blow to hopes of sector-specific assistance from the chancellor.
Travel agents and tour operators facing a cash crunch ahead of winter fear having to make redundancies if travel remains heavily restricted after the review of the traffic light system due by October 1.
Abta said it would continue lobbying despite chancellor Rishi Sunak saying any sector-specific extension to furlough, which ends on September 30, would be “challenging” in a letter to Henry Smith MP, chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on the Future of Aviation, made public this week.
The association is urging firms to complete its member survey this week and will use the results to show MPs the extent of potential and confirmed job losses and how sales have been stifled due to government restrictions.
Chief executive Mark Tanzer said robust data would provide “evidence on the impact the overly cautious travel requirements have had on the industry” and “inform and support the next phase of our lobbying activity” with MPs.
The Abta-led Save Future Travel Coalition wants a significantly expanded green list, a red list to guard against variants and for international travel to be managed by risk – as well as financial support to reflect the hit the government’s restrictions have imposed on travel businesses.
Lobbying group Target (Travel Agents Reform Group Engaged Together), which has 2,200 members, called last week for “one last push” to lobby MPs, warning 100,000 jobs are at risk.
Co-founder Jill Waite, owner of Pole Travel, said “we need everyone in the industry to unite in demanding sector-specific support” and accused trade bodies leading lobbying efforts of having “gone quiet” in recent weeks.
Fellow co-founder Graeme Brett, owner of Westoe Travel, warned of a “cocktail of financial pressures” forcing “business closures and job losses on a massive scale” when furlough ends and business loans and deferred VAT repayments are due.
Abta stressed the timing of lobbying statements is “critical” ahead of the October 1 review, end of furlough and upcoming Autumn Statement – with the government focused on social care funding this week.
A spokesperson insisted “the level of lobbying activity hasn’t changed” and explained: “Some of it has been less visible because of the nature of the work but we’re continuing to be vocal in the media and engage with government and politicians.”
The Advantage Travel Partnership leisure director Kelly Cookes said: “Sector-specific support and the extension of furlough are still vital for the industry and we have to keep lobbying for it. While more industries move into recovery, travel is still facing a lot of challenges. We have to keep the noise up.”
The Travel Network Group agreed travel “definitely needs specific support”, while the Latin American Travel Association urged members to “demand answers” from their MPs.
Travel Counsellors chief executive Steve Byrne, however, believes there “isn’t likely to be” dedicated financial support for the industry despite there being “absolutely no doubt travel has been hit in the most profound way”.