Cruising into a crisis

WITH the rest of the travel sector being gradually resuscitated, the decision not merely to continue but to extend the ban on cruise holidays looks utterly perverse.

It’s a kick in the teeth for operators, which have been assiduously adapting their vessels to meet coronavirus regulations.

It’s a huge disappointment for thousands of people who were looking forward to a relaxing cruise after the anxieties and strictures of Covid.

And it’s another example of muddle and inconsistency in Government policy on easing restrictions on tourism.

Yes, there were examples early in the pandemic of cruise passengers being hit by the virus and then being refused permission to disembark by nervous port authorities.

But stringent safeguards have since been widely adopted, including testing facilities and thermal cameras.

If we can fly to the Costas on a packed aeroplane, stay in a hotel for two weeks and carouse in a beach bar, why can’t we take even a river cruise?

If it is to survive in anything like its present form, the cruise industry needs clarity as well as support.

The Foreign Office should look again at this advice before it does irretrievable damage to a vibrant £10billion-a-year industry employing 90,000 people.

Unless there’s compelling scientific evidence that cruising is fundamentally more dangerous than flying on a package holiday, the ban must be overturned.