Travel agents demand answers from ministers amid claims the sector has been ‘sacrificed’
The travel sector is calling for answers from the Scottish Government as it claims it is being “sacrificed” amid the coronavirus pandemic.
More than 250 members of the Scottish Passenger Agents' Association (SPAA) and their associates, including airlines, tour operators and pilots, protested outside the Scottish Parliament yesterday as part of a Uk-wide Travel Day of Action.
They are demanding sectoral support for travel, clarity over the data being used to ground the industry, a plan for a safe return to international travel and a low-cost, easy-toaccess testing regime.
Among the protestors were pilots in uniform with their families.
It comes as a survey for the SPAA found more than nine in 10 (96 per cent) of people in Scotland who had travelled overseas since March 2020 felt very or fairly safe. Only 4 per cent felt “not very safe”.
Joanne Dooey, SPAA president, said: “We’re hoping that the First Minister comes to meet us to explain why, despite a world-beating vaccination programme and easily accessible albeit expensive testing, we’re further behind at opening up travel than we were 12 months ago when we had no rapid testing and no vaccination.”
She added: “We’ve challenged the First Minister to come and meet us so we can explain why we feel that our businesses and the wonderful people we employ seem to be being sacrificed.”
Jacqueline Dobson, president of Barrhead Travel, said: “Literally millions of people who work in the travel industry have lost their jobs, millions more fear for the future and are suffering every day while governments continue to restrict travel without constructive engagement or support for the industry. This is no idle warning – the UK travel industry is at risk.”
A Scottish Government spokesman said: "We do not underestimate the significant impact the pandemic continues to have on the tourism sector. International travel restrictions are important in limiting the importation of further cases of the virus, in particular new variants, which could undermine the rollout of our vaccine programme. Wide-ranging measures have been put in place to help the sector.”