Now 300 travel chiefs tell PM to abandon traffic light system and save summer
HUNDREDS of travel firms last night demanded Boris Johnson abandon the traffic light system to ‘salvage’ summer holidays.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, major airlines and tour operators said simplified rules would help the UK travel sector recover while protecting the country’s health needs.
They called for the UK to adopt a US-style system, where fully-vaccinated citizens can travel to any countries that will allow them to enter. Provided they take a pre-departure test on their return, double-jabbed American holidaymakers do not need to quarantine when they get home.
The Save Our Summer group, which co-ordinated the letter to the PM, accepted there would continue to be ‘a number of red countries which would be out of bounds’ to British travellers. But the signatories said everywhere else would be accessible to the fully jabbed and the ‘easy-tounderstand’ policy would build confidence among consumers.
The group also called for an end to the requirement for the fully-vaccinated to have a PCR test on the second day after returning from a green or amber country.
The letter, seen by the Daily Mail, was last night signed by more than 300 travel firms. It states: ‘We urge Ministers to simplify travel urgently so that at least the key travel month of August can be salvaged.
‘The traffic light system should be either abandoned or made much easier, along the lines of the American system.
‘There would continue to be some red countries which would be out of bounds but the majority of destinations would be accessible to the fully jabbed.
‘This easy-to-understand policy would help the UK travel sector recover, build confidence quickly among consumers and still protect our country’s health needs with pre-departure testing.
‘We call on the Prime Minister to act swiftly so as to save tens of thousands of jobs and provide clarity for consumers hoping to travel to see loved ones.’
Signatories included small and large travel firms such as Trailfinders, United Airlines, Finn Air, Kirker Holidays and Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
Last night Tory MP Henry Smith, whose Crawley constituency includes Gatwick, welcomed the proposal.
He told the Mail: ‘I’m in favour of anything that is simplified and more easy to understand. The traffic light system could have provided that but shortly after it was announced there were all sorts of caveats.’
Diana Holland, the Unite union’s assistant general secretary for civil air transport, also urged the Government to take further action to support jobs.
She said: ‘The traffic light system is not working and there is disagreement within Government about how to move forward.
‘While the situation remains uncertain and complex, the Government must provide jobsaving support to our aviation and travel industry.’
France and Germany had put in place sector-specific support for aviation but ‘the UK civil air transport sector has haemorrhaged jobs’, she said.
Paul Charles, chief executive of travel consultancy The PC Agency, said: ‘The Prime Minister could win enormous support by making travel even simpler, not just by removing watchlists, but also by widening the green list and creating a stop-go system as American citizens use.
‘The US is still protected with pre-departure testing. The UK can follow a similar model as the Government’s own data shows no variants are being brought in
‘Salvage the key month of August’
‘Sword of Damocles hanging over us’
from amber or green countries. Let’s see the end of the complex traffic lights and a move to less onerous testing.’
Tour operators warned that changing rules are causing distrust among hoteliers in Europe.
Noel Josephides, director of Aito, the Specialist Travel Association, told The Guardian: ‘Hoteliers are turning away bookings from the UK in August because they don’t trust us – and European travellers are taking our availability.
‘There is no confidence; why should people trust us when we have the sword of Damocles constantly hanging over us and things could change and result in cancellations at any moment?’
Fiona Charrington, chief executive of Martin Randall Travel, said: ‘Some hoteliers are losing patience. If there’s a German company wanting to book or a British one, of course they will go with the one who is less likely to make last-minute changes.’