And you can forget about a sunshine break, too
SCOTLAND’s battered travel industry reacted with fury yesterday after Nicola Sturgeon told families not to book foreign holidays for next month.
Travel agents launched a stinging attack on the First Minister’s ‘wholly gratuitous and extremely damaging’ comments – and claimed they could be the ‘final nail in the coffin’ for operators.
Miss Sturgeon said families should try to ‘limit social interaction’ during the October school holidays. She pleaded with them to ‘please do not book travel overseas’ and even advised against staycations.
Last night, Mike Tibbert, vice-president of the Scottish Passenger Agents Association, said: ‘The First Minister’s comments in the Scottish parliament today, telling Scots not to book travel overseas for the October break if it is not essential, were unnecessary, wholly gratuitous and extremely damaging for the Scottish travel industry.
‘This year has been catastrophic for travel agents and the entire travel sector and today’s comments could well be the final nail in its coffin.
‘It’s utterly short-sighted to consider that this story ends with our members having had no 2020 income, but the stark facts are that, without immediate and targeted stimulus for the travel sector, Scotland will lose its global connectivity, as the airlines cut routes. It’s no idle warning.
‘It is probable that loss of connections would cause irreversible long-term damage to our whole economy. It’s becoming ever clearer that our entire travel sector – and consequently our economy – is in real and immediate jeopardy.’
Although she did not announce specific limitations on travel yesterday, Miss Sturgeon did say the prospect of a short ‘circuit break’, where restrictions are stepped-up to tackle virus rates, is ‘under review’.
The First Minister said: ‘What I would say to people now is this: please think of the October break as an opportunity to further limit social interaction.
She added: ‘Given that this is a global pandemic, please do not book travel overseas for the October break if it is not essential.’ Asked by Conservative MSP Murdo Fraser if she had any advice for people looking to book holidays in the UK, Miss Sturgeon said: ‘I will try to be as frank here as possible. I want the Scottish tourist industry to continue to recover and prosper; we all want that.
‘But I also have to recognise that when we have a virus on the rise sometimes advising people, even when it is not a lockdown, to stay closer to home and perhaps not travel as far, is also important.
‘As we go through these next few weeks we will try to get that balance as right as possible.
‘These are not easy issues for any government anywhere, but what I do know – and I know this is difficult for our aviation sector and for our airports – but right now, in an accelerating global epidemic, travelling overseas raises the risk of bringing more of the virus back and it also raises the risk for people that rules change while they are away,’ Miss Sturgeon added.
‘So the clear advice I want to give to people right now, is please do not book to go overseas during the October break. Think about how you use that break to reduce your interaction as much as possible and perhaps think about staying closer to home than you might otherwise do.’
Last night, Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, said: ‘While the advice for people in Scotland not to book holidays abroad over the October break may be
‘Do not book to go overseas’ ‘Travel sector is in real jeopardy’
sensible to prevent any further spread of coronavirus, it does not help those who have already booked a holiday – many of whom will have done so several months ago.
‘If people are being asked not to travel, then airlines should be made to provide re-booking at no additional cost or refund options to their customers, to prevent them from being left out of pocket or putting public health at risk by taking a holiday abroad that they can’t afford to cancel.’