Josephides: Vote with your head, not your heart
ABTA chairman Noel Josephides told travel colleagues to think about the consequences of their vote when they go to the ballot boxes tomorrow.
Speaking at ABTA’s annual Travel Matters conference in central London, Josephides said: "Tomorrow, however you choose to vote, vote with your brain and leave emotion out of it."
ABTA has not advised members on which way to vote, but it has prepared a report with Deloitte on the possible impact of Brexit on UK travel businesses and the UK travel consumer.
IAG chief executive Willie Walsh, who delivered the keynote speech at the Travel Matters conference, said that although his company backed the Remain campaign, it had refrained from trying to influence the decision of its staff.
"I believe Britain will be better staying in Europe, but IAG as a company is not going to tell people how to vote," said Walsh. "We believe this is an individual decision for each individual member of the electorate."
He said he believed British consumers had benefited from being members of the EU, but he claimed Brexit would not have a ‘long-term material impact’ on IAG’s business.
Admitting that ‘there will no doubt be some short-term turbulence’, he said he was confident the Spanish-registered airline group would weather the storm.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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