UKinbound proposes ‘Tourism Export Recovery Fund’
Trade organisation UKinbound launched a new call to save inbound tourism through the creation of a ‘Tourism Export Recovery Fund.’
It says this would help businesses wholly reliant on international visitors to survive until the return of the market in spring 2022.
Since the start of the Covid-19 crisis, inbound tourism businesses have seen revenues fall by at least 90%.
As a result of the current overly cautious restrictions, these businesses are facing a second year with no business and no revenue.
UKinbound has submitted a proposal to Treasury for a Tourism Export Recovery Fund which would allow tour operators and DMCs to apply for a capped grant award based on their 2019 revenue levels.
This investment, totalling £47 million for the UK’s 230 tour operators and DMCs to survive until inbound tourism can safely resume at sustainable levels next year.
The Tourism Export Recovery Fund would enable the sector to rebuild and retain tens of thousands of jobs across the country.
It would also provide valuable export earnings and maintain the UK’s global competitiveness as a destination.
Joss Croft, CEO, UKinbound, said: "The UK economy is losing £78m a day in exports due to a total collapse in international visitors, and failure to support this industry will have a detrimental impact on our national economic recovery."
"Our borders have effectively been closed since March 2020, with previously profitable and sustainable businesses seeing their revenue drop by over 90% since 2019. These businesses have also been forgotten by the Treasury and left out of existing Government support schemes."
In addition, the Association is also calling for an extension to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme until April 2022.
The removal of the scheme from 1 October would severely impact the sector, with 77% of tour operator and DMC staff still on furlough.
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