ABTA unveils speaker line up for Travel Matters 2012
Date published: 21 February 2012Industry to Tackle Current Policy Issues, Connectivity and Tourism Mix at Annual Policy Conference
ABTA today announced that Tourism Minister John Penrose MP will be among the speakers at ABTA’s third annual Travel Matters event. This year’s event, taking place at Millbank in Westminster on 10th May, will see leading industry figures discussing issues around the mix of support for outbound/inbound and domestic tourism and how we can improve the UK’s global connectivity to support sustainable growth.
Travel Matters brings together industry leaders, influencers and policy makers to provide a forum where they can debate on and influence current policy matters. Delegates are invited from all sectors of the travel industry, including senior representatives from ABTA’s Membership, Government departments and industry stakeholders.
Other speakers at the event include: Cllr Daniel Moylan, Deputy Chairman of Transport for London; John Parkinson, Head of UK Aviation Policy Development Department for Transport; and James Berresford, CEO VisitEngland who will be joining John Penrose MP on a panel discussion about the UK tourism mix.
Mark Tanzer ABTA Chief Executive said: “Travel Matters provides a fantastic opportunity for the industry to share and shape views on key policy issues. Once again we are delighted to bring together an outstanding line-up of travel industry and Government speakers. We will discuss a whole range of issues critical to a successful and healthy future for our industry, especially the value to the UK economy of both outbound and inbound travel and what drives the UK tourism mix; as well as timely debate on how we can improve the UK’s connectivity, including developing a robust aviation strategy.”
The event will be moderated by ITV News Special Correspondent Daisy McAndrew who successfully moderated last year’s event. Daisy’s wealth of experience in politics and economics will once more prove invaluable for steering the debate forward.
List of confirmed speakers:
- John Penrose MP, Minister for Tourism and Heritage
- Ian Ailles, CEO Mainstream, Thomas Cook UK & Ireland
- Cllr Daniel Moylan, Deputy Chairman of Transport for London
- Mary Rance, CEO, UK Inbound
- James Berresford, CEO, VisitEngland
- Kane Pirie, Managing Director, Travel Republic
- John Parkinson, Head of UK Aviation Policy Development Department for Transport
- Mike Bowers, Group Counsel, TUI Travel PLC
- Tim Johnson, Director, Aviation Environment Federation
- Mark Tanzer, CEO, ABTA
- Luke Pollard, Head of Public Affairs, ABTA
Additional speakers will be announced shortly.
For more information on the event please visit: www.abta.com/travelmatters
For further information
Sean Tipton, Media Relations Manager, tel: 020 3117 0513
Gillian Edwards, Senior Public Relations Manager, 020 3117 0514
Victoria Bacon Head of Communications, tel: 020 3117 0515
Out of Hours: Contact the Duty Press Officer via pager: 07659 190 987
E-mail: press@abta.co.uk
Web: www.abta.com
Twitter: @ABTAtravel
Notes to editors
ABTA has been at the heart of travel for more than 60 years. Our purpose is to help our Members to grow their businesses successfully and sustainably, and to help their customers - the travelling public – have confidence in their travel experience.
The ABTA brand stands for expertise, reliability and fairness. These qualities are core to us. They ensure that holidaymakers remain confident in the holiday products that they buy from our Members.
We help our Members and their customers navigate through today's changing travel landscape by providing schemes of financial protection and a course of redress if something goes wrong; by raising standards in the industry and by giving guidance on issues from sustainability to health and safety; and by presenting a united voice to government to ensure the industry and the public get a fair deal.
ABTA currently has over 1,300 Members and represents over 5,000 retail outlets and offices. For more details about what we do, what being an ABTA Member means and how we're working at the heart of the industry to ensure that we continue to build confidence in travel visit www.abta.com.
