Our people

Mark has been Chief Executive of ABTA since September 2005. He is responsible for the strategy and direction of the Association. Before joining ABTA Mark held senior strategy and corporate finance positions in a number of industry sectors, and was Group Strategy Director of Centrica plc., the parent company of British Gas and the Automobile Association.

Simon is a solicitor and was appointed Head of Legal and Member Services and ABTA’s Company Secretary in 2004, having joined ABTA as a Legal Adviser in 1996. Simon’s team is responsible for the provision of legal and regulatory guidance to Members; the advice and alternative dispute resolution services to customers of ABTA Members; and for the operation and enforcement of ABTA’s Code of Conduct.

John joined ABTA in May 2009. John is responsible for financial protection, claims, risk and insurance operations. He is also a Director of Travelife, a Trustee of ABTA Lifeline and The Travel Foundation, and sits on the CAA’s Air Travel Insolvency Protection Advisory Committee (ATIPAC). John chairs the Advisory Committee of the International Centre for Responsible Tourism and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and the Institute of Travel & Tourism.

Carolyn joined ABTA in September 2011. Carolyn brings a wealth of experience both in finance and managing support services to ensure ABTA is able to deliver the best services to Members and Consumers.

Susan joined ABTA as a senior solicitor in 2016 and was subsequently appointed Director in 2019. She leads the Destinations and Sustainability teams in our work on sustainable tourism, health and safety, operations and crisis management. Susan engages with destination and UK governments, tourist boards, trade associations and other stakeholders on behalf of Members in relation to travel industry matters.

Luke joined ABTA in 2011, originally working on European issues, and was appointed Director in 2020. He leads the Public Affairs team’s work with Governments and policymakers in Westminster, the Devolved Administrations and in Europe. Luke works regularly with Members and industry stakeholders on government relations issues, and is also a Board Member of the Tourism Alliance and Observer to the Board of the Northern Ireland Tourism Alliance. 

Alice joined ABTA in 2016 to deliver an expanded programme of events and training for the travel industry. Alice is also responsible for ABTA’s B2B Partner scheme and its education work. Prior to this, Alice worked in the commercial events sector for 12 years, most recently at Capita plc as Director of the public sector events division.