Following the Chancellor's announcement today of an expanded version of the Job Support Scheme, Mark Tanzer, Chief Executive of ABTA – The Travel Association said:

“The Chancellor's announcement of an expanded version of the Job Support Scheme to support businesses required to close due to local lockdowns does little for the UK's £60bn travel industry, or the close to one million people who work in the sector.

“For almost eight months the travel industry has been hampered by the FCDO’s global advisory against all but essential travel, ever-changing quarantine rules and the failure of the Government to introduce a testing regime which would help to reopen many destinations.

“The announcement of a Global Travel Taskforce this week is recognition of the difficulties facing businesses across the travel industry. However, we cannot afford to wait weeks for additional help. It is vital that the Government acts fast to help struggling travel businesses, and their staff. Without additional support we will see further job losses in travel over the weeks ahead, in addition to the more than 100,000 roles that have already been lost or at risk as a result of the crisis.”
 

Notes to editors
ABTA has been a trusted travel brand for 70 years. Our purpose is to help our Members to grow their businesses successfully and sustainably, and to help their customers travel with confidence. 
The ABTA brand stands for support, protection and expertise. This means consumers have confidence in ABTA and a strong trust in ABTA Members. These qualities are core to us as 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 raising standards in the industry; offering schemes of financial protection; providing an independent complaints resolution service should something go wrong; 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 has more than 4,300 travel brands in Membership, providing a wide range of leisure and business travel services, with a combined annual UK turnover of £39 billion. For more details about what we do, what being an ABTA Member means and how we help the British public travel with confidence visit www.abta.com.