Scotland’s tourism industry has been operating in crisis mode for almost 20 months.
Prior to Covid, the main focus of the STA was to influence policy to remove barriers to Scotland’s growth as a globally important tourism destination and ensure that we are every bit as competitive as we can and need to be.
Aside from the fact that our industry continues to operate at a reduced level and capacity as a result of the ongoing recruitment challenges, we have now been plunged into an alarming crisis as a result of the Scottish Government’s decision last week to extend Day 2 PCR testing requirements on fully vaccinated international travellers, while other parts of the UK will not. The impact will be significant and this decision leaves us questioning whether there is any voice in Cabinet or the Government in a position to make and win the case for our economy, business and jobs.
Since the announcement of this decision, I have received a steady stream of messages over the course of the weekend from businesses presenting direct and immediate evidence of the impact of the Scottish Government’s decision on international travel restrictions; as an example, one inbound operator has been told to direct all future bookings to airports south of the border.
It is difficult to convey the serious alarm across the travel, tourism and hospitality sector in Scotland and indeed the broader business community.
International bookings, revenue and visitors to Scotland are being lost right now; England has experienced a surge in bookings. Unless the Scottish Government reverse this policy decision, Scotland can effectively write-off international tourism to Scotland for another year to the detriment of our businesses, communities, supply chain and wider economy.
The booking window for 2022 is now, yet our inbound tour operators are looking at a third year with little or no business. There will be no international demand while PCR testing remains in place. This policy decision has already driven demand from Scottish airports to elsewhere in the UK and Ireland; this was recently highlighted as a serious risk at the recent meeting held between the STA, representatives of our inbound operator sector and the Scottish Government.
The decision to step out of alignment with Europe and England in relation to the easing of international travel restrictions not only adds a further significant adverse impact on the recovery of Scotland’s tourism industry, but also to its whole supply chain.
The long-term impact and costs are and will be significant; our 2022 season is now at serious risk. Visitors are making plans and decisions around travel now; Scotland has now become one of the most uncompetitive destinations globally.
The business community across Scotland, and indeed beyond the immediate travel and tourism sectors, called on the Scottish Government to reconsider this decision in an open letter issued yesterday with our request to pursue consistency with the other UK administrations. There is the need for a number of competing harms to be tackled, however we have growing concern that the immediate risk to jobs, well-being and the economy is not receiving the crisis attention required. International travel is key for Scotland’s recovery; the domestic market alone is not a powerful enough economic stimulant to support recovery.
We have requested an urgent meeting with ministers and senior officials to discuss what can be done to redress this imbalance in the government and highlight the risk to key sectors and businesses in the Scottish economy.
Marc Crothall is chief executive of the Scottish Tourism Alliance
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