Abta demands clarity on emergency business support measures

Rishi Sunak announced a range of measures to support the leisure, hospitality, and retail sectors, including a £330 billion government-backed loan scheme for businesses, as well as further business rate relief and additional measures to support individuals worth in excess of a further £20 billion.

Additional support for the aviation sector, specifically airlines and airports, is expected to be outlined in the coming days following talks with the Department for Transport.

However, Tuesday’s announcement offered little by way of respite from certain existing rules many throughout the travel sector feel are harming businesses chances of survival, such as some of the tenets of the Package Travel Regulations – with both Abta and Aito calling for respite, particularly for SMEs.