The Advantage Travel Partnership and Aito said prime minister Rishi Sunak’s decision on Tuesday (7 February) to dissolve the government’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis) presented an ideal opportunity to bring "much-needed" change to the way in which outbound travel is regulated, governed and represented.

Beis’s responsibilities, which included oversight for package travel rules and reform, are expected to be divided between four new, combined or "refocused" departments.

• The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ)
• The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT)
• The Department for Business and Trade (DBT)
• The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS)

It is unclear at this stage with which of these departments package travel will sit, or whether it will transfer to another department such as transport owing to its intrinsic relationship with the Atol scheme.

A Beis spokesperson told TTG the four departments’ policy areas were still under discussion and would be confirmed shortly.

Former transport secretary Grant Shapps, who most recently served as business secretary, will head up DESNZ, while Tory leadership challenger Kemi Badenoch has been named the new secretary of state for business and trade; elsewhere, Michelle Donelan takes responsibility for science, innovation and technology, and Lucy Frazer for culture, media and sport.

For all that upheaval, it nonetheless ensures outbound travel, for the moment, remains beholden to several government departments – transport, business, the Foreign Office and the DCMS – with several other bodies such as the Civil Aviation Authority and the Competition and Markets Authority responsible for certain legislative and regulatory functions, something Advantage and Aito believe is "unsustainable".

"Bringing the outbound travel industry under the sole control of the Department for Transport, and including it in the remit of one minister, would facilitate better lines of communication and see both sides benefit from the clarity that would offer," said Advantage and Aito in a joint statement.

Together, Advantage and Aito said now was the time to rethink outbound travel’s position within government. "Using this time of change to simplify the way the outbound travel sector is represented in government can deliver a huge benefit to all our members and their customers.

"Many of our members are small businesses, and navigating a complex government structure to find the right department to deal with adds an administrative burden that is simply unsustainable."

‘Wide policy agenda’

The lobby partners’ preferred course would be for responsibility for outbound travel to pass to the DfT under a single dedicated minister, a move they said would ensure the sector is "better placed to receive fair representation and support.

"We see this as a critical step in ensuring the UK remains confident and visible on the international stage, allowing both businesses and leisure travellers to be connected to the rest of the world and enjoy all the benefits that brings," they added.

Abta chief executive Mark Tanzer said that while the reshuffle and restructure would see travel remain politically homeless, the association’s work to engage ministers and civil servants across several departments would continue.

“There is a wide policy agenda for the travel industry which cuts across many of these new departments – from how the UK’s international travel industry can drive growth, to innovation to deliver sustainable travel, the review of Package Travel Regulations and supporting businesses through the energy crisis and recovering from the pandemic," said Tanzer.

"We have worked closely with officials and ministers across the previous government departments on these issues and look forward to continuing that work with the new ministers and within the new structure – continuing as the leading voice to government representing our members and the wider industry.

"As always after a reshuffle or government restructure, we shall be making early contact with those who are new in post, as we continue our regular engagement with officials across the different departments which touch on international travel, including the Department for Transport and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office."

The reshuffle has shaken things up at the DCMS in particular, which is responsible for the largely inbound tourism portfolio. DCMS parliamentary under secretary of state Andrew Stuart retains the tourism brief he has held since November 2022 and will remain minister for equalities too, while also now – in addition – serving as parliamentary under secretary of state at the new Department for Business and Trade.

Covid-era tourism minister Nigel Huddleston has been appointed a minister in the same department.