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Julia Lo Bue-Said: 'A change of prime minister is the last thing anyone needs right now'

The Big Interview
James Chapple
14 May 2026

The Advantage Travel Partnership's chief executive reflects on the shifting sands of politics and what inspired her rise to senior industry leadership.

Lo Bue-Said delivered the opening address at the 2026 Advantage conference
(Credit: Robert Parfitt Photography)

Resilient: Lo Bue-Said delivers the opening address at the 2026 Advantage Travel Partnership conference (Credit: Robert Parfitt Photography)

Before I sit down with Advantage Travel Partnership chief executive Julia Lo Bue-Said, I quickly check the news.

It's Wednesday (13 May), it's about 11am here in Spain, and Donald Trump's trip to China seems to have booted prime minister Keir Starmer's fight for survival off top spot on the BBC homepage – for now.

I can't help but think, for all the digs Trump has had at him ("he's no Winston Churchill!), Sir Keir might be pretty pleased to see the president take the heat for a bit.

It's been another tumultuous week in British politics, with the future of Starmer's premiership serving as an intriguing backdrop to this year's Advantage conference in Madrid.