NEWS TRAVEL WEEKLY BUSINESS CONTINUED FROM THE BACK
in the UK, P&O Cruises,” he said. “That in turn gives the trade confidence in our long-term intentions for the market. The UK very politely plays its role but I’d like to see it being more aggressive and taking advantage of the strong currency – reminding the corporation of the strength of the contribution the UK can make financially.” North America and the Caribbean have performed well in the past 12 months as destinations, but Smith added: “We really need to be looking at reclaiming our market presence in the UK and Europe, particularly in the Mediterranean. “As we’ve focused on the Caribbean and China – the Med and Europe have slipped back slightly in terms of deployment.” In trading statements, Royal has attributed the struggle to increase bookings in Europe to US travellers not wanting to visit the continent following terror attacks in Brussels and Paris. But Smith also cited the “rise and recovery of Costa”, the ships on order with MSC Cruises, and the “aggressive marketing activity” of Aida and Tui Cruises. In a bid to tackle the issue, Royal is looking to coordinate the efforts of each of its European divisions to grow the brand and those of sister lines Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises. Parent Royal Caribbean
Cruises is recruiting a manager for continental Europe. The role will help “make sure Europe can stand up to its potential”, Smith said, and would be similar to that introduced by Norwegian Cruise Line which recruited Christian Boell in June last year as managing director for Europe. Smith added: “We are almost competing within each of the markets in Europe. But really we need to be aggregating our investment in the continent to maximise our lift into key ports – mainly Barcelona and Rome.”
Iata AGM 2016: Airlines have never been so profitable but challeng
Carriers back proposal for global emissions scheme
Major airlines have backed plans for a global scheme to limit carbon emissions despite dissent from China, with Iata declaring carbon reduction targets “can’t be met by technology alone”.
Iata members passed a
resolution calling on governments to adopt a single global carbon- offset mechanism due to be discussed at an International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) assembly in September. However, the resolution was opposed by Chinese carriers whose representatives described the proposal as “unfeasible”. A China Eastern representative
told the Iata annual general meeting that airline CO2 emissions should be allowed to peak in 2030, whereas Iata policy is to limit total emissions from 2020. Iata director general Tony
Tyler told the association: “It’s clear our 2020 carbon-neutral growth target cannot be met with improvements in technology, infrastructure and operations alone. We need a mandatory global carbon offset scheme.” The ICAO assembly will
Iata fears visa crisis between US and Schengen area
Iata has warned of “a looming crisis” over the EU’s visa-waiver schemes with the US and Canada. The association said travellers
between the Schengen area of Europe and North America could be denied visa-free travel from next February – although travellers to and from the UK and Ireland,
78
travelweekly.co.uk 9 June 2016
UP IN THE AIR: Chinese carriers branded emissions plan as ‘unfeasible’
“We need a mandatory global scheme that is fair, transparent, effective and simple”
consider a proposed Carbon Offset and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (Corsia). Tyler said: “We don’t want a
patchwork of conflicting regimes with overlapping taxes and charges. We need a mandatory global scheme that is fair, transparent, effective and simple.” The Iata resolution calls on
which are outside the Schengen area, would be unaffected. The issue stems from a clause
added to Schengen rules in 2014 which means visa-free access to the 26 EU states in the area can be granted only to citizens of countries offering reciprocal visa-free access. Both the US and Canada require
some EU nationals to have visas. Citizens of Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Cyprus and Poland need visas to enter the US and those of Bulgaria and Romania require visas to visit Canada.
governments to consider 11 elements for the scheme to “simplify implementation while avoiding market distortions”. Tyler said: “Details are still being worked out. But as an industry we want a cost-effective measure that leads to permanent carbon reductions, avoiding the cost and complexity that a patchwork of uncoordinated measures would create. Ultimately, passengers will have to meet the costs. However, a global scheme could be implemented at a cost we believe to be acceptable and that would not affect demand.”
The EC is required to enforce the
provisions unless the European Parliament and Council advise it not to by July 12. If it is enforced, US and Canadian citizens would need visas to enter all EU member states barring the UK and Ireland from next February. The US and Canada would be expected to follow suit in demanding visas of all visitors from Schengen countries. Rafael Schvartzman, Iata
vice-president for Europe, said: “We’re calling on the EU to agree a proportionate approach.”
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