Travel News August 2020


ANNUAL RESULTS FOR 2019 B


ELFAST Harbour has reported a sound financial performance for 2019, in line with expectations and


providing a strong platform from which to respond to the challenges posed by the impact of Covid-19 on the local and global economy. Releasing its annual results, Belfast Harbour reported turnover of £65.9m in the year to the end of 2019 (down 4%) and generated operating profits of £30.6m (down 15% from the record results of 2018). The decline in earnings largely reflected the completion of a major offshore windfarm contract mid- 2018 and the ongoing decline in power station coal throughput. Trade remained strong during the


year, with more than 24 million tonnes of cargo passing through the port. Ferry passenger numbers exceeded 1.5m for the third year in a row, there were a record number of freight vehicles – up 4% to 542,000 – and cruise ship activity also continued to grow, with 280,000 cruise visitors during the year. During 2019, £44m was invested in


a range of port and estate projects, with £40m invested to automate container handling and upgrade the Belfast -Liverpool ferry terminal, in readiness for the introduction of larger new Stena Line vessels. Construction also commenced on City Quays 3, which will be Northern Ireland’s largest ever Grade ‘A’ office building. The last remaining office space in the City Quays 2 building was occupied during the year. In 2019 Belfast Harbour committed


£115.7m in further investment in strategically significant projects to help deliver its vision of becoming the best regional port and an iconic waterfront for Belfast. These investments will be a critical enabler of NI’s Covid-19 recovery, given the Port’s recognised role as a key driver of the regional economy. In the past 10 years Belfast Harbour has invested over £290m in port


infrastructure and estate regeneration, which as a Trust Port it entirely self- funded – with all profits reinvested back into developing the Port for the benefit of customers and the wider economy. Commenting on the results for 2019,


Belfast Harbour’s Chairman, David Dobbin, said the sound performance in 2019 and recent years had given the Port a strong base to weather the impact of the Covid-19 crisis. “Belfast Harbour has not been


immune to the significant social and economic challenges caused by the Covid-19 pandemic but our Port has continued to operate safely and effectively throughout the recent crisis. I want to thank the entire Belfast Harbour community for keeping the Port open for trade round the clock, every day, through the entire pandemic. “It is reassuring to know that as we


prepare for the post crisis recovery, that our performance in 2019 and recent years provides a strong platform to move forward. “The full implications of the pandemic


on trade and our local economy are significant and still unfolding. So far trade through Belfast Port has proved remarkably resilient. Early figures for the March to May period show trade volumes down 20-25% on normal but in recent weeks throughput is running around 10% down on last year. The worst impacts have been in our cruise, tourist and leisure activities which have all but ceased during the crisis. “The scale of the challenge to get the economy back to pre-crisis levels and to recover our tourist and leisure trade is immense. However, Belfast Harbour’s sound financial position and ambitious investment plans will allow us to play a key role in helping drive the local recovery, working with our customers and key partners to get the economy back on track. I want to assure everyone that we are open for business, our major


AIR Canada has announced that it has engaged Spartan Bioscience Inc., an Ottawa-based biotechnology leader in portable DNA testing technology, to assess how best to deploy Spartan’s portable COVID-19 testing technology in the aviation sector. “Air Canada’s strategy for managing COVID-19 has


been to develop and apply multiple layers of biosafety measures for customers and employees. We believe the availability of a rapid, accurate, portable molecular test for COVID-19 will add yet another effective layer. We are excited by the potential and point of care use cases for the Spartan Cube, and look forward to working with the Spartan team in the weeks and months ahead,” said Samuel Elfassy, Vice President, Safety at Air Canada. Air Canada has been at the forefront of the airline industry in responding to COVID-19, for example


HAYS Travel is now offering comprehensive travel insurance covering Covid-19 and other pandemics as standard across all its policies. The cover offered by Hays Travel from today is


supplied by Rush Insurance Services and Allianz Insurance. Unlike existing insurance policies, it explicitly covers cancellations or curtailment of the holiday, emergency medical expenses, and repatriation following diagnosis of Covid-19 or any disease that is classed as an epidemic or pandemic. It also covers cruise holidays where travellers are confined to their cabins or lose out on port stops and prepaid excursions because of pandemics.


Iconic London Beefeaters Face Redundancy


THE iconic London beefeaters are facing redundancy for the first time in their 500 year history due to the impact of Covid-19 on the tourism industry. Sky News has reported that Historic Royal Palaces


(HRP), which runs the Tower of London – the beefeaters’ home – has seen its income fall by £98m this year, leaving the charity with ‘no choice but to reduce payroll costs’. Chief Executive John Barnes said: “We are heartbroken that it has come to this.”


Belfast Harbour has reported strong financial results for 2019


construction contracts are continuing and we actively pursuing business opportunities.” Joe O’Neill, Chief Executive of


Belfast Harbour said: “During 2019 we launched the latest stage of our strategy ‘A Port for Everyone’ which details our vision out to 2035 and plans to become the best regional port in the world, cementing Belfast Harbour as a key gateway for trade, tradeable services and tourism. This will include further developing Belfast Harbour as a key economic hub for the region and creating an iconic waterfront for Belfast which is an attractive and safe place to live, work, visit and invest. “Key to the delivery of our ambitious plans is close collaboration with our


being among the first carriers globally to require face coverings onboard and the first airline in the Americas to take customers’ temperatures prior to boarding. In May it introduced a comprehensive program, Air Canada CleanCare+, to apply biosafety measures at each stage of the journey. Air Canada has committed to adding other processes and technologies as they become available, which is why it is pleased to be working with Spartan Bioscience. Spartan is developing a proprietary swab for the collection of DNA samples for its COVID-19 test. Spartan’s test cartridge (reagents) and the Spartan Cube (portable DNA analyser device) remain subject to Health Canada approval. “Spartan is excited to explore how our fast, portable testing technology can help keep Air Canada employees


customers such as Stena Line and our partnerships including those with Belfast City Council, Titanic Quarter Limited, our two Universities, Catalyst, Northern Ireland Screen, Odyssey Trust, Tourism NI, Visit Belfast and the Department of Infrastructure. “As society and the economy recover


from the disruption and uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, this partnership approach will be more important than ever to creating a vibrant economy with long-term opportunities for good jobs and a better way of life for our citizens. While the pandemic may influence some of our short and medium- term priorities we believe that the long- term goals of our strategy largely remain valid.”


Air Canada to Explore Rapid COVID-19 Testing with Biotechnology Leader Spartan Bioscience


and the travelling public safe as Canada’s economy re- opens,” said Nick Noreau, Spartan Bioscience’s Chief Revenue Officer.


BELFAST HARBOUR POSTS SOLID


UPDATES 7


Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau Launches New Health Pledge


THE Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau has launched the ‘PHL Health Pledge’, a new initiative to increase awareness of the destination’s efforts to safely welcome back visitors as Philadelphia gradually reopens for business. To support this effort, the PHLCVB has partnered with Dr. David Nash, Dean Emeritus of the Jefferson College of Population Health, to serve as the PHLCVB’s Chief Health Advisor by providing direct advice and guidance to meeting and event planners. Dr. Nash will also serve as a PHLCVB-designated spokesperson on panels, and review current public health guidelines, reports, and protocols in order to make recommendations to meeting planner customers. Dr. Nash is an acclaimed national leader in population health who holds both an MD and MBA. He is currently an endowed chair professor of Health Policy at the Jefferson College of Population Health (JCPH), the first of its kind in the USA, where he served for more than a decade as the founding Dean, culminating a 30-year tenure. A board-certified internist, Dr. Nash is internationally recognised for his work in public accountability for outcomes, physician leadership development, and quality-of-care improvement. More recently, he has been lauded for his thought leadership surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. “I look forward to supporting Philadelphia’s


tourism leaders in reviving this critical element to our city’s economy and livelihood,” said Dr. David Nash. “By instituting the proper public health protocols, our hospitality industry should be able to safely and effectively support and protect travellers when the time comes. I’m excited to work in partnership with the PHLCVB and their meeting planner customers as they re-envision the convention and visitor experience. By incorporating the already sound and thoughtful guidelines presented by the CDC, as well as state and local public health officials, I’m confident we can develop a safe and healthy plan for all visitors.” Dr. Nash will also work closely with the 18-member


PHL Health Advisors, a subcommittee of the PHLCVB’s Life Sciences division and its Nursing Leadership Committee – both comprised of experts from the world-renowned Philadelphia medical community. The PHL Health Advisors represent a wide range of expertise in fields like public health, infectious disease, medical research, and mental health. The subcommittee will serve as a trusted resource and will relay updates to the PHLCVB regarding medical information and local medical advancements in the fight against COVID-19. The team will also act as an internal review board for the PHLCVB on public health and safety best practices. “Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Philadelphia’s


tourism and hospitality industry was one of the largest and fastest growing employment sectors with over 76,000 hospitality-related jobs in the city,” said Gregg Caren, president and CEO of the PHLCVB. “These family-sustaining jobs are vital to Philadelphia’s economy. Ensuring the health and safety of our visitors is paramount to our industry’s, and our city’s recovery. This initiative will showcase our destination’s unstoppable ingenuity, leveraging our robust life sciences industry by drawing upon their expertise to safely welcome visitors when the time is right. Our goal is to put Philadelphians back to work safely.”


Jet2 Parent Remains Confident of “Tremendous Further Potential”


Air Canada are teaming up with Spartan Bioscience to develop portable Covid-19 testing in the aviation sector


Hays Travel Launches Pandemic Travel Insurance as Standard Across All Policies “As people are beginning to book their holidays again


we wanted to give them real confidence that if they are affected by Covid-19, they will not lose out financially, which would be one thing less to worry about should the worst happen,” said John Hays, Managing Director and co-owner of Hays Travel. “We have worked hard with our partners to put


together insurance cover that answers the concerns that many of our customers naturally have as we gradually emerge from the lockdown.” The cover provided means that if you, your travelling companion, immediate family or business associate, or someone you were going to stay with, are diagnosed with Covid-19 before you travel, and you are required to isolate or be in quarantine, you will be able to cancel and claim back the full cost of your holiday. This applies to holidays in the UK as well as travel abroad. If you or your travelling companion become ill


with Covid-19 during your journey or are subjected to compulsory quarantine, the insurance will pay emergency medical and associated expenses and the costs of getting home. “We are now including explicit references to being diagnosed with an epidemic or pandemic disease such as Covid-19 as standard with all travel insurance policies. We have ensured there is cover for all permutations we can think of, because we want our customers to go on holiday whether home or abroad and feel secure about


the cover they’ve got,” added John. “We’ve been doing all we can to give customers confidence and get the travel industry bouncing back. Introducing this new insurance cover for everyone is another step forward. We have also introduced our Peace of Mind Guarantee, which on certain holidays means you can cancel or change free of charge for any reason, up to six weeks before you travel.” Hays Travel customers who have already booked


their holiday can still take out the insurance before they travel and those who have existing insurance can upgrade to give them the additional Covid-19 cover. Hays Travel retained the majority of its 3,000 retail


staff working from home during lockdown to continue to serve customers concerned about cancellations and refunds. The company has now re-opened the majority of its 650 branches around the UK and with the lifting of travel restrictions many customers are now booking holidays for later this year or 2021. They are choosing a variety of destinations such


as Greece, the Balearics and the Canaries, and on certain new bookings the Hays Travel Peace of Mind Guarantee means that if they need to cancel or change for any reason within six weeks of departure, they can have a full refund with no cancellation charges. Hays Travel continues to recruit and opportunities


for experienced travel agents and apprentices are available across the UK.


DART Group, the parent of Jet2 and Jet2holidays, says they remain confident that the company will emerge from the pandemic crisis “even stronger”. In its preliminary results for the year to March 31,


Dart Group Executive Chairman Philip Meeson said: “Whilst flight-only remains very important, our higher margin package holiday business has tremendous further potential as our reputation for providing ‘package holidays you can trust’ strengthens. “This gives us every confidence that with our focused approach, our customers will continue to be keen to travel with us from our rainy island to the sun spots of the Mediterranean, the Canary Islands and to European Leisure Cities and Jet2 will emerge from this crisis an even stronger company. “Group performance for the financial year ending 31


March 2021 is largely dependent on the level of flying permitted for the remainder of the summer 2020 period, as well as performance in the second half of the 2021 financial year, periods for which we currently still have limited visibility,” he added.


Holidaymakers Required to Wear Face Masks in Ibiza and Majorca


IN A new tightening of rules, holidaymakers in Ibiza or Majorca will have to wear face masks whenever they leave their hotel rooms. It is not yet clear whether face covering will be required on the beach. Refusing to wear a face covering can result in a fine of €100 (£90). People practicing sport and children under six are being exempt from the rule.


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