Trade urges Sunak to help sector Ian Taylor


Industry demands for the government to extend or replace the furlough scheme are growing despite chancellor Rishi Sunak confirming it will end in October. The chancellor admitted last week


there is “hardship ahead for many people” and the next few months would be “very difficult”, but he suggested: “Most reasonable people would say furlough is not something that can carry on forever.” However, the chancellor left open


the possibility of a partial extension, saying the scheme would end “as it stands in a national way”. Inbound association UKinbound called on Tuesday for the scheme


to be extended to March and for a Tourism Resilience Fund “to help businesses reliant on international visitors survive until spring”. It warned: “A significant number of companies are in a critical state.” The Business Travel Association


(BTA) called last week for ‘repayable business support’ to replace furlough and to cover 60% of travel management companies’ (TMCs) wages until the end of the year. The BTA pledged members would repay the money from profits. BTA chief executive Clive Wratten


said: “Low numbers have returned from furlough. We appreciate it can’t go on forever. But if there is no travel, you can’t bring people back. We see 50% of TMCs jobs at risk.”


MSC’s testing regime ‘goes beyond rules’


Lucy Huxley


MSC Cruises is to become the first major ocean cruise line to restart sailings this week and said its testing regime goes “beyond the rules” required. Flagship MSC Grandiosa is due to


return to operations in the Western Mediterranean from Sunday, with MSC Magnifica to follow in the Eastern Med from August 29. Only passengers from Europe’s


Schengen area, and Switzerland, can board the sailings, but UK managing director Antonio Paradiso


4 13 AUGUST 2020


said Brits would be welcome on board as soon as Foreign Office advice against cruising is lifted. “As far as I am concerned, that is the only blocker,” he said. MSC will insist passengers


abide by strict testing measures on embarkation and will only permit them to leave ships for its own tours. While on the tours guests must wear a mask, socially distance and will travel on sanitised buses. Speaking on a Travel Weekly


webcast, chief executive Gianni Onorato said the line had gone “beyond the rules” to ensure testing


Financially, it’s


not looking pretty. It’s not impossible some airports are looking at closures


Alistair Pritchard, Deloitte lead


partner for transportation, warned on a Travel Weekly webcast of “real challenges as furlough comes to an end and the pace of recovery slows”. A senior outbound source said:


“Support is becoming important to get the industry through the winter. Extending furlough would help.” An airline source agreed: “The


end of furlough will be difficult. The key cost for airlines is staff. If we had


been in recovery it would be different. With travel restrictions tightening around Europe, the government needs to look again at measures to help sectors more impacted.” A second aviation source forecast


“a big squeeze” and said: “Financially, it’s not looking pretty. It’s not impossible some airports are looking at closures.” Airlines UK chief executive Tim


Alderslade said: “If we’re not able to open some major markets, including the US, we’ll be looking at an existential crisis for airlines. Extending furlough would help enormously.” Some 9.6 million workers were


furloughed to the end of July. Unemployment is forecast to rise from 3.9% to 7.5% by December.


MSC’S TESTING PROCESS


- Arrive at cruise terminal - Temperature check - Enter medical station, checked by a doctor - Submit health questionnaire - Take swab test - Go to check-in and wait for results - If clear, board. Any symptoms, or temperature above 37.5C, not allowed to board


was as rigorous as possible, having drafted in a panel of expert scientists to plan its health and safety measures. He said: “It’s so important for us.


We cannot fail.” All passengers will be tested


before embarkation. Onorato said results of tests in cruise terminals would be available within three hours, and said one-hour tests were in the pipeline. MSC has installed a laboratory


on every ship, and is spending €500,000 on protocols per cruise, which Onorato said would reassure customers that all passengers


were Covid-free. It also has a new insurance policy


covering guests for the cost of their cruise if they’re denied boarding. MSC also has agreements with


hotels and medics shoreside to ensure a quick disembarkation of passengers if they tested positive, and room to isolate people suspected of contracting Covid-19. Meanwhile, P&O Cruises


extended its suspension of cruises until November 12 this week and Costa Cruises said it would resume


sailing on September 6. iWebcasts, page 10-11


travelweekly.co.uk


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