SPECIAL REPORT Forum since 2019. Harry Kemble reports from De Vere Cotswold Water Park, Cirencester Andy Harmer, Clia; Hall of Fame


inducteee Catriona Parsons, Hays Travel; Jo Rzymowska, Celebrity Cruises; and Lucy Huxley, Travel Weekly


A walk raised money for Family Holiday Charity members inducted


its internal team as well as the entire cruise industry”. Meanwhile, Lonsdale was hailed


as a “visionary in the industry and in cruise retailing” as well as for “taking her business from strength to strength and being a true ambassador for the whole of the cruise community”. Cruise Britain was also commended


for “shining a light on the benefits of inbound cruise tourism, as well as cruise holidays that start in the UK”. The Hall of Fame will be a regular


fixture in the cruise calendar, with new members set to be announced each year at the annual Clia Winter Ball.


Joint cruise and government forum to meet twice a year 24


new government forum has been set up to “discuss joint priorities and collaboration over


the long term”, according to Clia UK & Ireland’s deputy chair. The Cruise Industry and


Government Forum will meet twice a year, chaired by the Department for Transport and Clia UK & Ireland managing director Andy Harmer. Clia UK & Ireland is one of


several organisations involved in the forum, which met for the first time in October. Maritime UK, the UK Chamber


of Shipping, Cruise Britain and Cruise Scotland, as well as cruise line representatives and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, will also be members of the forum. Clia deputy chair Rob Scott


insisted during his keynote speech at the Clia Forum that the industry is


“We welcome this initiative


cruise customers coming into a destination supports one full-time job


continuing to “leverage the strength of government relationships and credibility” that it built up during the pandemic. Scott, who is also P&O Cruises


vice-president of sales, marketing and brand, added: “[The Cruise Industry and Government Forum] will meet twice a year and brings together officials from government departments with industry representatives to discuss joint priorities and collaboration over the long term.


and look forward to maintaining these vital links with relevant ministers across business, tourism and shipping.” Scott said the new forum


would help “build a successful and sustainable cruise industry, including the necessary infrastructure for sustainable fuels around green energy in line with the cruise industry’s investment in this area”. He went on to explain that the


cruise industry remains “a significant contributor to the UK economy”. Clia Europe director general


Marie-Caroline Laurent later highlighted how destinations benefit from cruise tourism. Every 24 cruisers coming into a destination supports a full-time job, she said, adding that passengers spend an average of $750 in port cities over the course of a typical seven-day cruise.


Lonsdale: Lack of diversity in travel is ‘disturbing’


A leading agent has called the lack of diversity in the UK travel industry “disturbing”. “Part of the problem is within the cruise industry


and the travel industry in general in the UK. We’re so white. It’s quite disturbing,” Edwina Lonsdale, managing director of Mundy Cruising, said. “There’s nobody talking on behalf of different


communities,” she added. Lonsdale has launched a partnership project with a


secondary school in Battersea, London, to offer pupils from a mix of ethnic backgrounds work placements across the industry. Fellow panellist Jo Rzymowska, Celebrity Cruises’


EMEA vice-president, said the travel sector had a “long way to go” to become a more diverse and inclusive workforce. But she added that having panel discussions at conferences on the subject was “a great thing”.


travelweekly.co.uk 15 DECEMBER 2022 13 Celebrity Cruises this year launched a campaign to


tackle a lack of diversity in travel marketing. “If you look at our imagery in the travel industry it’s


still mum, dad and 2.4 kids,” she said. “We wanted to try and get real people that were travelling with us.”


Edwina Lonsdale


PICTURES: Steve Dunlop


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