Continued from page 48


keeping with the fact that the US, the greatest source of emissions per person, was not at COP30 with President Trump having declared global warming a “con job”. It merely restated a voluntary agreement, made two years ago, to transition from coal, oil and gas by 2050. The summit also failed to


reach agreement on climate science, failing to endorse the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as the “best available science” and failing even to mention the latest findings on the world’s climate presented by the IPCC and World Meteorological Organisation. The UK delegation expressed


“deep concern” at this failure “to capture vital scientific observations of the state of the climate”. The Financial Times reported


an “axis of obstruction”, led by oil-producers Saudi Arabia and Russia, stalled progress and described countries pushing for agreement on action as “isolated”. Fernanda Carvalho, head


of climate and energy policy at conservation body WWF, described the outcome as reflecting the “lowest common denominator”. COP31 will be held in Turkey,


but with Australia overseeing negotiations following a failure even to agree on the next presidency. The UN estimates countries’


current climate plans will lead to 2.5C warming. However, COP30 merely agreed to “continue talking” about the gap between these targets and what is needed. The outcome ignored the


climate scientists who made clear at COP30 that emissions must be cut immediately and fall steadily “to have a chance to avoid unmanageable climate impacts”.


Jet2 reports 5% rise in summer revenue to £5.34bn


Jet2 reported record passengers, revenue and profits for the half-year to September, noting it carried 40% more passengers than in the same period in 2019. Passenger numbers were up by 750,000 on 2024 to more than 14 million and capacity was up 8% at nearly 16 million seats. Chief executive Steve Heapy


hailed “another record financial performance” despite “customers


booking later”, as revenue rose 5% to £5.34 billion, operating profit by 2% to £715 million and pre-tax profit by 1% to £800 million. Jet2.com reported “robust”


flight-only demand, with seat-only passenger numbers increasing 16% year on year to 4.77 million, but package holiday customers rose by just 1% to 4.73 million. The company described


Jet2holidays prices as “resilient”, with the average selling price rising 3% year on year to £933 “as inflation increases were largely passed through to customers”. However, the yield on flight-only sales fell 7%


Jet2 carried 16% more flight- only passengers this summer


due to “promotional pricing”. Jet2.com’s capacity for this


winter is 7.7% up on last year and capacity for next summer is 9% up as it readies a new base at Gatwick.


Booking.com holiday sales focused on LTAs


Ian Taylor


A leading Atol holder is selling large numbers of linked travel arrangements (LTAs), which offer financial protection only if the licence holder fails and no tour operator liability if things go wrong for the holidaymaker. Booking.com is the seventh-largest


licence holder, with an Atol for 1,114,151 travellers. But it uses the licence exclusively to cover some flight-only bookings, such as when a customer pays a deposit but receives a ticket on paying the balance. The platform sells packages


under the Atol of partners such as lastminute.com. Booking.com’s terms and


conditions refer to packages only when explaining LTA bookings. These note LTAs are created when “after selecting and paying for one travel service, you book additional travel services for your trip or holiday during


46 27 NOVEMBER 2025 Booking.com uses LTAs or partners’ Atols


the same visit to the platform. Or you book additional travel services… via a link provided to you by us not later than 24 hours after receiving confirmation of your initial booking.” In these circumstances,


Booking. com explains: “You will NOT benefit from rights applying to packages [and] we will not be responsible for the proper performance of those travel services.” It notes that an LTA “does not provide a refund in the event of the insolvency of the relevant service provider”. The T&Cs make no reference


to “connected trips”, despite these featuring prominently in the results statements of parent Booking Holdings. Chief executive Glenn Fogel reported “more customers choosing to book multiple travel elements with us through the Connected Trip” in results for the three months to September, noting: “Connected Trip transactions grew mid-20% year over year and now represent a low double-digit percentage of transactions.” Booking.com has more than halved


its Atol capacity from 2,387,509 in March 2024 when the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) gave it an exemption for certain flight-only bookings. A Booking.com spokesperson


said: “Due to such exemptions, we experienced a reduction in authorised passengers under our Atol licence.” The UK government and EC are


considering redefining or removing LTAs from package travel regulations because of confusion over the protection they offer.


travelweekly.co.uk


PICTURES: Shutterstock/Bradley Caslin, New Africa, 1000 Words, Rob Atherton, ventdusud


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