Or Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland for that matter?

A Minister for Travel Wanted.

It was fairly obvious (and from day one) that the Government’s idea of allowing UK border crossing from overseas followed by quarantine would not work (except perhaps for travel corridors).  

The industry has had to take the initiative.  With the new Heathrow procedures, we can, and are, putting people on aircraft free of the Covid-19 pandemic.  A step in the right direction.

Air travel is down by 80%, or as Loganair’s Chief Executive Johnathan Hinkles put it elegantly (or not so elegantly) at last week’s Aviation 2050 Conference “we are going bust”, or soon will.  John Holland-Kaye summed up the situation in financial terms when speaking to the Aviation Club.  His ominous words are worth reading again.

Who is going to come to the UK and then face 14 days in solitude?

Nobody.

An IATA survey says that 83% will not fly if they have to quarantine.

The Government has a vital need to encourage people onto aircraft and see what Great Britain has to offer.  Yes, number one, it requires to make the country safe but resources are needed and plans introduced to get people inbound into the air (and by sea and rail too) now (in fact for tomorrow).

Foresight is required.  The world requires to know that the UK is open for business.

We need a Minister for Travel?  

The devolved governments have ministers for Tourism and there is a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Sport, Tourism and Heritage) one Nigel Huddleston, Conservative MP for Mid Worcestershire, who doubles up, if that is the right word¸ as an Assistant Government Whip.  Have you heard of him?  Has he been selling the UK in New York, Paris or Beijing?

A Minister of Travel should be in the Cabinet or at least be reporting to the Secretary of State for Transport.  Travel means transport. He can even be an experienced trekker from the Lords.

BTN does not know the answer to our problems, nobody does.  But as Johnathan Hinkles also said in his discourse unless we do something there will no aviation industry to save.

What we don’t want is a reincarnation of Nevil Shute’s On the Beach (written in 1957) a post-apocalyptic novel depicting a group of people in Melbourne as they await the arrival of deadly radiation spreading towards them from the Northern Hemisphere, with Cary Grant and Ava Gardner in the marvellous black and white award-winning film version.

Or is this outlook too sombre. Comments please?