UK tourism industry value drops
Spending by holidaymakers this year is expected to be just half the level of 2019
VisitBritain agency has forecasted that the UK domestic tourism industry in 2021 will be worth £51.4 billion, that’s £91.6 billion less than it was two years ago.
Of course, coronavirus is to blame, with foreign tourists expected to spend less than a quarter of what they did in 2019 (just £6.2 billion compared to 2019’s £28.4-billion spending).
The UK tourism industry also reports that in 2020, the domestic tourism industry contracted by about two-thirds as pandemic restrictions forced the cancellation or postponement of millions of people’s travel plans. This represented a £58-billion loss to the economy.
Industry adapts to survive
"Tourism is a critical industry for our country, delivering jobs and economic growth across the nations and regions and strengthening our place on the world stage," said British Tourist Authority Chairman Lord Patrick McLoughlin. He noted that the UK government’s support measures, including the furlough scheme, as well as the £25 billion+, which it had donated in support of keeping the industry afloat, had been a ‘lifeline’ to helping businesses survive and keeping jobs.
He added: "We will continue to work with the UK government as it sets out its recovery plan and ambitions for tourism, and across the industry, to cement the recovery and the future of one of this country's greatest industries.”
But many in the UK tourism industry are still struggling, and in 2021, various industry figures have called upon the UK government to provide more clarification over the 2021 summer travel season as the traffic light system poses a challenge to the likes of airlines, travel agencies and the like.