14-day quarantine a ‘severe blow’ to Mersey tourism

Chris Brown, director of Marketing Liverpool, has signed a letter along with the heads of nine other tourist boards across the North of England, asking the Government to reconsider. Tony McDonough reports

Pier Head, waterfront, Beatles statue
Liverpool has seen a growth in the number of overseas visitors. Picture by Tony McDonough

 

A plan to impose a 14-day quarantine on people entering the UK will deal a “severe blow” to Liverpool city region’s visitor economy, a tourism chief claims.

Chris Brown, director of Marketing Liverpool, has signed a letter along with the heads of nine other tourist boards across the North of England, asking the Government to reconsider  its proposal which is designed to minimise the spread of coronavirus.

From next Monday, June 8, most people arriving in this country by plane, ferry or train – including UK nationals – must self-isolate for 14 days. The decision has caused alarm among transport and travel companies.

Michael O’Leary, chief executive of Ryanair which connects Liverpool Airport with more than 30 European destinations said: “14-day quarantines have no scientific basis, are unimplementable and unnecessary in circumstances where airline, train and underground passengers wear face masks where social distancing isn’t possible.”

The 10 Northern tourism boards say the policy, which the Government has said will be under constant review, will have serious consequences for the tourism and hospitality industry and will “severely impede the sector’s ability to restart and recover”.

International tourism to the North of England is worth around £2.5bn each year, supporting jobs in the visitor economy and wider supply chain. Liverpool city region attracts more than 60m visitors a year, generating around £5bn and supporting 57,000 jobs.

Thanks to the Beatles Heritage industry, Champions League football, major events such as the Giants and a growing number of cruise ships arriving in the Mersey, Liverpool’s status as an international visitor destination has grown significantly.

Chris Brown
Chris Brown, director of Marketing Liverpool

 

The letter to the Government pledges full support to the commitment to public health, but say that a blanket approach to the quarantine of all arrivals, irrespective of where passengers are originating from, will cause unnecessary damage to the economy and risk livelihoods.

It concludes by asking the Government to commit to a weekly review of any quarantine measures and to lift the blanket approach as early as possible to echo the approach being taken by competitor economies across the EU.

Mr Brown said: “We’ve seen first-hand at Liverpool John Lennon Airport how the industry is reeling, a picture that is reflected across the North. Now, the quarantine measures for all air passengers will deal an unnecessary and severe blow.

“Public health is of course everybody’s priority, but this blanket approach is simply not the answer. We urge Government to adopt a more nuanced, risk-based approach to passenger screening, similar to the tactics most of our European neighbours have taken.

“This would allow us to still be safe and sensible without further damaging the North’s economy and putting people’s livelihoods at risk.”

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