Advantage chief: ‘We export people, not economic growth – that stays here’
Ilaria Grasso MacolaAdvantage Travel Partnership chief Julia Lo Bue-Said believes the UK’s outbound travel sector has an opportunity to make a better case for itself under the new government, and to spell out to MPs how its economic contribution is primarily made in the UK – not overseas.
Speaking at a press briefing in London this week, at which Advantage revealed some of the key travel trends flagged by its members, Lo Bue-Said said the outbound sector had to "change the dynamic" and "change the conversation" to increase its visibility with new Labour administration.
Lo Bue-Said said the industry hadn’t yet found a coherent way to promote itself as a driver of economic growth, which she stressed has resulted in previous governments mistaking it as a second-category industry that exports wealth.
That is despite data, cited by Lo Bue-Said, showing the gross value added by international travel to the UK economy stands at around £80 billion overall, of which £49 billion comes from the outbound industry. This includes the output from tour operators and travel agents.
In addition, the sector supports 345,000 jobs across the country, and is expected to grow by around 15% over the period to 2027. “We export people, we don’t export economic growth,” said Lo Bue-Said. “That [growth] stays in the UK.”
Advantage has joined forces with Aito and Abtot to further its UK Outbound Travel lobby effort, launched in 2022, which aims to raise the sector’s profile and draw political attention to the issues facing their respective members.
Over the past year, more than 50 meetings have been held between members and MPs or political stakeholders to amplify the group’s engagement efforts.
“If we are a sector that is not understood, and if we don’t have the government’s ear, problems are never going to go away," Lo Bue-Said continued.
Her comments come as the outbound travel sector attempts to draw a line under the desperate pandemic years, with air travel now back to 2019 levels and demand for package holidays and cruises continuing to rebound.
According to Advantage’s figures, bookings are up 6% year-on-year and spend by nearly a quarter (23%) despite ongoing high living costs and an uncertain socio-economic and geopolitical landscape.
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