WTTC and UKinbound Praise Removal of Pre-Departure Test

London, United Kingdom, January 6, 2022 / TRAVELINDEX / The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and UKinbound have welcomed the government’s decision to remove pre-departure tests for travellers and replace damaging Day 2 PCR testing with antigen tests

Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO, said: “The removal of pre-departure tests and replacing Day 2 PCRs with more affordable antigen testing will significantly boost the UK Travel & Tourism sector and help both it and the whole UK economy recover much faster than expected.

“The testing measures being removed never actually stopped infections coming in and were a blunt policy which only damaged the travel and tourism sector.”

Joss Croft, CEO, UKinbound said “The industry will be very pleased to see the removal of onerous pre-departure testing, and the replacement of the day 2 PCR test with a lateral flow test.

“However, this is not job done. January to March is a key booking period for inbound travel and if we are to ensure the successful revival of the UK’s valuable inbound tourism industry, our 5th largest export sector, worth £28 billion to the UK economy in 2019, then the government needs to provide a clear roadmap for the removal of all travel restrictions and to signal that the UK will be fully open for business.”