Ahead of the G7 summit (taking place June 11-13 in the U.K.), President Biden and U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson have agreed to reopen travel between their two countries as soon as possible.
In a statement, Roger Dow, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, applauded the move.
“Opening a U.S.-U.K. travel corridor is a smart, science-based step to take for both countries’ economic recoveries, and now is the critical time to take it,” Dow said. “The U.S. and the U.K. both have among the world’s leading records on vaccinations and declining infections, the U.K. is our top overseas travel market and the two governments enjoy a close relationship. With abundant evidence that travel is safe with layered health measures in place — and a clear economic need to reopen international travel — moving to reduce travel restrictions between the two countries is the perfect place to start.”
The announcement follows a recent call to action from leaders in the travel and aviation industries, who came together to collectively push for the restart of travel between the United States and the United Kingdom.
The CEOs of American Airlines, British Airways, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and Heathrow Airport joined top officials from the U.S. Travel Association in a panel event to present the case for reopening the U.S.-U.K. travel corridor. Citing strong vaccination programs in both countries, officials urged the two governments to take a data-driven, risk-based approach to reopening borders, a move that will be essential for economic recovery.
According to U.S. Travel, 63.5% of American adults have received at least one vaccine dose, while about half of adults are now fully vaccinated. In the U.K., more than 75% of the adult population has received vaccine shots.
With case counts in both countries continuing to decline, the group is encouraging the U.S. government to consider lifting entry requirements for U.K. travelers who are fully vaccinated or who have provided a negative COVID-19 test or proof of recovery before arriving in the U.S. The officials also discussed the benefits of putting the U.S. on the U.K.’s “green list” (which means travelers would no longer need to self-isolate upon arrival).
“There is no reason for the U.S. to be absent from the U.K. ‘green list,’” said Shai Weiss, CEO of Virgin Atlantic. “This overly cautious approach fails to reap the benefits of the successful vaccination programs in both the U.K. and the U.S.”
The group also highlighted the economic consequences of continued restrictions. Analysis from U.S. Travel indicates that if international travel remains restricted, it will cost the country’s economy $325 billion in total losses and 1.1 million jobs by the end of 2021. The U.K. is also seeing significant financial losses due to the closure.
“Connectivity between the U.K. and the U.S. is one of the great engines of the global economy,” said John Holland-Kaye, CEO of Heathrow. “The scientific data shows transatlantic travel and trade can be reopened safely, and every day that policymakers delay puts jobs, livelihoods and the economic chances of hardworking folks across our countries at risk unnecessarily. We cannot continue to keep locked-up indefinitely.”
Now that the two countries' leaders have agreed to the reopening, U.S. Travel is hoping to see the move implemented within just a few weeks.
“The travel industry enthusiastically applauds the Biden administration and U.K. government for being responsive to the calls to advance a bilateral travel corridor, and hopes to see it implemented by early July,” Dow said. “The unemployment rate in the U.S. travel industry is currently more than double the national average, and seizing opportunities to safely reopen all segments of travel will potentially restore millions of jobs and hundreds of billions in economic activity.”
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U.S. Travel Association
