THE first coronavirus lockdown meant monthly air passenger arrivals to the UK plummeted from almost seven million to just over 100,000, new figures have revealed.
The data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) charts the severe impact the Covid lockdown has had on the tourism sector, especially when compared to other industries.
The figures show that turnover in travel and tourism businesses fell to its lowest level in 2020 in May, at just 26% of February levels. In comparison, all other industries saw an average decline to 73.6% of their pre-lockdown levels.
READ MORE: Nearly 60 people caught breaching Covid rules at party in Scottish venue
The new ONS data shows that in February 2020, before non-essential travel was being discouraged, 6,804,900 air passengers landed in UK airports.
In April 2020, after the lockdown was first brought in on March 23, that figure had fallen by 98.3% to just 112,300.
The huge fall in travel impacted directly on accommodation and travel agency businesses, which saw the sharpest decline in turnover during that first national lockdown, falling to 9.3% of their February levels in May 2020.
The ONS figures show that visitors to the UK from overseas decreased by more than 96% in the second quarter of 2020 (April-June) when compared to the same period in 2019.
Spending in the UK’s tourism sector was similarly affected, falling by almost 97% over that quarter compared to the previous year.
Areas with the highest proportion of the people employed in the tourism sector, such as South West England, the west coast of Wales, and the Scottish Highlands, were hit the hardest by this.
The ONS found that the number of people reporting their main job as being in the travel and tourism industry during quarter three (July-September) 2020 was 10.8% lower than in the same quarter of 2019. Over the same period, employment in other industries actually increased by 0.1%.
Overall, the fall in employment in the tourism sector over the final half of 2020 outweighed the increase in employment in other areas.
READ MORE: Westminster's lax quarantine rules putting Scots at risk, health expert warns
In the travel and tourism industries, the number of people aged 25 to 34 years working full-time saw the largest fall, followed by people aged 16 to 24 years working part-time.
Over the same period, the number of people employed full-time in other industries increased in all but the youngest age group, while all age groups saw decreases in part-time employment in other industries.
The figures show that the tourism sector has a larger than average proportion of its workers on furlough, and was more responsive to the lockdown measures than other industries.
The easing of restrictions over the summer saw an increase in international arrivals which brought the figure back to 36.7% of its pre-lockdown level. The data does not extend into the third quarter of 2020 to show if this impacted on spending. Furthermore, the reintroduction of harsher measures which followed forced that recovery into reverse.
Passenger vehicle traffic through the Eurotunnel saw a stronger recovery in August 2020, returning to more than 70% of its 2019 level. The ONS says this is likely because people consider it easier to social distance using that method of travel.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here