Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary hits back at MP: ‘It isn’t’ too early to book holidays
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In a press conference today the Irish businessman answered the question: “What did you make of minister Helen Whately’s comments that it is still too early to be booking holidays abroad?”
Mr O’Leary responded: “It isn’t.”
The Ryanair boss told journalists in the conference: “If 80 percent of the UK has been vaccinated by May I would find it difficult for any politician to argue families shouldn’t travel to the beaches of Europe.”
He claimed many are booking despite the politician’s advice.
“Passengers in the UK are already booking holidays for June, July and August,” he said.
“When the schools are open our bookings are reasonably quiet.
“There is reasonably strong and sustained demand for families booking over summer.”
On Monday Helen Whatley warned over booking holidays currently.
The health minister told BC Breakfast: “I know everybody feels like it is time for a holiday, we all need that.
“It just so happens that when I was on holiday last August, I in fact booked my next holiday, which is a UK holiday, for later on in the summer.
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“But my advice would be to anybody right now just to hold off on booking international travel.
“The Prime Minister launched a taskforce looking specifically at international travel that will be reporting back shortly and it just feels premature to be booking international holidays at the moment.”
Mr O’Leary was optimistic about travel this summer.
He’s hopeful for a “significant easing of travel restrictions” as he told reporters today.
The airline boss claimed there was “little chance” the summer holiday period would be a “write-off” with plenty of pent-up demand for travel.
“During the summer of 2021, we hope, but expect to operate more than 2,000 weekly flights across over 400 routes, carrying many UK families to and from their holiday destinations in Spain, Italy and Greece,” said O’Leary.
“I think the European Union will largely have caught up with the UK vaccination programme by the time we get to the end of June.
“We expect there to be a significant easing of travel restrictions, in fact doing away with travel restrictions, on travel between the UK and continental European destinations.”
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