Advantage Travel Partnership CEO Julia Lo Bue-Said has said there’s no evidence Brexit has benefitted travel and says a lot of the disruption caused by Brexit has been ‘masked by the pandemic’.

Speaking on the third anniversary of the UK’s departure from the EU, Julia said: “There can be no denying that Brexit has had a major impact on travel to and from the EU, and whilst we have seen many of the consequences played out on our screens, much of the disruption has been masked by the pandemic.

“What we do know is that three years later, our ability to travel frictionlessly has been taken away. Brexit has delivered no evidence of benefit for travellers.

“We’ve seen long queues at airports and the issues relating to the validity of passports has resulted in British and European travellers having to spend an extortionate amount of money on passports and getting caught out on passport validity rules.

“Even the lovely passport stamps we now receive – travellers will soon find their passport pages fill quickly.”

She added: “The hospitality industry generally, which has always relied heavily on skilled labour from EU countries, has been greatly affected by staff shortages which is being further compounded by fears that that rising costs in the UK could deter tourists from visiting Britain.”

And she advised: “The one opportunity that I believe UK Government needs to focus its attention on is ensuring we use the opportunity to reduce the web of complex consumer and financial protection regulation that has been borne out of Brexit.”