Reyes Maroto stresses importance of coordination in EU to support and relaunch tourism

In her speech, Reyes Maroto mentioned the proposal headed up by Spain and signed by 11 other countries for the European Commission to present a European Recovery Plan aimed at the tourism sector that focuses on the specific problems of the countries and regions hardest hit and, in particular, on the outermost regions and islands.

The minister also remarked that Spain welcomes the recommendations on tourism and transport issued by the European Commission on 13 May to restore the freedom of movement and gradually lift, in a coordinated manner, all the border controls between Member States and the travel restrictions in States, regions and areas which have positively responded to the pandemic and have a sufficiently similar epidemiological situation, with the aim of ensuring that they gradually recover tourist activity while respecting health recommendations. "We believe that an approach with staggered, coordinated and consensual stages between Member States is the best way to achieve the gradual normalisation of cross-border travel; hence we must coordinate to lift the rules on lockdowns and quarantine, and to restore tourism and transport services", she added.

Lastly, she asked the European Commission to work to set up a European guarantee fund for vouchers. "Spain is in favour of temporarily allowing airlines to offer vouchers to passengers instead of refunds, issued under uniform conditions around the whole EU, but in order to guarantee passenger's rights - in view of the potential insolvency of airlines - it would be necessary to set up a European guarantee fund, given that the regulation is of a supranational nature and a national solution would only lead to asymmetrical protection for passengers according to each individual country", she concluded.

Non official translation