A European Parliament tourism task force wants COVID-19 travel restrictions to be coordinated across the EU, with more financial aid from Brussels to support the hard-hit tourism industry.
Portugese MEP Claudia Monteiro de Aguilar did not mince her words on Tuesday, saying that failure to step up financial support could result in a “calamity” for the sector.
She also called for a coordinated approach to ensure uniformity and transparency in the manner in which the EU would be gradually opening its external borders.
“Even in Portugal itself we have different rules in each airport,” she pointed out.
The MEP was addressing a video conference during which the task force outlined its position on the way forward for economic recovery in the tourism industry.
In the case of Malta, where tourism accounts to around 15 per cent of the economy, the impact of the pandemic has been devastating following the closure of all ports between March and June.
Though travel restrictions were lifted in July, the revival was short-lived as a second spike in COVID-19 cases at the start of August resulted in various countries, including the UK, re-imposing mandatory quarantine for anyone flying from Malta.
Better coordination needed
Apart from expressing their frustration with what they described as the lack of consultation from the Commission and the Council, the members of the task force appealed for better coordination to facilitate travel during the pandemic itself.
Member states can currently classify COVID-19 travel restrictions as they choose. Malta uses a 'traffic light' system which classifies countries as 'green', 'amber' or 'red'. Other countries have their own systems.
Task Force chair and French MEP Karima Delli, echoed the point made by de Aguilar, saying there needed to be cross-border monitoring of COVID-19 trends and common restriction criteria to avoid confusion.
Hungarian MEP Istvan Ujhelyi said the EU should step up aid measures for tourism with immediate effect apart from the next seven-year EU budget.
“We must put tourism on a ventilation machine and we also need a long-term strategy,” he said.