Laurence Dollimore
TOURISM bosses have called for the resignation of director of health emergencies Fernando Simon after he ‘welcomed’ the quarantines imposed on travellers returning to the UK and Belgium.
The Tourism Board, which represents hundreds of business-people in the sector, became enraged after Simon said yesterday that it is better that tourists from Belgium do not come to Spain as it ‘lowers the risk for us.’
Simon, who has become somewhat of a celebrity as the face of Spain’s battle against COVID-19, reiterated the point in regards to the UK.
“From a health point of view, these decisions help us, and it removes a level of risk,” he said.
Despite also recognising that it is bad news for the tourism sector, his comments have left the industry and others furious.
The Tourism Board accused Simon of ‘celebrating the ruin of the tourism sector’, which accounts for almost 13% of the country’s GDP and 13% of employment.
“The words spoken by the director of the Coordination Center for Health Alerts and Emergencies yesterday stating that he is grateful to the countries that have decided not to bring tourists to Spain have deeply outraged the Tourism Board,” it said in a statement.
It added that his comments were ‘completely unacceptable’ before demanding he resign.
The organisation said if immediate rescue measures are not taken, the paralysis of the sector could see Spain lose €90 billion by the end of September.
That figure could easily rise to €120 billion, the statement read, and a loss of 1.5 million jobs by the end of 2020.
I am curious to see the Tourism Board formula to calculate how many lives are dispensable to maintain trash tourism profits. People should support Fernando Simon.
There are some inaccuracies in this “article”
He said that it is better that tourists from the UK, NOT Belgium, do not come to Spain.
And he is totally right.
Britain has the WORST record regarding COVID19 after the US.
Not a surprise when the country is ruled by johnson, eh?
Having just returned from a 3 week visit to Manchester, I completely support his comments. Less than 5% of people were wearing masks in public buildings, or on public transport, even when it became mandatory during my stay.
The police didn’t care, transport security staff didn’t care…the best example of this was while on a tram and a Metrolink security person asked someone why he wasn’t wearing a mask. When he replied he didn’t have one, all the security person said was “well just try and remember to bring one next time, yeah?”. That was it.
Keep the British tourists out. They can’t even do something that’s in their own self interests.