The British Ambassador To Spain Meets The Executive Vice President And Ceo Of Meliá In Palma
Simon Manley, accompanied by the Consul General, Lloyd Milen, discussed the state of the travel industry with Gabriel Escarrer, chief executive of the leading Spanish hotel company
In a further demonstration of the interest the British Government has always shown in British tourism in Spain, and particularly in the Balearic Islands, yesterday the senior British diplomat in Spain visited the headquarters of Meliá Hotels International, one of the largest Spanish travel companies with a longstanding presence in popular destinations for British tourists such as Palmanova or Magaluf.
In a further demonstration of the interest the British Government has always shown in British tourism in Spain, and particularly in the Balearic Islands, yesterday the senior British diplomat in Spain visited the headquarters of Meliá Hotels International, one of the largest Spanish travel companies with a longstanding presence in popular destinations for British tourists such as Palmanova or Magaluf.
Although accompanied by the uncertainty caused by Brexit, the meeting was very constructive, with diplomats expressing their wishes for a reasonable agreement which would allow them to "get down to work" to implement the contingency plans developed with companies and the Spanish authorities. Both Manley and Escarrer agreed on critical aspects in which the Spanish and British governments are already working, such as the need to reduce obstacles for travellers as far as possible, including aspects such as visa requirements or airport congestion caused by customs procedures.
Although Gabriel Escarrer expressed his "full respect for the decision of the British people", the result of the referendum of 2016 "astonished" and saddened him, and he was especially worried about the situation for European nationals working in the hotels the company operates in the UK (4 in operation and 2 more scheduled to open in 2020).
Manley stressed the British government's desire to "normalise" the situation as far as possible, to facilitate the labour relations of European citizens in the United Kingdom, and also allow the country to continue to attract the best talent "regardless of nationality."
The Ambassador emphasised that European companies have a great responsibility in reassuring and informing their workers in the UK, and both parties acknowledged the importance of presenting a cooperation proposal to British Authorities through business forums such as the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in the UK, of which Meliá is a member.
Manley and Escarrer also discussed a completely different subject of great interest to them both: the improvements to tourism in Magaluf, a destination in which the hotel company has invested more than 250 million euros in recent years, and also the quality and behaviour of younger British tourists in different destinations in the Balearic Islands. After a review of the important progress already made, they discussed the challenges still pending with regard to a small number of hotels and other facilities still focused on very cheap alcohol or all-inclusive packages, and also the intensification of police controls along with the implementation of local regulations to avoid illegal and unruly activities in the destination.
With regard to British travellers, the Embassy has been working for many years with the Balearic and local authorities (Calvià Town Hall), tour operators and hotel associations on prevention and education campaigns with very significant results. Mallorca and Palmanova-Magaluf have always been popular destinations for UK travellers, which still represent around 22% of total visitors to Mallorca, a figure which rises to 47.65% in Palmanova-Magaluf.
Gabriel Escarrer and his team thanked the Ambassador for his efforts and for the readiness of the British Government to work to "build new bridges" between Spain and the UK to allow tourism to continue to grow and develop as normal, something considered of "maximum interest" for both countries.