On June 23, 2016, a slim majority of British voters decided that Britain should leave the European Union. And so it happened three and a half years later: on January 31, 2020, “Brexit” was completed. The consequences are immense and affect many areas such as immigration, trade and tourism. Long-term cuts will probably only become apparent in the coming years.
Since Brexit, entry into Great Britain has become more complicated for EU citizens – even for those who just want to go on vacation. While previously anyone with an EU identity card could enter the country, since October 1, 2021 this has only been possible with a passport. But not everyone has it – according to estimates, only two out of three EU citizens.
Visitor numbers declining
VisitBritain’s November report shows that the total number of visitors in 2022 was about a third down on 2019 – the year before the pandemic that paralyzed much of the world’s travel and tourism industry. A significant drop. To be fair, one has to admit that Brexit and the corona pandemic worked simultaneously. With hindsight, it is difficult to reconstruct which event caused the major cuts.
One thing is certain: the pandemic is over, but Brexit is not. In detail, VisitBritain figures show that eight million people visited the UK between April and June 2022. Among them were almost five million EU citizens. These orders of magnitude are not too far removed from those for the same period in 2019. This fuels hopes that post-Brexit travel rules could be accepted by EU citizens.
Despite the pandemic and Brexit: London remains a popular travel destination
Rising costs could deter tourists
Brexit is having a negative impact elsewhere. Some European tour operators specializing in trips to the UK are struggling with rising costs in the UK hospitality industry.
A German entrepreneur, who would like to remain anonymous in the interest of his business, explains to DW the extent to which he had to increase his prices. Since the mid-1990s he has organized tailor-made trips to Scotland for wealthy German, Austrian and Swiss travellers. A ten-day trip for two would have cost between 6,000 and 8,000 euros four or five years ago, he says, but today he has to ask for double that. “They’re identical tours, but we don’t earn a single cent more,” he laments, adding: “British hotels have doubled, even tripled, and everything has become more expensive.”
Researchers from the London School of Economics and Political Science have found that that Brexit has led to more bureaucratic hurdles when doing business with other European countries. That, in turn, is fueling Britain’s skyrocketing inflation, which is also driving up the cost of hospitality and tourism services – although of course other factors such as rising energy costs are also at play. In late 2022, UK inflation hit a 40-year high.
Most Scots voted against Brexit in 2016
Brexit is exacerbating staff shortages in hotels, bars and restaurants
The British hospitality industry has historically relied heavily on low-wage workers from EU countries. But those times are long gone. Figures from the Oxford University Migration Observatory show that the number of EU workers in the UK hospitality sector fell by 25 per cent between June 2019 and June 2021.
These problems have been exacerbated by Brexit. Pandemic-related closures prompted many waitstaff, kitchen staff and hotel workers to look for jobs in other industries or even forced them to return to their EU home countries. Firms that used to employ Italian, Spanish and Greek workers now find it difficult to access the EU labor market. The new post-Brexit immigration rules make it significantly more difficult for low-skilled EU citizens to access the UK labor market.
Media reports about staff shortages in the hospitality industry can be read everywhere. The New York Times also reported that London restaurants had to reduce their opening hours due to staff shortages. There are 11 percent vacancies in this industry.
Brexit has exacerbated Britain’s hospitality staff shortages
What is the British tourism industry saying about this?
Joss Croft, head of UKinbound, the British tourism association, says he is confident the UK will remain a popular tourist destination. But he would welcome an Australian-style work and travel agreement between the UK and EU countries that would allow people under 30 with his Working Holiday Visa to work while on leave. This could provide a new source of labor for the struggling hospitality industry, while also providing an opportunity for cultural exchange. “People who enjoy coming here when they are young continue to do so later and are more willing to invest and do business in the UK.”
Overall, Croft is optimistic about the future of Britain as a tourist destination. The Coronation of King Charles III. on May 6th and the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool on May 13th would “bring more people’s awareness of Great Britain and thus also increase interest in the country”.
