Tunisia urges lifting of travel warning after UK arrivals plummet 90%; Turkey bookings down by 32%

THE UK government is being urged to relax its warning against all but essential travel to #Tunisia after a 90% drop in British visitors in the first four months of 2016. 

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) guidance has been in place since 31 British holidaymakers were murdered in two terror attacks in Tunisia last year.

The Tunisian ambassador to the UK said the government should take into account security improvements since last year. He said there was now a gap between the ‘perception of the level of security, and the real security on the ground’.

‘Every week terrorist cells are dismantled. Terrorists are arrested or neutralized. This should give a positive image, not a negative one. If you take statistics, you have much less chance to die in Tunisia or to have any harm in Tunisia than in so many countries close to us," he said, adding that he had never seen Tunisia's beaches so empty of tourists.

An FCO spokesman said: ‘We know our travel advice can have a knock-on effect on trade and political considerations, but we don't let this influence the advice we give. The safety of British nationals is our main concern. We are working closely with the Tunisians to understand the terrorist threat better and to help them to strengthen measures to protect tourists further.’

*Market research organization GfK reports a 32% drop in the number of holidays being booked from the UK to Turkey from April 2015 to the same month this year, while bookings to mainland Spain and the Canaries have seen a 33% rise over the same period.

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