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The Spanish government has unveiled a rescue plan for the Spanish tourism sector following the collapse of Thomas Cook.
Reyes Maroto, acting minister of industry, commerce and tourism, has announced a wave of measures for tourism businesses, primarily in the Canary and Balearic islands, where the collapse has been felt most acutely.
The 178-year-old tour operator Thomas Cook collapsed last month after last-minute talks to find an extra £200m in funding failed.
The collapse has prompted the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority to launch Operation Matterhorn to repatriate stranded Thomas Cook customers.
The 13 measures announced by Ms Maroto include opening a €200m line of credit for tourism businesses to keep afloat.
1/21 Antalya, Turkey
British passengers with Thomas Cook wait in long queue at Antalya airport in Turkey
AP
2/21 Mallorca, Spain
Reuters
3/21 Peterborough headquarters
People carry bags and boxes outside the Peterborough headquarters. A total of 22,000 jobs – including 9,000 in UK – to be lost following administration
PA
4/21 Mallorca
More than 150,000 British holidaymakers need to be brought home, with the government and CAA hiring dozens of charter planes to fly customers home free of charge
AFP/Getty
5/21 Manchester Airport
The group failed to reach a last-ditch rescue deal, triggering the UK’s biggest repatriation since World War II to bring back stranded passengers
Reuters
6/21 Mallorca
Passengers talk to Civil Aviation Authority employees at Mallorca Airport after Thomas Cook declared bankruptcy
Reuters
7/21 Mallorca, Spain
The 178-year-old operator had been desperately seeking £200 million from private investors to save it from collapse
AFP/Getty
8/21 London
Pedestrians walk past a closed branch of a Thomas Cook
AFP/Getty
9/21 Mallorca, Spain
AFP/Getty
10/21 Mallorca, Spain
A British Government official talks to passengers
AFP/Getty
11/21 Peterborough headquarters
A woman carries a box through the carpark
PA
12/21 Crete, Greece
People line up in front of a Thomas Cook counter at the Heraklion airport
Reuters
13/21 Manchester Airport
A British Government official assists passengers
Reuters
14/21 Mallorca, Spain
AFP/Getty
15/21 Crete, Greece
Reuters
16/21 Mallorca, Spain
Passengers sit on the floor
EPA
17/21 Tunis, Tunisia
Tourists, flying with Thomas Cook, queue at the Enfidha International airport
AFP/Getty
18/21 Peterborough headquarters
A man sits outside
PA
19/21 Split, Croatia
Passengers wait inside Split airport
AFP/Getty
20/21 Mallorca, Spain
Thomas Cook staff speak with British passengers
AP
21/21 Mallorca, Spain
Reuters
1/21 Antalya, Turkey
British passengers with Thomas Cook wait in long queue at Antalya airport in Turkey
AP
2/21 Mallorca, Spain
Reuters
3/21 Peterborough headquarters
People carry bags and boxes outside the Peterborough headquarters. A total of 22,000 jobs – including 9,000 in UK – to be lost following administration
PA
4/21 Mallorca
More than 150,000 British holidaymakers need to be brought home, with the government and CAA hiring dozens of charter planes to fly customers home free of charge
AFP/Getty
5/21 Manchester Airport
The group failed to reach a last-ditch rescue deal, triggering the UK’s biggest repatriation since World War II to bring back stranded passengers
Reuters
6/21 Mallorca
Passengers talk to Civil Aviation Authority employees at Mallorca Airport after Thomas Cook declared bankruptcy
Reuters
7/21 Mallorca, Spain
The 178-year-old operator had been desperately seeking £200 million from private investors to save it from collapse
AFP/Getty
8/21 London
Pedestrians walk past a closed branch of a Thomas Cook
AFP/Getty
9/21 Mallorca, Spain
AFP/Getty
10/21 Mallorca, Spain
A British Government official talks to passengers
AFP/Getty
11/21 Peterborough headquarters
A woman carries a box through the carpark
PA
12/21 Crete, Greece
People line up in front of a Thomas Cook counter at the Heraklion airport
Reuters
13/21 Manchester Airport
A British Government official assists passengers
Reuters
14/21 Mallorca, Spain
AFP/Getty
15/21 Crete, Greece
Reuters
16/21 Mallorca, Spain
Passengers sit on the floor
EPA
17/21 Tunis, Tunisia
Tourists, flying with Thomas Cook, queue at the Enfidha International airport
AFP/Getty
18/21 Peterborough headquarters
A man sits outside
PA
19/21 Split, Croatia
Passengers wait inside Split airport
AFP/Getty
20/21 Mallorca, Spain
Thomas Cook staff speak with British passengers
AP
21/21 Mallorca, Spain
Reuters
Other measures include strengthening the PR campaign for Spanish tourism and cutting tariffs for airlines flying to the Balearic and Canary islands.
Tourism makes up around 10 per cent of the Spanish economy, but the figure is much higher on the islands, which depend heavily on international visitors – particularly from the UK.
News of the rescue comes as the head of the Spanish hotel federation has warned that 500 hotels could close “immediately” due to the collapse of the tour operator.
Juan Molas, head of Spain’s Confederation of Hotels and Tourist Accommodation, told business daily Cinco Dias that “the situation could get worse if the government doesn’t take immediate action”.
One in five of the hotels were exclusively dependent on the British tour operator, he said, while the rest counted around 70 per cent of their guests as Thomas Cook clients.
The worst affected areas were in the Canaries and Balearics, reported AFP.
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