CLIA and the UK Chamber of Shipping have called on the UK government to set out a timeline for the resumption of cruises, beginning with domestic cruising in early 2021.

The statement followed the publication of the government’s Global Travel Taskforce report, which stated that it “may be appropriate to resume cruises when the national alert level is at level 3 and when a move to level 2 is being considered by the Chief Medical Officer”.

The government report added that cruise line operators will “need to demonstrate compliance with CLIA protocols, including formal commitment to accepting responsibility for repatriation costs and protocols”.

It continued: “It is critical that we proceed cautiously and are mindful of the public health risks as we consider when it is safe to restart cruises.

“We need to ensure that there are clear public health measures so that we can increase demand for cruises safely. However, it is also vital that we provide clarity on the conditions for cruise restart to enable the sector to undertake effective financial forecasting for their businesses.”

While welcoming the report, CLIA and the UK Chamber of Shipping added that the industry needed “clarity and confidence” and called for the removal of “outdated” Foreign Office travel advice against sea-going cruise travel.

The statement added: “Whilst we welcome the publication of today’s report and the government’s broad commitment to restarting the cruise sector, there is still no certainty about when an industry that employs 88,000 people and is worth £10bn a year to the economy can restart.

“The government must now set a timeline to safely start domestic cruises in early 2021, and international cruises to destinations for which travel corridors are open from spring 2021.

“As the government rightly acknowledges, the industry needs this clarity and confidence to start planning for operational restart of cruise ships, which can take up to three months.

“The government must also remove the outdated Foreign Office travel advice on international cruising.

“We need to start preparing now for a phased resumption of international cruising over the coming months, in line with the protocols agreed between the industry and government, and help protect the tens of thousands of jobs which rely on a successful UK cruise industry.”