A spokesperson said it was “categorically untrue” that government officials had discussed issuing the holiday warning if there was a no-deal Brexit.
What it means: What happens if the UK gets to March 31st, the date set for Brexit, and no deal with the EU has been agreed upon? Well, the Prime Minister (currently Theresa May, but who knows if she’ll still be in the saddle by that point) could ask the EU if the deadline could be extended. Or Britain could try this whole no-deal Brexit thing.
One of the problems with a no-deal Brexit is that British-made planes are currently only deemed okay to fly through something called the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), which is for EU countries only. If Britain leaves the EU, its planes technically lose the right to fly.
The boss of RyanAir has said he thinks flights will be cancelled if there’s a no deal Brexit. And travel operators like Thomas Cook have said it’s tough titties for holidayers if that happens, cos their T&Cs say they’re not responsible for refunding any trips cancelled by “events arising out of political instability.”
For most people, being unable to go on a pre-booked holiday would be a big financial hit - the average family trip costs £2,417. So they might decide not to risk it, even though the UK gov has promised there will be no problems with flights whatsoever in a no-deal Brexit scenario.
That could be bad news for countries that get a lot of money from British tourism: Brits spend a collective £43.8 billion abroad each year. But it could be good news for British holiday businesses: if people are too scared to fly overseas they will probably get their R&R from staycations instead. Domestic tourism puts about £31 billion into the UK economy.
Read our explainer on Brexit.
