A leader in Malta’s car rental sector has underlined the need for a “global and concerted effort to re-open travel”, advocating for the local airport to re-start flights as soon as possible. This would prevent a “disastrous” summer season, he said, asserting that “there can be no recovery” for his sector unless “the tourism industry picks up today”.

This is because "there is a very limited local market for car rental" he continued, going on to explain that, at the moment, "everyone is running after the same segments for business – even more so than usual,” the entrepreneur, who asked not be named, said.

Indeed, he stated, while the Government’s measures were useful, “there is obviously no substitute for the loss of revenues.” As a result, he called for intense work to continue on finding a vaccine, but in the absence of one, still advocated for the opening of Malta’s travel hub, with the proviso that “a system for fast medical tests on travellers” is implemented, so that they can fly to Malta confident and safe in the knowledge that they do not have the virus, and are not spreading it.

The cost for this medical test should be “underwritten by governments, for example, on a fifty-fifty basis, split between the source and destination countries”, he said, noting that “this expense will be outweighed by the economic benefits”.

He pointed to Austria and Greece as examples of how this can be done well, with the former country having already, he explained, implemented a testing procedure, and the latter Mediterranean destination already planning on welcoming tourists this summer.

“Malta cannot remain on the fence,” the car rental operator stressed. 

Recent months have been a struggle for everyone in the sector, he underlined. “As with any company directly or indirectly involved in the tourism sector we, and our fellow operators, have suffered a virtual total loss in revenues due to the airport’s closure and the collapse of the tourism industry,” he asserted, going on to explain that only those who have some measure of business from the domestic market have retained “a modicum of income”

The firm – which employs over 50 people – has retained all its staff, despite the difficulties, but its head stressed that if things remain the same by the end of May, they would have to look into any measures to further preserve cash and “mothball the operations.”