United Kingdom and Gibraltar European Union membership referendum

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Passengers and the economy must expect serious disruptions to flights in the event of an unregulated departure from the EU in the spring. The World Aviation Association IATA warns against that. "Without a deal, we urgently need an emergency plan, but even that will probably be barely enough to avoid disruption in the short term," said IATA Regional Manager Rafael Schvartzman in Geneva.

The association welcomed the announced steps of the EU and Britain in the direction, but the airlines needed much more details. But: "Brexit is not good for the industry," said IATA Director-General Alexandre de Juniac.

Schvartzman called on the negotiators on both sides to agree at least on the mutual recognition of licenses as well as security and industry standards. Otherwise, for example, all luggage from passengers traveling to Europe via the UK would have to pass through security again after the end of British EU membership, and long passport control queues would be unavoidable.

The UK's new visa system requires EU citizens to queue up with everyone else, even though they probably will not need a visa. The faster passing through at the border with occasional random checks would be a thing of the past. Probably the passport instead of the identity card becomes mandatory.

More tourists by cheaper pound

Great Britain wants to leave the EU at the end of March 2019. The 27 remaining EU countries had approved the Brexit agreement negotiated with London in November. Kern is a transitional phase until at least the end of 2020, during which practically nothing changes. But: A disorderly exit is still not excluded, should the parliament in London reject the Brexit deal. Experts then expect chaotic conditions in all areas of life.

For holidaymakers in the UK, not only could the entry conditions change. In an unregulated Brexit also driving and passenger rights - ie the compensation in case of cancellations and delays -, roaming costs and the assumption of costs by the health insurance in the event of illness would be up for dispute.

On the other hand, what is driving tourism in the country is the weaker pound price. Since the referendum on the EU's exit from June 2016, the British currency has depreciated significantly, especially in comparison with the euro. On Wednesday it was 1.11 euros, in June 2016 still at about 1.30 euros. Among other things, the cheaper pound has led to a significant increase in the number of tourists in recent years. For 2018, the country expects about 41.7 million visitors.

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