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Foot and mouth disease has added a severe blow for UK tourism. The holiday organisation stated that it saw no prospect for improvement in the later half of the year.

There should be immediate action from the Government to reduce or remove the Air Passenger Duty and remove the Full Cost Recovery requirement from UK visas that has created a very unpopular visa regime.

“Sadly, none of the issues  for  inbound tourism, with the notable exception of the disgrace that is Heathrow airport, are even remotely within our control,” the body representing more than 250 companies selling UK tourism abroad said.

Recording a marginal 1.4% rise in visit arrivals in June – the lowest increase for a year – a forward uk bookings had suffered a “significant drop”.

The organisation said: “Due to the high cost of operating any business here and the punitive level of taxes and charges levied on visitors to the UK we are simply unable to compete for these customers without our businesses incurring unsustainable losses.”

It added: “If the cost of visiting our country is significantly higher than our competitors in an extremely price sensitive market consumers will simply choose to go elsewhere.”

Cheaperholidays applauded the Government’s “swift and decisive” response to the foot and mouth outbreak in Surrey and the measures put in place to help domestic tourism businesses following the recent severe flooding.