Minister of Tourism, Harry Theoharis’ interview on BBC Radio (29.04.2020)

J. WEBB: What is going to happen to Europe’s Tourism industry? What is going to happen to holidays already planned? 20% of the Greek economy is centered on tourism. If no one comes this year and no money is spent the impact of course will be huge. Tourism Ministers from around the EU are holding a discussion about what to do today and one of them is Harry Theoharis who is the Tourism Minister for Greece and he is on the line now.

What is the plan -as far as one can have a plan- what’s the plan that you would like the Tourism Ministers to adopt?

H. THEOHARIS: The issue that really is very-very important as we start thinking about the way out of the crisis – obviously different European countries are on different parts of the cycle but all of us are starting to think about how to restart the economic engines- the important part of the plan is how to allow travel and how to do this in of course a responsible way. Everyone and especially Greece who has shown leadership in the way that we dealt with this crisis we want to continue doing so as we take the risk of opening parts and sectors of the economy.

J. WEBB: Just to make it clear. You want people to come to Greece this summer.

H. THEOHARIS: Yes, we do want people to come to Greece. Of course we will take precautions in terms of the requirements before travelling but also in terms of the way that we travel, the way that we stay and beach beds etc, social distancing rules will apply but we have welcomed tourists for more than 50 years, we want to continue showing the kind of hospitality that we are very much known to.

J. WEBB: So, what do you say to British tourists then who have their holidays booked or thinking of still trying to come to Greece? What can you say to them about how safe they will be?

H. THEOHARIS: Well, as I said, we have shown leadership in the way that we dealt with the  medical side of this crisis. We have much - much flattened curves than any country in Europe, perhaps even in most of the countries of the world. So we will not change tactics as far as that is concerned. We will continue taking very - very important precautions but we will do so while still allowing the economic activities. You should feel safe. Greece is a safe country and in many cases much safer than – I’m sorry to say - than your own country.

J. WEBB: Yes and for that reason you would be very keen and the Greek people would be very keen that you protect yourselves from people coming in. You mentioned there social distancing actually on site as it were in a resort, are you suggesting as well that people should need to have a negative test for corono-virus before they get on a flight?

H. THEOHARIS: We are discussing this with our epidemiologists these days, as we currently speak, and it is very likely that we will have some requirements before travelling but of course this will be done so that everyone has a piece of mind when they travel and when they are staying abroad that they will not come in contact with –as much as it’s humanly possible- other people infected with the virus

J. WEBB: So, one of the things you are discussing –I understand you haven’t taken any decisions yet- is some way of testing people before they get on a flight

H. THEOHARIS: Yes, and also hoping that by the time the season starts which is going to be of course much later than normal times, the health technology will have come up with even better solutions to those problems, better tests and more accurate and cheaper as well.

J. WEBB: We had a very bland warning from the boss of Ryan Air recently saying that if there is social distancing enforced on planes then they’re just going to be out of business, they are not going to be able to do it. Are you also considering how to get people safely on their journeys across Europe during your discussions?

H. THEOHARIS: This is another reason why we need stricter rules for someone to travel in order to allow a bit more lee way while travelling. There is the point of view that says that the kind of rules that we normally use for public transport, for i.e. the underground, are also the rules that we should be extending to airlift and to planes.

J. WEBB: Right, so we are talking about masks and staying as far away from people as you can but not necessarily simply having fewer people on the plane

H. THEOHARIS: Without going into details in the sense that the experts will come up with the suggestions and the proposals, this is one of the ways to fix this.

J. WEBB: And if we don’t fix it, if it’s not fixed the impact on Greece would be huge, wouldn’t it?

H. THEOHARIS: Well of course. And this is not just the impact on Greece. It’s the impact on Europe as a whole. Tourism is 10% of the GDP of the whole European GDP. Europe is the most touristically developed area / region of the world. It’s very-very important. And of course there are a number of other industries that depend on tourism to supply the required products and materials etc. So this is an issue which is not just for the economies of the south. It’s really about Europe as a whole.