Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on the Egyptian economy and tourism industry of their continued advice against all but essential travel by air to or from Sharm el Sheikh.

Prior to the downing of Metrojet 9268, tourism accounted for around 12% of Egypt’s GDP.

The Egyptian Tourist Minister stated in November that flight suspensions following the Metrojet attack have resulted in direct losses estimated at upwards of $280m a month. This figure includes the impact of flight suspensions by a number of countries including Russia, which has suspended flights to the whole of Egypt. 865,000 British nationals visited Egypt in 2015 accounting for around 1% of Egypt’s GDP. British tourists continue to visit Egypt, for example popular resorts such as Hurghada. We expect that our current suspension of direct UK flights to and from Sharm el Sheikh will mean that the overall numbers are significantly lower this year. We are cooperating closely with the Egyptian government on Aviation Security and have agreed a Joint Action Plan to resume flights between the UK and Sharm el-Sheikh.