Last week I had the opportunity to interview Daniele Broccoli who is one of the two candidates for the role of chairman ABTA, the Travel association. If you want to read more about the ABTA chairmanship race then head over to Travel Weekly.

Why is holiday financial protection so confusing and what improvements are needed to make it more understandable for consumers so that we can make a more informed decision if the travel company fails or when booking our holiday?

This is not a new problem – and ABTA has been trying to get clarity from Government for most of the last ten years. It is confusing because are simply too many systems out now and none of them cover everything.

While it is true that most people think of ABTA as the lead body in this I believe we should continue to push for the Government to put in place a scheme that covers as much as possible. Ideally we should have the airlines as part of a scheme, but that will take ages and new need to sort this out now.

The CAA should find a way to bring it all together – operators, agents and eventually airlines. ABTA’s future is as a first class representation and lobbying association with a quality standard.

There are so many ways to book a holiday, and most consumers assume that they have been to a travel agent so it’s a package holiday that they have booked. So you think it’s the role of ABTA to ensure that their members spend time educating the consumer so that there are armed with the full facts before they book the holiday? I personally don’t think this happens.

Educating the consumer is not just the role of travel agents or tour operators – this is one again for the Government – helped by ABTA and FTO. It’s a big communication job, but it has to be done.

Just look at the Food Standards Agency – which carries out a similar role to the CAA. They are always telling customers to read the label and check that you are not being mis-sold. This is not rocket science.

Air Passenger Duty is a complete joke because there’s no proof that the millions generated is going towards helping the environment so what you think would be the perfect solution for the industry, consumers and the environment?

Way back when this was brought in by Ken Clarke in 1994 ABTA challenged the Government on the use of APD – and as we all know it’s another stealth tax. In those days it made little difference – £5 here and £10 there.

Now it is a serious blow for any country in the long-haul market. If the Government genuinely wanted to help the environment they should levy the charge in relation to the amount of pollution created by the plane. This has been examined, suggested and rejected by the airlines. Again the tail has been wagging the dog!

I was not aware that ABTA had ‘elections’ to elect its chairman. It will be a challenge because there’s so much to improve about the travel industry. What do you think are the biggest challenges ahead for the elected chairman?

As ABTA Chairman I would focus on getting ABTA right first. There’s not much wrong with the Association, but I want members to feel proud of ABTA. On any matters to do with ABTA there are always some members that are on either side of the fence but I worry most about the ones who just don’t care.

For them ABTA is something they pay for and then forget. I’m not saying I want everyone to tattoo “ABTA” across their chest but I do want people to care about what it does, and to feel that it matters and important to be a member.

• Q&A with John McEwan. Discussing the future of ABTA
• Confusion over the role of travel associations
• My consumer questions to the travel industry
• Confusion on ABTA bonding for Consumers
• Consumers still confused over holiday financial protection

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