UK residents spent £402 million on visits abroad in the quarter – 98% less than the corresponding period in 2019.

An Abta spokesperson said: “The ONS figures for overseas travel in April to June 2020 lay bare the devastating impact Covid-19 has had on the industry. 

“While the figures relate to the first lockdown period, since then the industry has had to deal with constantly changing travel advice and quarantine measures, as well as local lockdowns, meaning there has been very limited scope for recovery in the travel industry. 

“As a result tens of thousands of jobs have already been lost and many businesses have closed their doors for good. 

“In addition to tailored financial support for travel companies, the government needs to implement an effective testing regime and introduce a fully regionalised travel corridor approach by the time lockdown is lifted to help people feel more confident to travel. 

“It also needs to introduce flexibility into the furlough scheme to support businesses who need to have staff processing refunds, but won’t be generating income.”