Regulatory and Legal Affairs

🏦 Sir Keir Starmer becomes UK’s new Prime Minister on 5 July after Labour's victory, securing over 400 seats against the Conservatives' 120 in the general election. Labour commits to replacing England's business rates system and to reform the Apprenticeship Levy. UKHospitality CEO Kate Nicholls urges swift action on these commitments to aid the sector's growth. Industry voices like Sacha Lord and CAMRA's Nik Antona express optimism and call for government support, including fairer tax and protection for pubs.

🌎 Amadeus launches the Travel Impact Suite with Travalyst carbon emissions methodology integration, aiming to make travel more sustainable by informing, mitigating, and compensating environmental impacts. The suite includes Travel Impact Data Hub and Travel Impact Explorer, aggregating emissions data for flights, hotels, rail, and car travel. Partnerships with ACRISS, ICAO, Greentripper, Greenview, and Travalyst support the initiative. Olivier Girault emphasizes Amadeus's commitment to sustainable solutions. The upcoming Travel Impact Booster will enable support for carbon projects through CHOOOSE and other partners.

📌 Barcelona's City Council announced a short-term rentals ban by 2029, affecting 10,000 units. However, Mabrian's data reveals the market size is 63% larger than official estimates, with over 15,800 units, nearly 56,700 rental beds, equating to 67.6% of Barcelona's hotel capacity (84,000 beds by end of 2023). Approximately 25% of rental units operate without mandatory licenses. Of Airbnb-listed properties, 27% owners advertise one unit, 73% list multiples, and 57% of these offer over 10 accommodations. Nearly 61% of listings are entire homes, 33% private rooms, 4% one-room apartments, with 68% concentrated in Eixample, Ciutat Vella, and Sants-Montjuic. The ban aims to ease tourist lodging pressure in dense areas and return homes to locals. Key markets for short-term rentals include Americans, French, Australians, and British. Average nightly cost for a holiday rental is 56 euros compared to 167 euros in 3-star and 175 euros in 4-star hotels (June 2024 data).

🏨 HOTREC's 2024 Hotel Distribution Study highlights the dominance of Booking.com, which now holds a 71% market share, up 10% over the past decade. European hotels increasingly depend on Online Travel Agencies (OTAs), with direct bookings on the decline. The Digital Markets Act (DMA) aims to address this imbalance by implementing fair digital rules for a more equitable industry, potentially enabling hotels to offer better rates on their own channels. Key stats show OTA undercut prices in 40% of cases and electronic distribution accounts for 45% of overnight stays booked online. The study was conducted by HOTREC and HES-SO Valais Wallis, analyzing data from over 3,000 European hotels.

🗑 California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed SB 1524 into law on June 29, exempting restaurants from SB 478's junk fee ban effective July 1. The law, introduced by State Sen. Bill Dodd, mandates restaurants to disclose service fees and their purposes upfront on menus. Supported by the California Restaurant Association, the exemption applies to restaurants, bars, and food services, requiring clear fee displays within a year of the law’s implementation.