Airline boss says UK immigration system is putting off foreign business people

Willie Walsh, the chief executive of International Airlines has warned that the UK's visa system is deterring foreign businesspeople from travelling to the UK. Mr Walsh was addressing the World Travel and Tourism Council summit in Abu Dhabi on 10th April 2013.

Mr Walsh was the chief executive of the UK's largest airline British Airways until it merged with Spanish carrier Iberia and became International Airlines. He is now the chief executive of the merged company.

Mr Walsh said 'I get lots of criticisms and complaints from business people when I travel around the world, particularly in growth economies like China, India and Brazil. You talk about investing or doing business in the UK and they all point to the difficulties, the bureaucracy and the cost associated with getting visas to travel the UK and highlight the advantage of the Schengen Agreement where they can get access to 26 European countries at the cost of less than the price of a UK visa and less hassle.'

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