US immigration from the UK doubles following Donald Trump’s election
A sharp increase in single flight bookings to the US appears to have occurred during January and February, as people rush to beat President Donald Trump’s looming travel ban.
The number of one-way flights booked to America from the UK has doubled since the start of 2017 compared to the same period in 2016, according to online travel agent Tripsta.
Nearly 45 per cent (44.8 per cent) were to New York and 22 per cent were to Los Angeles. 69 per cent of one-way departures originated from Manchester.
Tripsta CEO, Philipp Brinkmann, said:
With many modern families separated across the world, it is inevitable that travel will act as a barometer and mirror to socio-political changes.
While we can never be certain why individuals are booking certain tickets, the dramatic uplift we have seen in travel to the US overall, and in single tickets does seem significant at a time of massive change for the country.
In contrast, one-way tickets from the UK to Europe in the four months after the Brexit vote fell 28 per cent year on year. The overall number of flights to the US, including both one-way and return increased by 90 per cent year on year.
The travel agent said the “seemingly politically influenced” increases in one way bookings to America could suggest the return of non-US nationals concerned about restrictions to international travel.
Olympic champion, Sir Mo Farah, criticised US President Donald Trump’s travel ban for citizens from mainly Muslim countries earlier this year. He said:
On 1 January this year, Her Majesty the Queen made me a Knight of the Realm. On 27 January, President Donald Trump seems to have made me an alien.
"It's deeply troubling that I will have to tell my children that daddy might not be able to come home – to explain why the president has introduced a policy that comes from a place of ignorance and prejudice," he said.