By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A Cabinet minister yesterday admitted the Government is "walking a very thin tightrope" over the loosening of travel restrictions as he asserted "we don't make $1" from the issuance of health visas.

Dionisio D'Aguilar, minister of tourism and aviation, hit back at criticism of the $25 cost for domestic travel health visas by arguing that it was purely "a cost recovery" designed to meet the expenses incurred for administering and processing a traveller's rapid antigen test.

Chester Cooper, the Opposition's deputy leader and finance spokesman, last week slammed the $25 fee as "patently absurd and should immediately be stopped" given that persons already travelling from Nassau and Grand Bahama to the Family Islands are already required to have a COVID-19 PCR test that costs anywhere from $125 to $225.

"This new charge places additional burdens on Bahamians who want to return home to the Family Islands. I ask that this decision be reversed immediately. It flies in the face of good sense and once again burdens Bahamians at a time of great economic upheaval," Mr Cooper argued.

However, Mr D'Aguilar said the $25 fee was intended to "exclusively cover" the costs of the rapid antigen test, which all domestic travellers must take five days after they have travelled regardless of whether they have subsequently returned to their home island.

"It doesn't matter where you are after the fifth day, you have to take the test," he emphasised, adding that this meant Bahamians faced the same COVID-19 health travel protocols as foreign visitors with the $25 covering the cost of administering the rapid antigen test and uploading the results to the Ministry of Tourism's platform.

"We don't make a dollar on that," the minister told this newspaper. "It is a cost but the Government and Ministry of Health felt if you leave New Providence and Grand Bahama you should take the COVID-19 PCR test and, five days later, take the rapid antigen test.

"This is purely a cost recovery at a time when the Government is very cost conscious. We're equalising this with them regime for coming into the country from a foreign destination. The cheapest visa when you come internationally is $40, so we're probably taking a loss on this to ensure the regime is the same."

Acknowledging the extra bureaucracy, red tape and cost associated with travel in the COVID-19 era, Mr D'Aguilar said: "Everybody wants us to return to pre-COVID-19 conditions where persons can get up and move from one island to another.

"The reality is that COVID-19 is very much among us, and it can flare up at a moment's notice, so the Government is trying to walk a very thin tightrope to allow people to travel but not contribute to the community spread that we saw in July and August.

"Everybody is annoyed with this and focused on the costs associated with travel in this COVID-19 era, but if we don't put in these protocols there's the belief we will return to what happened in August, September and October. They're definitely an impediment to travel. It may be expensive, it may be difficult, but for right now it's ensuring we keep the numbers under control."

Mr D'Aguilar, meanwhile, admitted that the lack of airlift capacity and inbound seats into The Bahamas as its major resort destinations start to open up is "definitely very concerning".

"Our airlift department and the Nassau/Paradise Island Promotion Board; the persons that focus on airlift, they are very, very concerned about it and are working assiduously to ensure sufficient airlift is in place and what we'd like to see into the destination," he told this newspaper.

"It's always the hotel rooms come first, then the demand and then the airlift. This is an ongoing problem at the best of times. We're always very concerned, and are working with our hotel partners through the Nassau/Paradise Island Promotion Board to address their concerns. I think it will be fairly slow to start, but as the word gets out there it will ramp back up."

United Airlines said it was committing to operate five weekly flights from New York into Nassau, and Houston into Nassau, from December 17 when Baha Mar re-opens..

Jonathan Guerin, the airline's spokesperson, told Tribune Business: “Throughout the pandemic, United has been a leader in nimbly reshaping our schedule as we continue to respond to the impact of COVID-19 on the demand for travel.

"United is currently operating seven flights a week between our hub in New York/Newark and Nassau, and three weekly flights between Houston and Nassau. Beginning next week, December 17, United will operate five weekly flights from New York/Newark; two weekly flights from Washington Dulles; five weekly flights from Houston and two weekly flights from Chicago.

"In January, we plan to continue five flights a week from New York/Newark and weekly service from Washington Dulles, Houston and Chicago. We continue to closely monitor and analyse travel trends and will adjust our schedules to match capacity with demand.”

Audrey Oswell, Atlantis' chief executive, had voiced concerns over whether there is sufficient airlift to meet bookings and demand when the resort opened on December 10.

Mr D'Aguilar said, though, that "the cogs of tourism are beginning to churn" with more than 4,300 resort industry workers returning to a combination of Atlantis and Baha Mar. "It sends a strong signal to the market that the flagship properties are operating again. It's a massive confidence boost to the system," he added.

"Persons are getting paid again, and the effects that will have on the economy are seismic. It's still a fraction of what it was, but every little bit helps."