British tourist was told Sousse was ‘100% safe’ by travel agent just days before the massacre there killed 38 people in the Tunisian resort
- Paul Thompson said he and his wife were ‘pushed’ into choosing Sousse
- Thomson travel agent said previous attack on Tunisian museum a ‘one-off’
- Another agent said it was like ‘avoiding Skegness’ after an attack on London
- 30 Britons died when a ISIS fanatic opened fire at holidaymakers on the beach
A holidaymaker who was in Sousse on the day of the terrorist attack said he was told by a travel agent that it was ‘100% safe’ when he was looking into the trip, an inquest has heard.
Paul Thompson said that he and his wife were ‘pushed’ towards choosing Tunisia and were told that there were ‘special deals’ on offer at that time – weeks after the attack at the Bardo National Museum in the capital, Tunis, in March 2015 in which 24 people were killed.
The victims’ relatives have heard how there were serious security failings at the resort in Sousse – which were not changed despite it being reported months beforehand
A Thomson travel agent said she did not give a safety guarantee to the couple, and that she would not say somewhere is completely safe.
Mr Thompson said they were told the atrocity was a ‘one-off’ and that another travel agent likened it to avoiding Skegness if there was an attack in London.
On June 26, when Mr Thompson was on holiday, Seifeddine Rezgui opened fire at the five-star Riu Imperial Marhaba Hotel in Sousse killing 38 tourists, including 30 Britons.
The inquest into the deaths of the Britons at the Royal Courts of Justice heard that Mr Thompson and his wife had visited the Thomson travel agents in Ilkeston on May 5.
Tunisia survivor Suzanne Richards (left) lost her son, brother and father in the attack, and says it’s ‘destroyed’ her family
They wanted to discuss changing their holiday to Greece to a different destination.
‘We originally wanted Egypt but the travel agent pushed for Tunisia,’ Mr Thompson told the inquest.
He said in his statement that he could get all inclusive in a five star hotel because there were ‘special deals on in Tunisia at that time’.
Mr Thompson said his wife Zoe mentioned the Bardo attack to the travel agent, and said they were told it was a ‘one-off’ and the place was ‘100% safe’.
Billy and Lisa Graham (left) and Jim and Ann McQuire (right) were among the 30 Britons killed during the beach massacre
He added: ‘In fact, one of the travel agents there likened it to if something happened in London, would that stop you from going to Skegness?’
In his statement he said they were told the Bardo attack was ‘a one-off like the 7/7 bombings’.
Amy Smallman, assistant manager of the Thomson travel agents in Ilkeston, told the inquest she did not tell the Thompsons that the destination was ‘100% safe’.
Ms Smallman said she does not give safety guarantees to customers because ‘nowhere is 100%’, adding: ‘I wouldn’t have said that.’
The ISIS-inspired shooting was the deadliest non-state attack in Tunisian history
Families of 16 of the victims have accused travel company TUI Group of ignoring security warnings and putting holidaymakers at risk
Asked if she was particularly ‘pushing’ Tunisia, she said: ‘No, not at all.’
Mr Thompson said he was ‘100% certain’ that he and his wife had been given the safety guarantee, adding that a holiday rep at a welcome meeting in Tunisia also said the place was ‘100% safe’.
He said he was ‘reasonably sure’ that they had also been told that hotels in Tunisia were gated and had 24-hour security, but this is disputed too.
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