Research by the Institute of Travel & Meetings (ITM) has found that 46 per cent of buyers feel that the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) has not provided enough support and guidance on pricing and capacity of accommodation for next year’s Olympic Games.

The research, undertaken by ITM’s Industry Affairs Group (IAG) and GBTA Europe, has also looked at how other issues are affecting the industry. Seventy-seven per cent of respondents think that the government needs to engage in transparency and competition issues created by unbundling and ancillary fees.

When it comes to business travel, 80 per cent of those surveyed said that business aviation is taxed too highly. Nearly half (45 per cent) of respondents are in favour of expansion at Heathrow Airport, while a total of 77 per cent of buyers want to see high-speed rail developments and 60 per cent would like expansion at other regional airports.

ITM board director Mark Cuschieri said: “These results provide us with a very clear indication of the buyer sentiment at this time. They want better engagement from government and NGOs who create policy affecting the business travel community as there are numerous areas of concern.”

Colin Goldney, managing director of Argate Consulting, ITM's research partner, added: “There is clearly a strong voice from the business travel buyer community on certain issues at a time when our industry is becoming increasingly complex. ITM will be able to use this research to engage with policy makers more effectively.”