TODAY it was announced that Thomas Cook has entered compulsory liquidation after not being able to receive funds to continue trading.

9,000 members of staff will be affected including those working in the Channel Street branch in Galashiels and marygate in Berwick. The shop is officially listed as closed.

There are currently over 150 thousand customers abroad, which will make this the largest repatriation process to the UK in peacetime.

John Lamont MP (Cons) has said: "This is really disappointing news for staff at Thomas Cook and the 150,000 Brits who are currently abroad.

“Getting everyone home represents the largest peacetime repatriation undertaken by the UK Government but the Department for Transport has rightly been planning for this scenario for some time.

“I am pleased that the UK Government is making sure that everyone who is affected will get home whether or not their holiday is protected.

“The advice for people already on holiday is that they should try to enjoy their time away as in most circumstances they will not be flown home ahead of their scheduled return date.

“I’d urge staff in Galashiels who have concerns to get in touch with me, or to check the CAA website for more information."

Holidaymakers this morning will have arrived at airports to see signs announcing the end of trading and the cancellation of all Thomas Cook flights.

Although unwilling to provide the airline with the near £200 million it needed to be bailed out, the Government with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) have already begun helping Brits abroad get home.

Companies like Virgin, EasyJet and Jet2 have all come forward to offer assistance to those who are left with no flights after the collapse. P&O have also announced that any bookings made through Thomas Cook will be honoured still.

The final Thomas Cook flight landed this morning in Manchester and staff from its Peterborough headquarters have begun leaving the premises.

Director of the Moffat Centre for Travel and Tourism at Glasgow Caledonian University, Professor John Lennon, said: "This is a major failure in the travel sector. It will leave the competitive space in package holidays clear for TUI.

"The environment in which Thomas Cook operated radically changed with the advent of budget air travel, online travel services and easy access to private accommodation through online platforms like Airbnb.

"The merger with Airtours and MyTravel Group left Thomas Cook with a major debt burden of £1.7bn that became harder and harder to service.

"Combined with increased competition and consumer uncertainty, weaker sterling as a result of Brexit and increasingly nervous lending organisations, it left limited possibilities for an alternative outcome."

Anyone who has booked travel with Thomas Cook with plans to travel in future months or who are currently abroad please visit thomascook.caa.co.uk for updates and guidance.