تاریخ و گردشگری درچشم اندازی جامع

The 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games provide a once-in-a-lifetime

opportunity to showcase Britain abroad. A 2006 PriceWaterhouseCoopers report

for DCMS concluded that a properly funded public/private marketing partnership

associated with the Games could provide the UK with an additional £2bn in

tourism revenue.

A similar partnership was established in 2001 in the wake of the Foot and Mouth

outbreak and 9/11 attacks, with £20m in Treasury funding being matched by the

industry to create a global marketing campaign. An analysis of this campaign by

the National Tourist Board, VisitBritain, found that it generated £500m in

additional overseas visitor expenditure, protecting 10,000 jobs and generating

around £80m in VAT payments.

The industry believes that much can be achieved through the more effective

utilisation of existing Government expenditure on tourism.

As a result of devolution, less than 20% of public funding for tourism originates

from DCMS. Of the remainder, around 60% is allocation by Local Authorities or

Regional Development Agencies, neither of which has a statutory obligation to

fund tourism development.

It is therefore important to ensure that Local Authorities are incentivised to invest

in tourism development, existing RDA tourism funding is ring-fenced and that

tourism development and marketing activities at the local, regional and national

level are co-ordinated in order to provide the maximum return on investment

for the UK.

UK tourism businesses can successfully compete in the global tourism market –

provided that they are competing on a level playing field. However, because of

Air Passenger Duty and visa costs, they are not.

The tourism industry fully recognises and supports both the need for effective

border controls, and for aviation to pay its environmental cost. But increased visa

costs and Air Passenger Duty mean that, by the end of next year, a family of four

from growth markets such as India and China will have to pay a minimum of

£568 in government charges to come to the UK. For each family that is deterred

from visiting as a result of these charges, the UK economy forgoes around

£5,000 in revenue.

It is therefore crucial to exploiting the potential of tourism that, while maintaining

the proper entry and environmental controls, charging is based on the net benefit

that can be derived by encouraging visitors to come to the UK.

While the vast majority of the tourism products and services provided to visitors

are of a high standard, the industry acknowledges that further improvements in

staff skills and product quality are required in some areas. A National Skills

Academy for Tourism, similar to the new Hospitality Academy, would provide a

major step forward in the provision of a high quality tourism experience, while the

implementation of a “Welcome to Britain” programme in the lead-up to 2012

would ensure that visitors receive the highest quality service by public and

private sector organisations at every stage of their journey.

While DCMS is responsible for tourism, the majority of legislation that impacts on

tourism businesses is managed by other Departments. As such, particular care

needs to be taken to ensure that any potential adverse impacts of legislation

generated outside DCMS are adequately assessed and mitigated against.

Reducing the level of poor regulation will significantly enhance the ability of

tourism businesses to concentrate their resources on maintaining jobs and

generating growth.

Current proposals where there has been inadequate consideration of tourism

impacts include the mandatory code for selling alcohol, anti-age discrimination

legislation for the provision of tourism services and repealing the Furnished

Holiday Letting Rules.

A cross-departmental simplification plan for tourism-related legislation is required

to identify areas where the regulatory burden on the sector can be reduced.