Prime Minister expresses support for industry at national tourism summit

VisitBritain chairman, Christopher Rodrigues and industry leaders took the opportunity at a national tourism summit in Liverpool to press home key messages to government about the economic importance of tourism. They highlighted the opportunities as well as challenges that the industry is facing in a global recession and the need for government to invest in the industry.

The summit, held on 8 January at the BT Arena and Convention Centre in Liverpool, was attended by the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown as part of his three-day tour of the regions. He was joined on the platform by the Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sport, Andy Burnham and the new Secretary of State and Minister for Tourism, Barbara Follett.

Speaking before the summit, Rodrigues said, ‘To realise all of the benefits which flow from tourism – jobs created, vibrant communities regenerated, health and wellbeing improved, overseas investment in the UK increased and foreign exchange generated, our cultural and natural assets appreciated and celebrated, and Britain’s contribution and place in the world acknowledged – we must invest, politically and financially.

At the summit Gordon Brown recognised that the doubling of the world economy in the next two decades would create massive opportunities for all British goods.

‘[...] People are going to want to travel more,’ he said, ‘There is no sign that that is going to end – in fact it is going to be stepped up remarkably over the next few years. And the tourism industry in Britain, with our great cultural heritage, with our historic monuments, our great ability to project culture that's based on the English language, with our sporting achievements and functions, with our willingness to be creative and innovative, we have this huge opportunity for the future.’

Andy Burnham acknowledged that there was a feeling that the government does not 'give enough attention and enough focus to this important industry'. He said he wanted to address that issue head on and gave a clear signal that the government wanted to work with the industry over the course of the year to ensure that it gets through these difficult times.

He also applauded the launch of the VisitBritain value campaign to encourage domestic and international visitors to explore Britain now and promised he would consider the need for greater public investment. Burnham hoped people would go away from the summit feeling that there was a new partnership between government and industry.

Barbara Follett heard from many of the attendees how their businesses were being impacted by the economic downturn and how they believed government could act to support the industry.

Following the summit the Minister has asked VisitBritain to coordinate the views of the industry and present a list of key points for government action that the industry would like her to consider. Many in the industry have already been approached for their views. Rodrigues hopes that the event on 11 February to launch of the full version of the British Tourism Framework Review will provide a great opportunity to hear the first response to these requests from the Minister.

You can use VisitBritain’s online marketing planner to find out how to get involved with the latest marketing opportunities including the new value campaign.