14 October 2008

UK tourism a ââ¬ËœCinderella sectorââ¬â¢ ââ¬' Hoseasons boss

Hoseasons chief Richard Carrick has attacked the government following the appointment of the eighth tourism minister in almost as many years.

Barbara Follett took up the role as the eighth tourism minister in 11 years last week within the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. 

But tourism responsibilities also lie within eight other departments: the new Department of Energy and Climate Change; the Department for Transport; the Department of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform; the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; the Foreign and Commonwealth Office; the Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills; the Home Office; and the Treasury, according to Hoseasons.

Carrick, the operatorââ¬â¢s chief executive, called for a ââ¬Ëœjoined-upââ¬â¢ policy to champion the industry following Follettââ¬â¢s appointment.

He criticised the lack of seriousness with which Government takes domestic tourism ââ¬' which is worth Ã&#pound;85 billion to the economy each year.

ââ¬ÅâœHow can tourism be properly represented at government level when its minister is so far down the food chain, and when it is looked after by a disjointed group of departments, all of which have different priorities?ââ¬~ Carrick asked.

ââ¬ÅâœHow can any minister do the job properly when they are in it for so little time? Successive governments have simply ignored how important tourism is to the UK economy, with the result that we are continually the Cinderella sector.ââ¬~

He added: ââ¬ÅâœWith the economic situation worsening, 2009 actually represents a golden opportunity for the domestic industry.

ââ¬ÅâœPeople will still want to go on holiday, but they will look to do so closer to home. It seems crazy, at a time when the UK economy needs all the help it can get, that government is not taking this huge potential seriously.ââ¬~

Carrick, who last week criticised key speakers at the ABTA Travel Convention for ignoring domestic tourism (see previous TravelMole story), pointed out that the industry accounts for 3.5% of the UKââ¬â¢s economy, employing 2.1 million people ââ¬' 7.7% of the workforce.  It also earns Britain more than Ã&#pound;16 billion in export earnings.

by Phil Davies 

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• Absolutely right
  
  

  In one year a minister will just about have worked out where the in-tray is. Mr Carrick is right, we need the industry to be taken seriously by people who actually 'give a stuff' to getting results. As for the multiple departments - this is joke. Tourism should have its own department and not bundled in with DCMS as a second thought.

  By Peter Shearn, Wednesday, October 15, 2008
• Devolved Tourism is best.
  
  

  Thankfully in Scotland we do not have to worry about a new UK Tourism Minister. As Tourism is devolved to the Scottish Parliament, it comes under the Energy, Enterprise & Tourism Minister. His tourism civil servants are easily contactable and have a high profile in Scotland.

  By Douglas Logan, Tuesday, October 14, 2008
• Totally agree
  
  

  I totally agree with Richard. I can't count the number of 'tourism ministers' since my first involvement in 1972 but it must be about one a year, including Norman Lamont at one point. If anyone can name an achievement on behalf of the industry by any of them, it would be interesting to hear!

  By Gilbert Archdale, Tuesday, October 14, 2008