Reinforcing the importance of inbound tourism within the economy, the launch of UKinbound’s ‘Tourism ABC’ (see attachment) urgently calls upon the new Government to Acknowledge, Build and Commit to tourism.
Hailed as one of the leading contributors to the economy, inbound tourism to the UK is highly valuable, with overseas visitors having spent £22 billion in 2014. This confirms the industry’s position as the seventh biggest export earner. The figures are as easy to evaluate as 1, 2, 3 making UKinbound’s asks to the incoming Government as simple as A, B, C.
Reinforcing the importance of inbound tourism within the economy, the launch of UKinbound’s ‘Tourism ABC’ (see attachment) urgently calls upon the new Government to Acknowledge, Build and Commit to tourism; investing in an industry that is showing year-on-year growth, boasting record-breaking figures with visitor numbers and spending up by 6% generated by a total of 35 million visitors to the UK in 2014.
UKinbound asks the incumbent to Acknowledge that the travel trade is at the foundation for tourism success ensuring the UK is export ready and offers routes to market across the globe. To recognise tourism is driving both economic and employment generation and has the power to rebalance the UK’s economy – to prompt greater consideration from the Government for this highly valuable industry.
Demand for tourism across the whole of the UK is evident with 77% of visitors expressing an interest in visiting outside of London. In order to develop the tourism product across the country, UKinbound asks the Government to Build a strong infrastructure, enhancing wider UK experiences for international visitors and making them more accessible. Building a transport network, a strong national and local tourism structure and a world-class airport infrastructure would allow the industry to deliver to its full and ever-growing potential, increasing visitor capacity and tourism’s GDP contribution, as well as, generating more jobs.
However, growth requires a monetary investment and stimulation in confidence. UKinbound asks the Government to Commit to tourism showing belief in it as a crucial contributor to economic growth. A commitment to increasing sustained funding for international destination marketing including the GREAT campaign; reviewing the tourism taxation, and improving the competitiveness of the UK’s visa system making the UK more accessible, are just some of the commitments which will help to encourage larger visitor numbers and larger economic benefit for years to come.
UKinbound’s Chief Executive Officer, Deirdre Wells OBE, comments “With the incoming new Government soon upon us, it is crucial that we raise awareness and highlight the vital role UK inbound tourism plays within the economy so that the right direction is taken for this sector across the next five years.
Concrete evidence highlights the UK’s tourism industry as one of the country’s most successful sectors and it is capable of growing even further, driving employment and export income, but only with the necessary government support. Our ‘Tourism ABC’ has identified key contributors to continuous success and we are asking the Government to simply Acknowledge, Commit and Build them.”
Tatiana is the news coordinator for TravelDailyNews Media Network (traveldailynews.gr, traveldailynews.com and traveldailynews.asia). Her role includes monitoring the hundreds of news sources of TravelDailyNews Media Network and skimming the most important according to our strategy.
She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication & Mass Media from Panteion University of Political & Social Studies of Athens and she has been editor and editor-in-chief in various economic magazines and newspapers.
