PRIME Minister Tony Blair gave Travel Weekly exclusive access to Downing Street this week as the Government vowed to work with the UK tourist industry to make it a world beater before the 2012 Olympics.
Blair gave tourism chiefs his support for a national training academy to improve customer service standards. But he said it would need private sector backing.
He also vowed to look at the tourist visa system after hearing criticism of the 38% increase in visa prices in July.
The rise was introduced without consultation, sparking fears it could damage the Olympic bid.
Planning rules could also be eased, along with regulations affecting the 90,000 small businesses that make up half of the domestic travel industry, as the Government seeks to boost the value of UK tourism by £25 billion to £100 billion a year by 2010.
Blair pledged his personal support for the proposed skills academy, but said: “This is one area where business has to be really involved. We will facilitate that. We will allow it to flourish, but we need your active engagement.
“What we cannot do is make your product one of quality, you have to do that. If we set a benchmark with the very best in the world, we have a challenge.”
Tourism chiefs and ministers signed up to a series of pledges at the meeting designed to put tourism at the heart of Government thinking in the run-up to the games.
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