Travel and tourism is not understood and not respected by governments, say industry leaders.
Dubai Airports Corporation chief executive Paul Griffiths told the World Travel and Tourism Council Global Summit: “Governments do not see the economic benefits of the travel sector.”
Hilton Worldwide president and chief executive Christopher Nassetta agreed. He said: “The strength and importance of the travel and tourism is not understood and not respected.
“We are a conglomeration of thousands of different businesses and part of the issue is that until recently we really did not have advocacy so governments around the world did not think of us as an industry.”
Griffiths suggested: “Perhaps we should encourage governments to do less because the record so far is not good.”
PATA chief executive Martin Craigs dismissed the UK government as “inept” and “unable to build an airport runway”, although he added: “[Chancellor] George Osborne finally climbed down partially on Air Passenger Duty last month.”
Craigs argued: “We need more advocates.” But he said: “The problem is a tourism minister alone can’t drive change. You have to get the immigration minister on board, but their mindset is to protect borders not to welcome people.”
However Craigs had praise for Australian prime minister Tony Abbott, whom he said “made a brave decision last week when he announced a second Sydney airport. The state is going to pay for the infrastructure and the private sector pay for the airport. Abbott knows the airport will not be completed during his term in government.”
Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces managing director and chief executive Raymond Bickson argued: “The buzzwords you need to work with the government are ‘jobs’ and ’employment’. ”
VisitBritain chairman Christopher Rodrigues agreed, saying: “We have to change the language. We are in ‘jobs’.
When UK prime minister David Cameron heard that travel and tourism created one third of new jobs in the UK he started to listen.
“We are in ‘regeneration’. The Olympics are a great regeneration project.”
Rodrigues argued: “We have made a lot of progress in the UK and this is a very long game.”
But he added: “In very few cases do you see joined-up government on tourism. In most governments, tourism ministers don’t have their hands on the levers of power.”