Secretary of State for culture media and sport, Sajid Javid MP, has hailed the government’s post London Olympics tourism push as a resounding success but says more needs to be done to increase inbound visitors.
The MP for Bromsgrove announced a new joint initiative with business travel industry bodies that will seek to make the UK a world leader in hosting business events. Details will be announced in the new year.
Javid also hailed work done on reducing APD on long-haul flights and making the UK’s visa system more welcoming to visitors from places like China as a sign that the government is taking tourism seriously.
The UK now accepts Irish visas from Chinese visitors, an initiative that will soon be extended that to Indian visitors.
“We want a visa service that is fast and efficient and the envy of the world. I am working closely with the Home Secretary and hope to share more successes with you soon,” said Javid.
Javid added that this work had helped the UK rise from 11th to 5th in global tourism competitiveness.
The next phase of the GREAT Britain campaign will launch in January with a focus on the countryside, and Javid said it was important that while London continued to be a main attraction more is made of the rest of the country.
Delivering a keynote speech on the first day of World Travel Market, he said: “Travellers want to go beyond the guide book. They want unique experiences and the UK has those in spades.
“The UK offers a massive range of experiences and excursions that your customers would not have encountered before. For too long, life outside London has been our best kept secret.”
Referring to government plans to boost inbound business events, Javid said: “The international business events market is huge and growing and the UK should be leading the way. Right now we have some of the best event management in the world but they are spending too long putting on events in other places.”
Javid further praised the sector for its work in developing skills with the new tourism industry council.