Call for Government funding of region’s troubled tourism agency
TRADE UNION bosses have called on the Government to start funding the Welcome to Yorkshire tourism agency after warning local councils are not in a position to help in the wake of coronavirus.
The TUC has said the Government should fully fund the contributions of regional councils to Welcome to Yorkshire, which has recently requested an emergency £1.4m bailout from local authorities and receives about half of its annual funding from the public sector.
At least three councils – Ryedale, Hambleton and East Riding – have refused the bailout request so far.
The TUC call comes as Welcome to Yorkshire confirmed that an undisclosed number of
staff are being made redundant at the organisation.
Earlier this year, chief executive James Mason said one-third of WTY’s 34-strong workforce was being furloughed.
The TUC’s regional secretary, Bill Adams, said: “Local councils are spending hand over fist to fight the coronavirus pandemic, but the Government has pulled the funding rug out from under them. The Prime Minister is expecting councils to roll out emergency public health measures and at the same time fund a tourism body for a region the size of Scotland or New Zealand.
“It is neither sensible nor fair. Council budgets need to be fully funded to support all their activities and their response to all aspects of the pandemic. Supporting jobs and businesses through this pandemic is essential to a better recovery that prioritises jobs and working people.”
The tourism industry in Yorkshire employs 250,000 workers and is worth £9bn to the region’s economy annually.
The Government was approached for comment.