Week highlights value of tourism to local economy
English Tourism Week went virtual to highlight the economic importance and value of tourism to local economies across England.
The annual celebration of the tourism industry, last week was dedicated to showcasing England’s tourism offer.
Visitengland and local destinations asked MPS, local authorities, the UK Government and other stakeholders to shine the spotlight on the importance of tourism to the local, regional and national economy and pledge their support to the sector’s recovery.
Tourism Minister Nigel
Huddleston said: “English Tourism Week recognises the important role the industry plays in our local, regional and national economies, supporting jobs and attracting investment.
“This is a challenging time for the industry and we’re providing support through an unprecedented government package for businesses and workers.
“I hope everyone will use English Tourism Week as an opportunity to celebrate the sector, and we’ll be encouraging people to book a great British holiday as soon as it is safe to do.”
Visitengland director
Andrew Stokes said: “English Tourism Week is all about highlighting the economic benefits that tourism brings to local economies, celebrating our diverse and exciting sector, and showcasing the quality, range and value of English tourism.
“While we cannot run events as usual this year, the spirit of the week has never been more important.
“Tourism has been one of the first and hardest hit economic sectors due to the Covid-19 pandemic and this year’s virtual week is dedicated to showing support for the industry, the millions of people who work in it and
the hundreds of thousands of businesses impacted.
“It is also about looking towards the future recovery and doing everything we can right now to ensure that tourism can bounce back to once again become one of the most successful and vibrant sectors of the economy.”
Visitengland has this year asked MPS to record video messages for use on their social media channels during English Tourism Week, pledging their support for tourism and highlighting the sector’s economic importance to their local economies.
Lastthursday,visitengland asked MPS to share photos and social media posts from previous English Tourism Weeks or from their favourite English holiday destinations using the hashtags #Throwbackthursday and #Englishtourismweek20.
In a tweet last week, Experiencewestsussexbiz said: “West Sussex welcomes over 24 million visitors each year. We’re supporting English Tourism Week with @Visitengland to help raise awareness of the sector and to support the recovery of English tourism. ast week,”
Arundel and South Downs MP Andrew Griffith responded: “Tourism is going to be vital to our recovery. It’s a bigger sector than car-making but we don’t always give it the attentionitwarrants.isupport #Englishtourismweek”
Patron of the week is HRH Prince Charles.
He said: “I personally believe that we are incredibly lucky to be blessed with such a rich assortment of historic and cultural gems in this country, not to mention the jewel of our national parks and, above all, some of the wonders of our many hidden gardens which are once again ready to amaze and delight visitors.”
Visitengland has been working across the industry and with the UK Government to ensure tourism is able to recover as quickly as possible once restrictions are lifted.
In response to calls from across the industry it is working to develop common industry standards to provide a ‘ring of confidence’ for tourism businesses, attractions and destinations in England as well as reassurance to visitors that businesses have clear processes in place when restrictions are lifted.
Tourism is one of England’s largest and most valuable industries, employing more than 2.6 million people and generating more than £106 billion a year.