Under Steve Ridgway’s leadership, the industry submitted its plans for a Sector Deal earlier last month.
The Government has been clear from the outset that any industry which submitted its plans with ‘one voice’, clear leadership and a plan for the future would be granted a long-term deal for policy, planning and boosting overall competitiveness.
The industry came together with a clear plan to boost connectivity, productivity, skills and to create a new idea, "tourism zones". With the publication of the White Paper, we have a much clearer idea of the road map for landing the Tourism Sector Deal.
- On the Sector Deal, the White Paper has only eight industries listed, with tourism named as one: “We know that these partnerships can work – from our experience of decade-long partnerships such as the Auto Council and the Office for Life Sciences to more recent collaborations including tourism, creative industries, space and professional and business services.”
- The next stage will now lead to Sector Deals being struck with industries who have demonstrated, a) clear leadership, b) represents the breadth of the sector, c) rigorous analysis of the strengths/weaknesses and d) impact on productivity.
White Paper highlights:
Under the Sector Deal section: “We know that these partnerships can work – from our experience of decade long partnerships such as the Auto Council and the Office for Life Sciences to more recent collaborations including tourism, creative industries, space and professional and business services.”
Under Productivity Challenge section: “We will work closely with sectors such as hospitality, retail and tourism on each of the foundations of productivity in order to be able to progressively drive up the earning power of people employed in these industries and enhancing our national productivity.”
Under the Britain and the World section: “We must do more to export and promote what we do to the world’s fastest-growing economies, where there is a strong appetite not only for our goods but our world-class services, from tourism and healthcare to professional and financial services, and for cultural collaboration too.”
Steve Ridgway is meeting the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Secretary in the coming weeks to start discussions, and we anticipate hearing some good news in the new year.
