Tourism chiefs want 'a move from DCMS'

The leisure industry should be shown more respect by the Government, say tourism bosses - and they are calling for responsibilty for tourism to be taken away from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).

The operators of a range of attractions, from Madame Tussauds and the London Eye to Blackpool Pleasure Beach and Butlins, believe the DCMS, also responsible for licensing and the pub trade, is a 'second division' department.

In an open letter to the Prime Minister, seven leading chief executives have called for responsibility for tourism to move to the Department of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (DBERR).

The leisure sector employs more than two million people and generates more than £100bn of revenue. The industry chiefs argue that this merits more focused attention from senior ministers.The letter argues that the £350m spent annually by the DCMS to promote tourism is poorly allocated and too thinly spread.

Grant Hearn, chief executive of budget hotel chain Travelodge and one of the signatories, said: "Tourism suffers from playing a lesser role in a department that concentrates on sports and the arts rather than having a business focus. With £350m being allocated annually for tourism promotion, it is not a lack of money that is the problem, but a lack of focus.

"At the moment, the DCMS is not getting the basics right. There is no cohesive strategy, a lack of consistent performance measures across the sector and not even the correct infrastructure to collect revenue data. All of these issues are better dealt with by a department designed to build commerce."