Research revealed by ABTA* today shows that over three quarters (76%) of MPs believe that the Government should do more to develop domestic, inbound and outbound tourism in order to create new jobs. Seven in ten MPs (70%) also agree that the Government should give equal importance to all tourism sectors: domestic, inbound and outbound, a rise of two per cent from a poll of MPs a year earlier.
The findings come ahead of the launch of ABTA’s new Tourism Mix Manifesto, which will highlight the potential that the travel and tourism industry has to create jobs and growth across the whole of the UK economy. The Manifesto will put forward positive policy proposals that the Government could adopt to drive growth in all three tourism sectors: domestic, inbound and outbound. The Manifesto will be launched on the 27th February at the House of Commons, with an introduction from the Tourism Minister Hugh Robertson MP.
Luke Pollard, Head of Public Affairs, ABTA said: “The tourism industry has an incredible potential to employ more people and contribute more to the UK's economic recovery if the right policies are put in place by Ministers. Whether inbound, domestic or outbound, ABTA is keen to see travel and tourism businesses grow and prosper. It is promising to see so many MPs agreeing with ABTA about the need for Government to do more to support all sectors of our industry. We will be presenting our recommendations about how Government can help tourism businesses to grow, employ more people and add to economic growth when we launch our set of policies for creating a vibrant tourism mix in Parliament on 27th February.”
*ComRes surveyed 150 MPs on the ComRes Parliamentary Panel between 22nd May and 22nd June 2012 by self-completion postal questionnaire and online. Data was weighted to reflect the exact composition of the House of Commons in terms of party representation and regional constituency distribution.
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ABTA has been at the heart of travel for more than 60 years. Our purpose is to help our Members to grow their businesses successfully and sustainably, and to help their customers - the travelling public – have confidence in their travel experience.
The ABTA brand stands for expertise, reliability and fairness. These qualities are core to us. They ensure that holidaymakers remain confident in the holiday products that they buy from our Members.
We help our Members and their customers navigate through today's changing travel landscape by providing schemes of financial protection and a course of redress if something goes wrong; by raising standards in the industry and by giving guidance on issues from sustainability to health and safety; and by presenting a united voice to government to ensure the industry and the public get a fair deal.
ABTA currently has around 1,200 Members and represents over 5,000 retail outlets and offices. For more details about what we do, what being an ABTA Member means and how we're working at the heart of the industry to ensure that we continue to build confidence in travel.