§ Mr. TylerTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what steps her Department has taken to implement the recommendations of "Tourism in the United Kingdom: Realising the Potential" as it applies to her Department's responsibilities; and if she will make a statement.
§ Mr. McLoughlinA healthy tourism sector is vital to the United Kingdom economy. The Employment Department, TECs, industry training organisations and the National Council for Vocational Qualifications are working together to ensure that individuals have the necessary skills to support the industry's needs.
National vocational qualifications and Scottish vocational qualifications are now available for most occupations in the tourism and leisure sector. Following the introduction of general national vocational qualifications (GNVQs) last year 56 centres are now offering the GNVQ in tourism and leisure with 19 per cent. of all candidates undertaking the Leisure and Tourism option. A tourism and leisure consortium was formed in April 1992 with representatives from a wide range of organisations and this group is considering industrywide approaches to qualifications in the sector and how their implementation might best be achieved.