§ Mr. Hicksasked the Secretary of State for Trade whether the Government have given consideration to widening the forms of financial assistance available for tourism projects under section 4 of the Development of Tourism Act 1969.
§ Mr. NottMy right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Scotland and for Wales and I have decided to amend the scheme of assistance for tourism projects to enable the tourist boards to give interest relief grants. This should allow them to deploy more effectively the limited funds at their disposal and should encourage the use of commercially available funds. The tourist boards will still be able to offer capital grants. Although the allocation of public funds to the boards will not be changed the revised arrangements will give them greater flexibility in the use of these funds.
§ Mr. William Sheltonasked the Secretary of State for Trade whether he has received the comments of the tourist boards on the report on the registration of tourist accommodation prepared for them by Professor Beavis; and, if so, what is his conclusion.
§ Mr. NottMy right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Scotland and for Wales and I have received the comments of the British Tourist Authority and the national tourist boards on recommendations made in the report submitted to them. They have decided to accept the recommendation that a statutory scheme of registration of tourist accommodation in Great Britain should not be pursued28W for the time being. We welcome their intention to continue to operate a voluntary scheme, though there are differences of opinion among the boards about its effectiveness, and their agreement to develop a consistent classification and registration system for the whole of Great Britain. We support their intention to monitor progress in order to watch over the interests of consumers.