English Tourist Board (Hansard, 27 July 1993)

§ Mr. Brooke

The English tourist board—ETB—has concluded a review of how best it might help the tourism industry make its full contribution to the economy by generating additional tourism business. The board retained consultants to conduct the review, and sent me a copy of their report earlier this month. The report contains new prioritised objectives for the board arising from the review, which are supported by the regional tourist boards—RTBs. These give top priority to the ETB's lead body function and action to improve the quality and value for money of the English tourism product. They give lower priority to marketing and programmes designed to encourage visits to a greater variety of destinations. The review also acknowledges the importance of the RTB network to the achievement of the ETB's objectives.

I look forward to receiving from the board a fully developed strategy to deliver such objectives in the most effective way within the resources allocated to it in the 1992 public expenditure survey. The board has also bid for additional resources by way of grant-in-aid from 1994–95 onwards. That bid will be considered in the process of the current survey.