§ Mr. Peter AinsworthTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the reasons for recent trends in the number of overseas visitors to the United Kingdom. [95140]
§ Janet AndersonSince 1996, the number of visits from EU residents has been fairly constant; there has been a notable decline in visits from Asia and the Pacific, while the number of visits from the USA has risen sharply.
A number of factors underlie this mixed picture, for example, the strengthening of sterling against currencies of other EU members, and weakening consumer confidence in a number of EU countries; the financial crises in Asia; and the strong growth of the US economy, combined with increased airline capacity and lower air fares.