Tourism Industry Council (TIC) Meeting - Tuesday 24th May (9.30 - 11.00)
Attendees
Lesley / Allan / TUINick / Bamford / ATOC
Simon / Bennett / Institute of Tourist Guiding
Darren / Caplan / AOA
Martin / Cox / West Dorset Leisure Holidays
Marc / Crothall / Scottish Tourism Alliance
Juliana / Delaney / Continuum
Bernhard / Donoghue / ALVA
Ufi / Ibrahim / BHA
Kurt / Janson / Tourism Alliance
Paul / Kelly / BALPPA
Mike / Morgan / Welsh Rarebit
Ross / Murray / CLA
Jonathan / Neame / Shepherd Neame
Samantha / Richardson / National Tourism Coastal Academy
Brigid / Simmonds / British Beer and Pub Association
Andrew / Stokes / VisitEngland
Mark / Tanzer / ABTA
Simon / Tarr / People 1st
John / Waterworth / Parkdean Holidays
David / Webb / Federation of Small Businesses
Deirdre / Wells / UK Inbound
David / Weston / Bed and Breakfast Association
Sue / Wilkinson / National Trust
Patricia / Yates / VisitBritain
Update on Discover England Fund
· Andrew Stokes from VisitEngland updated on progress of the Discover England Fund. Applications for Year 1 funding are currently live and can be found on the VisitEngland website. Updates will be circulated on the Fund as available.
Common Sense Regulation
· An update was given from Brigid Simmonds (BS) (BBPA) including a recap of the first five regulations considered at the previous TIC meeting. It was agreed that consideration could be given to the regulation of the private supply of water, as part of the Cabinet Office’s Cutting Red Tape Review of Local Authority Enforcement. The Council’s four other ideas for deregulation: on primary authority for alcohol licensing, dropping the requirement to advertise alcohol licence changes in local newspapers; changing the way that travel insurance sales was regulated and the removal of touristic bodies from public sector procurement rules, Ministers had chosen not to progress at this time.
· A sub-group of the Tourism Industry Council has submitted four other ideas for deregulation to the Minister for Tourism:
o A derogation from formal private carriage taxi licenses for B&B owners wishing to pick up passengers from rural stations
o CANs - the Community and Ancillary Sellers Notice; enabling this would allow community groups and hotels/ BnB’s to serve a small amount of alcohol without a full licence (i.e. a bottle of wine as part of a welcome package)
o Money Laundering - increasing the derogation that allows small tourism businesses to offer currency exchange.
o Digitising and simplifying the VAT refund scheme for overseas visitors
· In addition to these measures, Ufi Ibrahim (UI) (BHA) commented that BHA are in discussion with the Food Standards Agency about streamlining inspection and enforcement regimes. Again, this may be picked up in the context of the Cabinet Office’s Cutting Red Tape Review.
· BS raised that the current programme of work looks at regulations which are currently in force, but consideration also needs to be given to new regulations set to come into force. ACTION: Kurt Janson (KJ) (Tourism Alliance) offered to put forward a paper.
· Agreed that the conversation on regulation between Government and industry should continue with a focus on enforcement and ensuring that there is appropriate protection for consumers right across the sector. ACTION: Council members to continue to make representations to BS on this issue where they arise and need examining.
Apprenticeships
· Simon Tarr (ST) (People 1st) updated on the programme of work on apprenticeships. This was in line with the paper which was circulated.
· ST raised the point that funding for the apprenticeship seasonality pilot was based on the current funding regime and it would be useful if BIS could ensure that it would operate on the new funding model to ensure longevity.
· ST raised concerns that employers who offer apprenticeships might need to register with OFSTED as training providers. He hoped this could be addressed and asked for more information on the levy. BS also asked for clarity on the treatment of franchises and tenants within the new arrangements.
· John Waterworth (JW) (Parkdean Holidays) raised that apprenticeships can be difficult in rural locations. This was echoed by Samantha Richardson (SR) (National Coastal Academy).
· UI raised work being done on the Careers Enterprise Company which is a Government initiative to drive enterprise in schools.
https://www.careersandenterprise.co.uk/ The BHA were in discussion about how tourism might be reflected within this initiative. UI also highlighted the success of the “Big Hospitality Conversation” and discussions with DWP on how to take this forward.
GREAT Welcome
· Home Office officials presented the paper, highlighting that record numbers of visitors had applied to come to the UK.
· The paper also highlighted how the visa process in itself did not influence the decision of customers on where they decide to visit abroad.
· Do TIC members collectively work to challenge the perceptions of visas being difficult to access?
· KJ asked about the UK / Belgium visa pilot, which is currently available in three places in China. Home Office reported that the numbers have been slow to start, but the next step is to extend the offer to tier 2 cities in China.
· KJ also asked about the 2 year China visa pilot. ACTION: Home Office are currently designing the evaluation to report in February 2018 and are interested in feedback from the sector, not just on Chinese customers obtaining a UK visa but also any Brits obtaining a two year Chinese visa.
· Darren Caplan (DC) (Airport Operators Association) asked about the capacity of the Border Force to handle the forecasted increase in passenger numbers, particularly at regional airports. Delays on arrival impact on the customer's experience. ACTION: The Minister for Tourism agreed to raise this at the Inter-Ministerial Group on Tourism.
Transport
· Department for Transport officials presented the paper circulated - highlighting the 50% increase in transport spending in this parliament and DfT’s ambition to make the transport network welcoming to tourists.
· Members asked about investment in rural locations, explaining that the “final mile” was more like the final 10 miles in rural locations. DfT suggested there were funding streams that could be tapped into - for example DfT’s innovation fund??
· David Weston (DW) (B&B Association) raised a query about the A303. The Roads Investment Strategy (RIS) published in March 2015 reported that the Government intends to upgrade the A303 to dual carriageway. Schemes worth £2bn in this corridor will be delivered by 2020-21.
· DC queried whether through ticketing included working with aviation. Patricia Yates (PY) (VisitEngland / VisitBritain) noted that they were looking at this and it was very much part of the Discover England Fund.
AOB
· DW welcomed the recent House of Lords report on "online platforms" and their call for a CMA investigation into the abuses of their market power by online travel agents (OTAs).
· DC requested that Aviation and UK connectivity be on the agenda for the next meeting and this was accepted by the Chairs.
· Simon Vincent (SV) raised that the Government's programme on Business Visits and Events should be on the agenda.
· ACTION: suggestions for other topics to be considered should be sent to DCMS.
· VE/VB/Hilton Summer Reception is on 5 July at the Hilton Waldorf, and a private pre-drinks reception will be held for Tourism Industry Council members before the main event.