Tourism ” will lead other industries out of the economic slowdown”

Interesting prediction in this recent article from the Western Morning News. It begs the question, “What sort of tourism brings long-term prosperity to an area like East Devon? ” . What do SIN-ners think?

Here’s the link:  http://www.westernmorningnews.co.uk/Head-herey-herey-herey/story-20108824-detail/story.html

Tourism boom ahead – once region recovers

…The Westcountry has among the heaviest reliance on the industry in the UK, with 8% of jobs in Torbay, East Devon and West Devon – and 7% in Cornwall – tourism-related, more than double the national average.

VisitBritain chairman Christopher Rodrigues said: “Tourism has become a bedrock of the UK economy – generating a third of the UK’s net new jobs between 2010 and 2012 – and still has the ability to grow at levels that will lead other industries out of the economic slowdown.”

…The report predicted that tourism’s worth to the economy was likely to grow from the current £127 billion a year to £257 billion by 2025, representing 10% of the UK gross domestic product.

…The report said that inbound tourism would continue to be the fastest-growing tourism sector – with spending by international visitors forecast to grow by more than 6% a year. Domestic tourism will get an added boost from more “staycations” as rising fuel costs and poor exchange rates put people off flying abroad. The report said that if Britain were to become as successful as its European competitors in the new emerging growth markets for tourism, such as China, with further investment it could increase the value of inbound tourism by an additional £12 billion by 2025.

Tourism jobs are expected to grow to 3.8 million by 2025, up around 630,000, which would be around 11% of all jobs. Those tourism jobs would be distributed right across the UK.