A call from the outgoing Chief Executive of the tourist board for Northern Ireland to have its own strong tourism strategy “should be treated with the utmost seriousness”, according to NI Conservatives’ European candidate, Mark Brotherston.
“Alan Clarke has a wealth of experience with the Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) and he has not voiced this opinion lightly”, Mark said. “There are certainly times when we need to cooperate with the rest of Ireland and the rest of the UK to attract tourists, but there are also times when we need to compete robustly. Currently the Tourism Ireland strategy, which markets the whole island, doesn’t give enough flexibility in that regard.”
“It is important that there is room for Northern Ireland to be marketed properly as a distinct destination, because we have an enormously impressive product, which does have the potential to stand out. There will always be a time to cooperate, both on an island wide and a UK wide basis, but there is also a time for competition and competition is healthy. We should listen very carefully to the outgoing Chief Executive of NITB, so that Northern Ireland can maximise the huge potential that our tourist industry offers to attract visitors, grow businesses and create jobs”.