Tourism

Lord Clark of Windermere Excerpts

Wednesday 23rd May 2018 Lords Chamber

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

Yes, I am aware, from the many questions that my noble friend has asked in the House. I think that my noble friend Lord Young would probably agree with that, so we are certainly aware of that issue.

[Lord Clark of Windermere (Lab)]

My Lords, does the Minister appreciate that in some of our national parks, the problem of tourism is actually how to manage the number of visitors? For example, in the Lake District National Park last year we had 19 million visitors; this year, it is likely to be over 20 million, all of whom have to travel by road. Will the Minister look at the possibility of dusting down the plans for a light railway from Windermere to Keswick?

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

I think the noble Lord raised a similar question about a week ago on the subject of routes into the Lake District. I am not going to repeat the answer given by my noble friend Lord Ashton but I will say that we are very aware of the need to transport tourists to and from important areas within the UK, including the Lake District, quickly and safely.