Tourism: Covid-19

Selaine Saxby Excerpts

Thursday 10th September 2020 Commons Chamber

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered support for the tourism industry after the covid-19 lockdown.

Tourism is so much more than just going on our summer holidays. I would like to thank everyone in the Chamber today who is clearly aware of the huge part the tourism industry plays in the whole UK economy, particularly in beautiful coastal communities such as mine in North Devon, where in places it accounts for 60% of jobs and income.

I applied for this debate many weeks before the Chancellor announced his excellent supportive measures on 8 July. The Chancellor acknowledged that the sector accounted for over 2 million jobs and 150,000 businesses, and while we cannot save every job or every business, he did commit to do whatever it takes. Indeed, his statement brought a tear to my eye in that so much support was coming forward: £4.6 billion in direct support through the VAT cut and the incredibly successful eat out to help out scheme, on top of the coronavirus job retention scheme, the business rate cut, grants, loans and so forth. There is no doubt that support has been forthcoming, and the three winter scenario so widely discussed back in May does now seem a dim memory.

With winter now very much on the horizon again, however, has the sector seen enough of a bumper season to be secure through the cold, dark, stormy winter days ahead? Initial data reports suggest not, with spending on national UK tourism down 50% in August 2020 versus August 2019, hotel spending down 63% and even self-catering down 8%, while yesterday’s limit to six people meeting will badly impact tourism businesses dependent on larger gatherings.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

Unfortunately, we do not have much time, but I will say this quickly. The council area I represent as the constituency MP is Ards and North Down, and the key core of the economic drive of that council is tourism, which is so important. Does the hon. Lady agree that where such councils have responsibility for the economic drive—and tourism is up there—those councils need help?

[Selaine Saxby]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for that intervention.

The pandemic has indeed shone a light into many of our economic sectors, highlighting the interconnectivity of so many activities. Indeed, the plight of the aviation sector—the subject of our previous debate—is inextricably linked to the overseas visitors who are most notable by their absence this summer. We need no statistics to know that for many of us here, it is far easier to get across Westminster Bridge now, without having to navigate through crowds of tourists. Overseas visitors normally spend in excess of £28 billion each year visiting our fantastic tourist destinations—more than our normal domestic tourism expenditure. That should start alarm bells ringing about the current situation in our tourism sector.

In Devon, we see over 35 million visitors a year; 11% of the population across the entire county are employed in tourism, and the proportion is much higher in some Devonian constituencies such as mine. Devon alone estimates its tourism turnover to be down by £1.3 billion this year; nationally, the estimate is over £68 billion. I remember with alarming clarity, as we went into lockdown, despite my self-appointed role as the one-woman tourist board for North Devon in Westminster, calling for my tourism businesses to close their doors. Over 80% of tourism businesses closed, versus 24% of businesses overall; 75% of tourism employees have been furloughed, versus 27% of the working population. The sector was late to reopen, of course, and in many cases has not been able to open even to 50%.

Many sectors have had a difficult summer, and focusing on tourism in this debate is not to belittle the difficult experiences of others. Tourism has seen something of a resurgence, and the sun has come out this summer for some in the industry, much helped by the eat out to help out scheme. Self-catering and holiday parks have reported some great results, and forward bookings look robust. However, as I keep reminding people, winter really does not start until January in Devon. A stormy day at the seaside is worth travelling for, in its own way. I recall with great affection, as a child with my father, getting a soaking at high tide from a huge rogue wave, and I have enjoyed watching a few roar across the Atlantic coast outside my window, even during this summer recess.

Positivity is something we can bring to this debate, and I thank colleagues in all parts of the House who have visited my North Devon constituency this summer. We all have a role to play in boosting our tourist economies by encouraging visitors to come and see what many may have forgotten a British holiday has to offer. After being cooped up for months, the pandemic has reminded many of us of the benefits of wide open spaces, and our beaches and moors have seen huge influxes of visitors; our city and town centres, however, have not. Indoor attractions continue to struggle to approach break-even with social distancing, not to mention the plight of the coach industry, conference and exhibition venues, tour operators, airlines and, unfortunately, many more businesses.

The tourism industry was in good shape before the pandemic, with annual growth over the past five years exceeding 4%; however, it remained plagued by low productivity, with a transient temporary workforce. Because of the nature of those working in it—from young people working a summer job to migrants trying to make ends meet—high staff turnover has hampered the growth of the sector. Hopefully, initiatives such as T-levels and apprenticeships will help more young people to see tourism as a career option and not just a summer job.

The cut in VAT will enable more small independent tourist businesses to stay open into the winter. Many in the industry were campaigning for a VAT cut long before the pandemic, to encourage coastal communities to extend their tourism season rather than close their doors for the winter. Perhaps that VAT remaining in place longer is what we need to help the industry to respond and rebuild.

[Bob Seely (Isle of Wight) (Con)]

I know that the Minister—an excellent Minister—is listening carefully. I think that we can all agree that the longer the 5% VAT reduction is kept in place, the more we can sustain and develop our tourism economies as we go into the years ahead.

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[Selaine Saxby]

I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention. We need to agree what we want the tourism sector to look like in the future, but we must also ensure that it receives the support it needs to still be there when the pandemic is behind us.

The economic hit of the pandemic has further underlined the need to level up our regions. The productivity and attractiveness of beautiful coastal resorts, which we have in abundance in North Devon, are hampered by a lack of infrastructure, particularly broadband. Coastal communities were hit hard at the start of the pandemic with increased unemployment. Of the 20 towns with the highest increase in unemployment from March to April this year, eight are on the south-west peninsula and 18 are coastal communities. But other opportunities open up far more quickly in regions with many other lines of economic activity and more diverse local economies. The deprivation of our coastal communities is well documented, and the hit their tourism industries have taken will only make the situation worse. When we look to level up, I hope we can work to understand how our coastal communities, north and south, operate, and ensure investment will secure long-lasting improvements in opportunity for our young people.

[Kevin Hollinrake (Thirsk and Malton) (Con)]

We also have lovely coastal communities in north Yorkshire, particularly in the shape of Filey. My hon. Friend talks about postponing the reintroduction of VAT. I absolutely support that, particularly as it will coincide, if it is reintroduced, with the repayment of other payments to HMRC and the payment of rates that restart. It would really help cash-flow pressures if it were delayed.

[Selaine Saxby]

Indeed. It is a far more complex issue than me standing here today and asking for more blanket support for the tourism industry.

Destination management organisations and industry bodies are working tirelessly in the background and are well placed to represent the sector. We need our DMOs to be more robust, with a sustainable funding mechanism. We need a clearer strategy and we need those long talked of tourism zones to become a reality. As we leave the EU, we must also look at reducing red tape, with the removal of travel package regulations, for example.

Some of the tourism sector may have been slowly eased off life support this August, but it is not ready to be discharged just yet, as I have illustrated. I hope the ingenuity and creativity displayed by the Treasury and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to date will be replicated in the coming months to give the tourism industry the leg up it so desperately needs to ensure we can welcome international visitors back, as well as those of us visiting parts of the UK to help out in the coming months.

[Greg Clark (Tunbridge Wells) (Con)]

rose—

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[Selaine Saxby]

I thank the Minister for those encouraging words. I look forward to working with him and his team, who have been fantastic throughout the pandemic, to nurture the green shoots of recovery in our vital tourism sector.

I thank the Backbench Business Committee for enabling this debate to take place, and all the right hon. and hon. Members who contributed. I also thank for their support those hon. Members who were unable to come into the Chamber this afternoon. On behalf of the tourism sector, I thank all the participants. As the one-woman tourist board for North Devon, I look forward to welcoming everyone to the beaches as the winter progresses.

Question put and agreed to.

Resolved,

That this House has considered support for the tourism industry after the covid-19 lockdown.