Asked by: Tobias Ellwood (Conservative - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department is providing funding to Bournemouth Tourism Centre.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The Bournemouth Tourist Information Centre forms part of the Destination Management Organisation (DMO) for Bournemouth. Bournemouth engages with the DCMS’s arms-length body and the national tourist board, VisitEngland.
DMO funding varies greatly but generally they receive their funding from or a combination of local authority and private sector funding and membership fees.
During the pandemic, VisitEngland ran the Destination Management Resilience Fund. Funding from this was awarded to Bournemouth through their Coastal Business Improvement District, with the aim of alleviating the financial pressure many DMOs in all regions of England were facing.
Asked by: Tobias Ellwood (Conservative - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has plans to increase tourism in Bournemouth East constituency.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
As set out in the government’s Tourism Recovery Plan, we are committed to supporting the tourism industry’s return to pre-pandemic levels across England including Bournemouth East and other coastal destinations.
DCMS’s arms-length body and the national tourist board, VisitBritain, promotes Bournemouth and other coastal destinations on their websites and social media.
VisitBritain works with Bournemouth’s Destination Management Organisation who attend their best practice calls and have engaged in discussions related to marketing activity. Bournemouth engaged with VisitBritain’s Escape the Everyday campaign to create dedicated content and itineraries. VisitBritain has also supported specific initiatives, such as the Beach Check App, which was aligned to responsible travel.
Asked by: Tobias Ellwood (Conservative - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, to make a statement about the department's relationship with the War Grave's Commission.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston
The Department does not currently have a direct relationship with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, however Historic England and the Commission have recently published a Joint Policy Statement that establishes a shared understanding of how the Commission cares for and manages memorials in cemeteries and churchyards to servicemen and women who have lost their lives in service for this country. The statement also establishes a common understanding of the Commission’s on-going responsibilities towards this aspect of our heritage.