Promoting Britain abroad

Culture, Media and Sport Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 8 Nov 2021 Closed: 2 Feb 2023 Parliament page
Tourism is an economic, cultural and social asset. Although it is a devolved matter—England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and London all have independent tourism bodies—all five organisations work closely with VisitBritain, the national tourism agency. VisitBritain is responsible for marketing Britain worldwide and developing Britain’s visitor economy. In 2019, inbound … Read more
14 Recommendations
12 Conclusions
1 Report
5 Oral sessions
5 Events
Activity timeline 12 events
2 Feb
2023
Report published
24 Oct
2022
Report published
5 Jul
2022
Oral evidence
5 Jul
2022
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House
21 Jun
2022
Oral evidence
21 Jun
2022
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House
29 Mar
2022
Oral evidence
29 Mar
2022
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House
8 Mar
2022
Oral evidence
8 Mar
2022
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House
22 Feb
2022
Oral evidence
22 Feb
2022
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Knebworth House, Hertfordshire
Oral evidence sessions 5 sessions
5 Jul 2022
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Ben Dean · Department for Culture, Media and Sport Chris Philp MP · Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Nigel Huddleston MP · HM Treasury
21 Jun 2022
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Nick de Bois CBE · VisitEngland Advisory Board Patricia Yates · VisitBritain/VisitEngland
29 Mar 2022
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Allen Simpson · London and Partners Geoff Taylor · BPI Gills Haigh · Cumbria Tourism Jamie Njoku-Goodwin · UK Music Jessica Koravos · Really Useful Group Kash Bennett · National Theatre Nick Brooks-Sykes · Marketing Manchester
8 Mar 2022
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Joss Croft · UKinbound Kate Nicholls OBE · UKHospitality Kurt Janson · Tourism Alliance Paul Barnes · Association of International Retail Ross Baker · Heathrow
22 Feb 2022
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Bernard Donoghue · Association of Leading Visitor Attractions Caroline Cooper Charles · Screen Yorkshire Martha Lytton-Cobbold · Historic Houses Ralph Lee · BBC Studios Productions
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Second Report - Promoting Britain abroad HC 156 24 Oct 2022 26 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
7 results
Clear
6 Conclusion Acknowledged
Second Report - Promoting Britain …
We find it astonishing that the Minister and the Treasury were unable to tell us...
We find it astonishing that the Minister and the Treasury were unable to tell us what assessment was made of the impact on the number of tourists coming here, not just in terms of raw visitor numbers but also the … Read more
Government Response
The government says it consulted widely on the change and assessed evidence, balancing fiscal and economic impacts. DCMS will consider the impact of future decisions affecting the inbound tourism sector, noting both direct and indirect consequences of a policy.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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8 Recommendation Acknowledged
Second Report - Promoting Britain …
In all future decisions affecting the inbound tourism sector, the Government should conduct impact assessments...
In all future decisions affecting the inbound tourism sector, the Government should conduct impact assessments not only of the direct consequences of a policy but of the indirect ones as well.
Government Response
The government states it will endeavour to consider the impact of future decisions affecting the inbound tourism sector, noting both direct and indirect consequences of a policy, but references the OBR assessment of the VAT Retail Export Scheme and its wider context.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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9 Conclusion Acknowledged
Second Report - Promoting Britain …
The decision to ban ID cards is having a crippling effect on those businesses which...
The decision to ban ID cards is having a crippling effect on those businesses which rely on inbound visits from children and young people, businesses which are often based in seaside resorts. Any potential risk to security needs to be … Read more
Government Response
The government acknowledges concerns around the repeal of EU ID cards and will review mitigations through the Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG), but has no plans to change its approach to under 18s travelling as part of an organised group.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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10 Recommendation Acknowledged
Second Report - Promoting Britain …
We recommend that the Government should allow children and young people under the age of...
We recommend that the Government should allow children and young people under the age of 18, travelling as part of a supervised educational and/or cultural group visit, to enter the UK on a single group ID card.
Government Response
The Government describes a more streamlined and agile approach to AMC spend control and will continue to evaluate the case for a rise in VisitBritain's PASS approval threshold but does not directly address the recommendation.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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12 Recommendation Acknowledged
Second Report - Promoting Britain …
We recommend that the Government should review entry requirements for visitors with a view to...
We recommend that the Government should review entry requirements for visitors with a view to ensuring they match or surpass those of our competitors. It should publish the outcome of its review within 12 months.
Government Response
The Government describes existing structures (IMG and Tourism Industry Council) for discussing and addressing issues related to the visitor economy, but doesn't specifically commit to reviewing entry requirements or publishing the outcome.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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21 Conclusion Acknowledged
Second Report - Promoting Britain …
We are deeply concerned about how long VisitBritain must wait for confirmation of its Comprehensive...
We are deeply concerned about how long VisitBritain must wait for confirmation of its Comprehensive Spending Review funding and, particularly, its marketing spend approval. This year’s delays in the Professional Assurance approval process meant VisitBritain was unable to undertake critical … Read more
Government Response
The government acknowledges concerns about delays in VisitBritain's marketing spend approval and states that as part of wider reforms of Cabinet Office controls, the AMC spend control will adopt a more streamlined and agile approach.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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22 Recommendation Acknowledged
Second Report - Promoting Britain …
We recommend that within the next three months the Government should negotiate with VisitBritain a...
We recommend that within the next three months the Government should negotiate with VisitBritain a rise in its PASS approval threshold.
Government Response
The government acknowledges the recommendation and states it will continue to evaluate the case for a rise in VisitBritain’s PASS approval threshold as part of future operational planning. They cite ongoing reforms to advertising, marketing, and communication (AMC) spending controls.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
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Government Response AI assessment · 26 of 14 classified
Accepted 10
Accepted in Part 3
Acknowledged 7
Not Addressed 1
Rejected 5
Total 14 recs + 12 conclusions