Agenda item

            The Committee was reminded that the Department for the Economy (DfE) had opened consultation on its Draft Tourism Strategy for Northern Ireland on the 6th November which would close on the 12th January, 2024.

            The Director of Economic Development explained that the draft Tourism Strategy for Northern Ireland was a 10 year plan that set out DfE’s vision and mission for the growth of the tourism sector in Northern Ireland over the next decade. It sought to help position the region internationally as an attractive place to visit, making visitors feel welcome while at the same time helping to make the lives better of all of our citizens. It sought to deliver on the objectives of 10x by generating economic growth that was sustainable, inclusive and innovative.

            He advised that, since the publication of the 10x strategy, the Department had been working to consider how the practical implementation of overarching objectives set out in the 10X Economic Vision was to be achieved. It has issued a number of related documents such as the Skills Strategy (Skills for a 10X Economy) and had been working on appropriate metrics to track progress. He informed the Committee that the Tourism Strategy was a continuation of this delivery and remained aligned to the proposal of DfE investment to be aligned with activity that supported the 10x ambition.

            He highlighted that the draft Tourism Strategy identified the key challenges and opportunities for growth and was premised on five themes and sought to strive for a new and ambitious growth trajectory that was:

·        Innovative and uses our creative skills;

·        Inclusive by bringing opportunities for all;

·        Sustainable for generations;

·        Attractive to visitors and investors; and

·        Collaborative to deliver a shared vision.

He stated that the Department now requested that all interested parties consider the draft proposals for growth in the tourism sector and saw this as an opportunity to help shape the final strategy and next steps.

            The Director of Economic Development advised that a summary of the five questions posed and draft responses to each of these had been collated and were attached in Appendix 1 for the Committee to review and confirm their agreement for submission to DfE, subject to any other matters that they wished to incorporate.

            He explained that, from the perspective of the Council, the fact that the regional government  department with responsibility for economic growth had identified the role that Tourism plays  as an economic driver that could be delivered for visitors and citizens alike was welcome. As a result, the tone of the draft response was to recognise and support the need for an innovative and collaborative tourism strategy and sector. However, the response also suggested that there was a more effective mechanism for achieving this, namely, to utilise the data, insights and structures that already existed at local level and to identify greater opportunities for collaborative working that took cognisance of cross cutting objectives and shared resources, that focused efforts and facilitated effective delivery.

During discussion, one Member highlighted the importance of Neighbourhood Tourism and suggested it’s inclusion in the response to align with the Council’s strategy. 

The Committee noted the contents of report and agreed the draft response to the consultation as set out in Appendix 1, with the additional request to emphasis neighbourhood tourism.