VisitBritain, the national tourism agency, has updated its structure and staffing in an attempt to take full advantage of the opportunities offered in the coming years.

According to the organisation, it wants to be in the “best shape to maximise the benefits offered to the visitor economy the proposed joint launch of the 2012 tourism strategy” in the summer.

The individual brands of Britain (VisitScotland, Visit Wales and Enjoy England) have led on marketing Britain in Ireland for a number of years, with VisitBritain providing agency support services.

These brands are now deemed sufficiently independent for VisitBritain to withdraw its support in Ireland. The VisitBritain office in Ireland will close at the end of October.

The agency also announced that it considers the development of long-term commercial and marketing partnerships with non-tourism partners central to it’s marketing opportunities around the 2012 Games. Over the coming months, a Brand Partnerships Unit will set up an industry-based London 2012 Marketing Consultation Group, developing a celebrity endorsement programme across all sectors and developing plans for VisitBritain’s presence at the Beijing Olympics next year.

Tom Wright, Chief Executive of VisitBritain said: “These proposals will enable us to take advantage of the opportunities ahead and show a continued drive for the most effective leverage of our marketing efforts.

“We want to extend our reach overseas to enable us to deliver on our core mission of building the value of tourism in Britain. We can see enormous opportunities for the promotion of Britain overseas around the 2012 Games and in reaching the faster growing markets of Asia and Eastern Europe.“