Outgoing UKinbound chief executive Stephen Dowd has defended comments made by the organisation’s chair, Philip Green, which led tourism minister Margaret Hodge to walk out of a cocktail reception on the House of Commons terrace.
Tensions arose at the meeting last week after Green reportedly told Hodge that the government was ignoring inbound tourism and said that foreign tourists were even being driven away by “high taxes disguised as green initiatives, ridiculous red tape and a schizophrenic approach to air travel”.
Hodge, after being heckled and booed during her speech, said she objected to being lectured and that British hotels were overpriced and that visitor attractions offered poor service. She left immediately afterwards.
There have since been calls for Green’s resignation. Lord Pendry -– the chair of the All Party Tourism Group, whose secretary Janet Anderson hosted the reception – initially offered his own resignation, but has agreed to reflect on his decision. In the meantime he has called Green’s comments a personal attack on Hodge and has suggested that he “reconsider his position”.
However, Stephen Dowd, who will step down as chief executive in August, defended Green.
“UKinbound members expect their association to robustly represent their views on political issues of importance to them,” he said. “The speech given by Philip Green at our biennial House of Commons reception, drew attention to nothing which has not been discussed before with the minister and other government departments, so we were surprised by her response.
“The speech was critical of some government policies – such as high taxes, particularly air passenger duty, as well as the cost and arduous application process for biometric visas, which now includes an English-only application form – but it did not criticise DCMS directly and was certainly not a personal attack on Margaret Hodge.
“Indeed, it was our intention to seek the help of the minister in removing or reducing some of the barriers put in place by other government departments in recent years, and we ask this not just for our members’ businesses but for the benefit of the UK economy by reducing the tourism trade deficit.”
Photograph: Stephen Dowd
