Importance of tourism to NI's hospitality industry examined
20 May 2019
The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee continues its inquiry into the social and economic impact of tourism in Northern Ireland, hearing from representatives of tourism industries about the growth of screen tourism and Troubles-related tourism.
- Watch Parliament TV: Tourism in Northern Ireland
- Inquiry: Tourism in Northern Ireland
- Northern Ireland Affairs Committee
Witnesses
Wednesday 22 May in Committee Room 15, Palace of Westminster
At 9.30am
- Janice Gault, Chief Executive, Northern Ireland Hotels Federation
- Colin Neill, Chief Executive, Hospitality Ulster
- Eimear Flanagan, Steering Group Member, Tour Guides Northern Ireland; and
- Dr Joanne Stuart OBE, CEO, Northern Ireland Tourism Alliance
Purpose of the session
Tourism contributes to the economy by the creation of jobs in tourism-related industries such as hospitality and tour-guiding. The Committee examines how reliant Northern Ireland's hotels and restaurants are on tourism, whether the industry has enough workers to support growing demand, and whether the Government's new immigration policy will affect the industry's ability to attract and retain workers from outside the EU.
The Committee will also hear about the impact of 'screen tourism' – the desire to visit locations used to shoot major TV shows and films such as Game of Thrones or Derry Girls – on the numbers of visitors to Northern Ireland each year. The growth of troubles-related conflict tourism over recent years, such as walking tours and taxi tours will also be discussed, particularly its effect on legacy issues.
Further information
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