Tourism Northern Ireland CEO John McGrillen explained on Friday the key points of the country's Tourism Recovery Action Plan that has been launched by his organization in partnership with the NI Department of the Economy:
- Mr. McGrillen said he is hopeful that NI tourism will have recovered to 80% of 2019 levels by the end of 2022, and recovered fully by the end of 2024.
- The Tourism Recovery Steering Group headed by former Economy Minister Diane Dodds has produced an Action Plan with several themes:
- Business Continuity including a KickStart program to help businesses restructure and become more productive, while maintaining and enhancing marketing; also support of councils to enhance the visitor experience, with focus on food and drink
- Creating Consumer Confidence with continued rollout of the "We're Good to Go" charter mark demonstrating commitment to COVID-19 safety guidelines
- Stimulating Consumer Demand by supporting the efforts of Tourism NI and Tourism Ireland, initially in the domestic, Great Britain and Republic of Ireland markets
- Safeguarding Connectivity including a £4.5million initiative to support air connectivity between NI and Great Britain, and lobbying for a suspension of short-haul APD
- Enhancing the Competitiveness of the Region supporting investment in the sustainability of natural assets, and major investment in tourism infrastructure
- Enhancing the Capability of Businesses supporting the adoption of digital technologies to improve business productivity and enhance use of digital marketing platforms
- Enhancing the Skills of the Workforce by working with the Department of Communities via the JobStart Program to create new jobs, match prospective young employees to suitable jobs, and support career paths in the Hospitality and Tourism Skills network
- Creating a Supportive Policy Environment - the development of a new tourism strategy with a focus on delivering sustainable economic, social and environmental outcomes to ensure NI's reputation as a world-class destination
