Lecture #1
The structure and role of the
government and public sector in
tourism
Plan & objectives:
• understand the part played by local, regional
and central governments and their agencies
in the planning and promotion of tourism in
a country
• define the term ‘social tourism’ and
understand its significance for disadvantaged
populations
• explain how governments and local
authorities in Britain and elsewhere supervise
and exercise control over tourism
• appreciate the organization of public-sector
tourism in RT and Britain.
Tourism often plays an important part
in a nation’s economy by providing
opportunities for employment, contributing
to the balance of payments and stimulating
economic growth.
Countries that experience an influx of
large numbers of tourists, however, also
suffer the environmental and social
consequences of mass tourism, unless care is
taken to plan for and control the flow of
tourists.
Types of economic systems
• At one end of the scale, centrally planned
economies may choose to exercise
virtually complete control, from
policymaking and planning to the
building and operating of tourist
facilities, the organization of tourist
movements and the promotion of
tourism at home and abroad.
• Most other nations have mixed
economies, in which public and private
sectors coexist and collaborate in the
development of tourism within their
borders; only the balance of public
versus private involvement will vary.
•
C. Humphreys, author’s own research based on ministry of tourism websites, 2011
 All
countries
require
reliable
supporting infrastructure in order to
encourage tourism in the first place,
which will inevitably involve local and
central government.
 Adequate public services, roads,
railways, and airports must all be in place
before the private sector will be interested
in investing in the equally necessary
superstructure of hotels, restaurants,
entertainment, attractions and other
facilities that will bring in the tourists.
We can sum up by saying that a national
government’s role in tourism can be manifested in the
following ways:
• in the planning and facilitating of tourism,
including the provision of financial and other aid
• in the supervision and control of the component
sectors of the tourism industry
• in direct ownership and operation of components
of the industry
• in the promotion of the nation and its tourist
products to home and overseas markets
• in supporting key tourism interests in a time of
financial crisis.
Planning and facilitating tourism
Any country in which tourism plays a
prominent role in national income and
employment can expect its government to
devise policies and plans for the
development of tourism. This will include
generating guidelines and objectives for
the growth and management of tourism,
both in the short and long term, and
devising strategies designed to achieve
those objectives.
Government control over entry
• Accessibility is a key factor in the
development of tourism. It relies on
both adequate transport and the absence
of any political barriers to travel. If visas
are required for entry to a country, this
will discourage incoming tourism.
• The cost of obtaining visas as well as the
complexity
of
applications
can
encourage travellers to choose to travel
to countries that do not require visas.
Taxation policy
• Government policies on taxation can
impact on tourism, whether the taxes are
applied directly to tourists (such as an
entry or exit tax), the industry (such as
on hotel accommodation) or indirectly
(such as VAT or sales taxes, which can
discourage shopping and benefit
countries with lower taxes). It may even
encourage day trips across borders to
shop in areas where taxes are lower.
The principal responsibilities of country and district
authorities that bear on tourism are as follows:
• provision of leisure facilities for tourists (such as
conference centers) and residents (theatres,
parks, sports centers, museums and so on)
• planning (under country planning policies) –
note that district councils
• produce local plans to fit the broad strategy of
the county councils structure plans and
• those plans are certified by the county councils
• powers to control development and land use
• provision of visitor services (usually in
conjunction with tourist bodies)
• parking for coaches and cars
• production of statistics on tourism, for use by
the regional tourist boards
• marketing the area
• upkeep of historic buildings
• public health, including food hygiene and safety
issues, as well as litter disposal and the provision
of public toilet facilities.
Social tourism
• includes the provision of holidays for
socially or financially excluded
families, people with disabilities and
their carers.