“When it comes to winning work for our major export businesses, David Cameron and his ministerial troops are regularly absent without leave,” according to Excel London Chief Executive Kevin Murphy.
Murphy challenged Cameron to walk the talk, pointing out in London newspaper City AM this week that the PM had said he believed in “leading from the front in the global battle to win jobs and contracts”.
“Tourism, and that includes business tourism, is a vital export business and brought £125bn into the UK last year,” said Murphy. “The business of bringing people to Britain to meet, trade and relax creates more jobs and contributes more to the economy than agriculture. So it is time tourism gained the attention and recognition that agriculture has had for decades.”
The Excel Chief Executive added that getting ministerial support for an event or a proposal was “like pulling teeth”.
“Excel London recently secured a major medical conference, worth £130m to the UK economy, but we’ll struggle to persuade a minister to poke his head round the door when our guests arrive,” Murphy added.
“We have a great city in London which we sell to the world as a vibrant cosmopolitan venue for meeting, working and investing. But colleagues putting together a bid for an international conference will have to beg for a junior ministerial aide to type out a supportive quote or get their boss to turn up for a five minute appearance at a launch. “In Paris, ministers host gala receptions at the Louvre, fast track visitors through immigration control at the airport and lay on dedicated transport to whisk people to their venues,” he noted.
Read the full text of Kevin Murphy’s article on our CN Blog.
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