POLICY COMMISSION MEETING

Meeting	Policy Commission for Economy, Tourism, Regeneration and Transport
Ref	E.PC.08/02/06
Date	08 February 2006
Time	18.00 hours
Place	Committee Room 1, County Hall, Newport
Purpose of meeting	Formal Public Meeting
Attendance	Commission	Cllrs George Brown (Commissioner), Ivan Bulwer, Jonathan Fitzgerald-Bond, Charles Hancock, John Hobart, Lora Peacey-Wilcox
	Cabinet	Cllr Ian Ward, Cabinet Member for Environment, Transport and Planning
	Cabinet Secretariat	Cllr David Pugh, Cllr Alan Wells
	Other Councillors	Cllr Mike Cunningham Cllr Andy Sutton Cllr Anne Bishop
	Officers	Ms April West, O&S Team Ms Louise Biggs, O&S Team
	Stake holders	Mr Martin Potter Mr David Shirley Mr Kevin Daniells
	Apologies	Cllr Henry Adams
Agenda Items
1. To agree the notes of the previous meeting	1.1 The notes of the meeting held on 11 January 2006 were agreed with one amendment: 1.2 Point 4.3 to be changed to reflect the fact that the figures were an estimation rather than a fact.
2. To invite Members to declare any interest they might have in the matters on the agenda	2.1 Cllr Peacey-Wilcox declared an interest as she had been approached to advertise with Mr Potter’s company.
3. To receive a presentation on the Value for Money (VFM)Tourism project from Mr David Shirley - Visitors Attractions Associations (VAA)	Mr Shirley put forward the following views: 3.1 The aim of the VAA is to reduce the costs to tourism-related businesses on the island and to increase the number of visitors. 3.2 The organisation makes a surplus each year and 99% of the money generated is spent on services for island tourist businesses. 3.3 Since the tourism service was brought back into the remit of the Council, expenditure on services has increased but there has been a decline in visitor numbers. This can be seen as a reduction in the Value for Money. 3.4 The way forward for tourism would be for services to be provided by an arms-length organisation. This body could run tourism services funded by a subsidy from the Council and liability would rest with the Council 3.5 Eight staff members would be the optimum number required to work for this arms-length body. 3.6 There are currently problems around communication within the Council’s tourism service. 3.7 The Isle of Wight needs to be marketed as one entity and requires a memorable slogan and a strong selling point. For example, the Island has a large amount of attraction within a small area and could therefore be marketed as, ‘The worlds’ largest theme Park’. 3.8 Marketing of the Isle of Wight requires a flexible approach. Over the first two years the following should be undertaken: i. Marketing the Island should involve the production of DVD showing the Island’s attractions, scenery and sports facilities. This could be distributed with local newspapers, one area at a time, with the choice of areas identified from Visitors books. This would be cheap and ensure that the demand did not outstrip supply of accommodation. ii. The Island’s profile needs to be raised in established guidebooks and media articles in order to compete with rivalling destinations in the UK. Advertising in specialist magazines, such as Saga, could be relatively inexpensive methods of marketing. iii. Market the island in relation to its proximity to Portsmouth, as demand for accommodation in Portsmouth frequently exceeds supply. iv. The two most important publications are currently the Pocket guide and the main Accommodation Guide. Producing these on a Compact Disc would be more cost effective. v. The internet should be used to market Island holidays. A campaign is needed to encourage island tourist businesses to make fuller use of the internet. 3.9 Key to any new set-up will be communication between the tourist service and business and communication with the outside world through advertising. 3.10 Focus for the industry should come from commercial rather than political considerations. 3.11 The first impression that visitors have the island is very important. This should be of a clean and friendly environment. 3.12 Extending the season through the winter is difficult as there are many hotter destinations offering cheaper fares. To compete, the Island needs a specific attraction for winter visitors. 3.13 Publicly-owned ferry companies would present a difficulty in terms of the fact that Wightlink use some of their profit to provide a large amount of advertising for the island. However a publicly-owned company could use profits for Island tourism promotion.
Action required	None
4. To receive evidence in the form of a presentation on the Value for Money (VFM) Tourism project from Kevin Daniells	Mr Daniells put forward the following views: 4.1 Island Tourism should be run by a ‘winning company’ which would run alongside the Tourist Board and be steered by an Isle of Wight Council Tourism Committee. This company should have: tested methods of promotion, industry experience, be well-lead and have a Quality Standard (ISOO 9000). 4.2 This winning company can be self-funding, without a need for a subsidy from the Council. The only funding required would be for the administrative costs of the Tourist Committee 4.3 Advertising is not as competitive as it could be - 4.4 Communication from the Council to the tourist industry could be improved. Meetings should be held on a quarterly basis for all organisations involved within the tourism industry. 4.5 A one-stop shop is needed for tourism on the island, with an overall brand image and name. 4.6 There is a lack of co-ordination between event organisers – often, several events are held on the same day. 4.7 The internet is frequently the first port of call for people researching holiday destinations. Therefore a stronger web-package is required for marketing the island. 4.8 A national branding campaign is required, possibly similar to www.visitwales.com or www.visitscotland.com 4.9 Tourism Information centres could be outsourced, e.g. to Southern Vectis, and opening hours extended. 4.10 The Tourist Board must be retained to liaise with Tourism South East and the council, co-ordinate events on-Island, promote the Island at tourism exhibitions, monitor statistics relating to tourism, continue the scheme for grading businesses and distribute leaflets for Island business. 4.11 The existing 26 staff Members within the Council’s Tourism service should be reduced to 6 full time staff Members. 4.12 Duplication within three publications produced by Red Funnel, isleofwight.com and Isle of Wight Tourism needs to be cut down in order to use resources more effectively. Any guide to tourist attraction should be free – information bringing people to the island should not be charged for. 4.13 Calculating potential savings for the Council from a new tourist-service arrangement is impossible to calculate without all information on current employee structure and accounting information. 4.14 A publicly-owned ferry company for the Island would not be a realistic option. 4.15 Resources pooled from island tourist business, including the ferry companies, should be used to fund tourism-promotion for the island as a whole. 4.16 To attract visitors outside the normal season, the island needs to be marketed as a whole package and include walking and cycling holidays. Although it would be hard to extend the season indefinitely.
Action Required	None
To receive evidence in the form of a presentation on the Value for Money (VFM) Tourism project from Mr Martin Potter	Mr Potter put forward the following views: 5.1 Any organisation running tourism service on the Island need to be positive and passionate about it and then the money will follow. 5.2 The Isle of Wight Council’s tourism service does a good job, but the task is a difficult one. Businesses on the island also need a shake-up and require a different approach, e.g. the tourist season needs to be expanded into the winter months. 5.3 The www.visitwales.com adverts would be too expensive for the island. Television advertising is not a good option for the island. 5.4 A publicly-owned ferry company for the Island would be a good idea. 5.5 Good restaurant and upmarket hotels would help to attract visitors past the usual tourist season.
Action required	None