May we live in less interesting times? Changing public sector support for tourism in England during the sovereign debt crisis

This Regional Spotlight focuses on recent changes in public sector support for tourism in England since the Coalition Government was elected in 2010. It focuses on some of the early consequences of stripping away the long-established regional layer of tourism administration and its replacement with more flexible sub-regional arrangements of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) and Destination Management Organisations (DMOs). Policy extols the importance of reaping the rewards of the 2012 Olympics, but the recent changes in tourism administration challenge this by creating great uncertainty and by putting responsibility for delivery in the hands of multiple quasi-independent, non-government bodies.

► Examines radical change in public sector support for tourism since 2010.
► Considers implications of abandoning long-standing regional scale in favour of localism.
► Reforms intended to boost competitiveness and performance of sector in England.
► Uncertain future ahead because public sector budgets cut as part of austerity plan.