VisitBritain, the tourism body that markets the UK overseas, has announced up to 55 redundancies.

The cuts represent more than 11% of the organisation’s workforce of 482.

Don Foster MP, Liberal Democrat Shadow Culture, Media and Sport Secretary, attacked the decision.

Foster said: "It is disastrous for the organisation responsible for marketing Britain to the rest of the world to be put in this position due to a lack of Government support."

"If the Government is serious about making money from the Olympics then they should be championing British tourism rather than undermining it through real term cuts," he said.

Labour’s decision to reduce new VisitBritain chairman Christopher Rodrigues’s working week from eight to six days a month on adoption of his role last December has been criticised as a sign of neglect, also.

Rumours persist, as reported on Kitchen Rat, that Labour ultimately intends to kill off VisitBritain entirely in favour of a series of national tourist boards following the devolution model but retaining VisitLondon.

The Tourism Alliance has previously published figures showing VisitBritain’s overseas marketing budget of £35.5m has remained static for the past decade despite tourism benefiting the UK economy by £1b a year.

VisitBritain website >>

VisitBritain to promote British countryside >>

Labour has ignored tourism industry, say Conservatives >>

New VisitBritain role shows signs of neglect >>
 
International tourists to the UK hits all time high >>

Visit Britain picks up trio of awards >>

Read more on the London Olympics here >>

By Chris Druce

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