A NEW recovery group made up of more than thirty businesses has been launched to drive the recovery of Scotland’s hospitality and tourism sector.
Chaired by tourism secretary Fergus Ewing and business minister Jamie Hepburn, the Scottish Tourism Recovery Taskforce (STRT) will provide “strategic advice” on how businesses can recover from the impact of COVID-19 by developing a domestic marketing campaign to promote staycations; reviewing access to funding support; evaluating the investment and ownership models of larger hotels chains and businesses; considering training and skills development for staff; commissioning early restart and recovery plans for the event sector; and communicating the benefits of tourism and hospitality for rural and local communities.
Ewing said: “Scotland’s tourism and hospitality sector has been hit hard by this pandemic and we do not underestimate the crisis this has created. The Scottish Government has been doing everything in its power to support the sector through the challenges it faces.
“We’re continuing to listen to industry and exploring how we can help. That job is not yet finished and we are looking at what further support can be made available to tourism and hospitality businesses.
“Today’s meeting of the STRT is a key milestone in the recovery of tourism and hospitality in Scotland. A range of organisations from across this diverse sector will come together to share ideas and expertise on how we can overcome the challenges COVID-19 continues to present.”
The group aims to publish a recovery report by the end of September.
