COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
Brussels, 04.04.1995 
COM(95)97 final 
The role of the Union in the field of tourism 
Commission Green Paper 
CONTENTS 
INTRODUCTION 
A. ACTIONS CARRIED OUT BY THE COMMUNITY IN THE FIELD OF 
TOURISM 
I. TOURISM AND THE STAKES INVOLVED 
1. The growth of tourism 
2. The changes to which enterprises must adjust 
3. Employment in tourism 
H. THE COMMUNITY'S RESPONSE 
1. The instruments available 
2. Using these instruments to benefit tourism 
B. COMMUNITY ADDED VALUE IN THE FIELD OF TOURISM 
I. A RESPONSE TO THE OBJECTIVES SET OUT IN THE TREATY ON 
EUROPEAN UNION 
H. TOURISM CONTRIBUTES TO REINFORCING ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COHESION IN THE UNION 
ffl. TOURISM IS AN IMPORTANT AREA FOR IMPLEMENTING SUSTAINABLE 
DEVELOPMENT 
IV. TOURISM CONTRIBUTES TO PROMOTING THE EUROPEAN IDENTITY 
V. CONTRIBUTING TO THE MANAGEMENT OF STRUCTURAL AND 
TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGES AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF SMEs IN THE 
TOURIST INDUSTRY 
VI. CREATING ADDED VALUE BY A COHERENT APPROACH TO POLICIES AND 
INSTRUMENTS 
VII. TOURISM AND COMPLIANCE WITH THE PRINCIPLE OF SUBSIDIARITY 
C. POSSIBLE DEVELOPMENTS IN THE ROLE OF THE UNION AS REGARDS 
TOURISM 
I. REDUCING OR ELIMINATING SPECIFIC COMMUNITY ACTIONS? 
n. RETAINING THE CURRENT FRAMEWORK AND LEVEL OF INTERVENTION? 
HI. STRENGTHENING COMMUNITY ACTION VIA THE EXISTING TREATY? 
IV. TOWARDS A COMMUNITY TOURISM POLICY? 
ANNEXES 
INTRODUCTION 
The Treaty on European Union, signed on 7 February 1992 at Maastricht, acknowledges for 
the first time that European Community action, if it is to accomplish the tasks which it has been 
assigned, should include measures in the field of tourism, under the conditions and according 
to the timetable set out in the Treaty (Article 3t). In Declaration No l1 it also made provision 
that since tourism is a sphere referred to in Article 3t), the question of introducing a Title 
relating to it into the Treaty establishing the European Community be examined by the 
conference of representatives of the governments of the Member States which shall be 
convened in 1996 on the basis of a report which the Commission shall submit to the Council. 
This major new departure reflects a growing awareness of three factors: the economic 
importance of tourism for growth and employment in the Union, the compatibility of adherence 
to the principle of subsidiarity with the need for Community-level action in this area not within 
the Community's exclusive competence and, finally, the need to introduce a degree of 
coherence and. linkage in the three associated domains of tourism, consumer affairs and natural 
and cultural heritage. 
Such were the conclusions of the discussions which preceded revision of the Treaties, 
beginning with an informal meeting of the Tourism ministers on 29 September 1990 in Milan 
and continued during the review of contributions submitted by various Member States in 
preparation for the Intergovernmental Conference (Italy and Greece in February 1991, 
Luxembourg in June 1991, the Netherlands in November 1991) and in the European 
Parliament, most notably when it adopted its Resolution of 15 July 1991 on a Community 
policy for tourism2. However, as a result of the complex nature of the field of activity which 
the notion of tourism encompasses, the diversity of national approaches and the interaction of 
tourism with numerous other Community policies, the Treaty does not enter into the same 
degree of detail as regards specific objectives and implementation procedures for Community 
measures in the field of tourism as it does, for example, with regard to culture (Article 128) or 
consumer protection (Article 129A). 
The purpose of this Green Paper on the role of the Union in the field of tourism, which fits 
within the framework of the discussions held at the informal meeting of Tourism ministers on 
15 April 1994 in Athens, is therefore to facilitate and stimulate thought on the Union's role in 
assisting tourism, bearing in mind the report which the Commission is to submit to the Council 
by 1996 at the latest. Without prejudging the conclusions of the work in progress for the 
preparation of the intergovernmental conference in 1996, nor anticipating whether the 
Commission will submit any new proposal on tourism, the aim of the document is to open a 
wide consultation on the role of the Union in the field of tourism to all those interested in it, 
whether they be in the public or private sectors, or operate at regional, national, European or 
international level. This approach is justified by the very multidisciplinary and transversal 
nature of tourism and its Jnterlinkage with various sectors of activity, which explains why 
several policies impinge on tourism3. 
In fact, according to the European Parliament4 and the Economic and Social Committee5, in 
adopting a policy on tourism the European Union could help reveal the true interlinkage 
between the means made available to tourists and enterprises at Community, national, regional 
* See Declaration No 1 on civil protection, energy and tourism, and Article N, paragraph 2 of the Treaty on European Union. 
^ OJ C 183/78. Article 6 of the Resolution, in particular, "again calls on the Intergovernmental Conference on Political Union 
to consider immediately the incorporation expressis verbis of tourism into the Treaties as an essential flanking policy for the 
creation of Economic and Monetary Union, even if the rules governing the free movement of persons, goods, services and 
capital in the internal market also embrace tourism". 
•* The question of defining tourism, which is discussed in numerous spheres, is not taken up here. 
However, annexed to this document (Annex 1) is a report of the discussions on this subject, and the data commonly accepted 
for defining tourism are identified. 
4 EP 178.920/final of 18.1.94 and EP 185.379/final of 15.12.94. 
5 ESC/1021/94. 
3 
and local levels and improve the effectiveness of these by synchronising the various levels of 
public support in this field. 
Point 4 of the Resolution of 18 January 1994 on tourism in the approach to the year 2000, 
following Mr Cornelissen's report, "underlines that tourism should be identified as a strategic 
economic development priority, and that it should be given a specific status as an 
industry " and point 5 states that " while tourism is essential as an industry for the 
Community's economic growth, it is also an undeniable social factor, encouraging the 
recognition of diversity (of culture, topography and lifestyle) and the reduction of regional 
disparities " 
In addition, in the European Parliament Resolution adopted following the report by Mme Diez 
de Rivera, surprise is expressed in the second recital that studies of tourism, which affects 
every European citizen, should hitherto have been largely- restricted to the economic aspect, 
and the assertion is made that tourism can play an increasing role as regards the fundamental 
concept of European citizenship. Point 1 of this Resolution asserts that not only does tourism 
constitute one of the main sectors of activity in the European Union, but also, and most 
important, that it concerns all European citizens, in whose eyes it represents an inalienable 
social right, with regard to which they are becoming more and more demanding as regards 
quality. It feels that the tourist should, logically, be placed at the centre of a Community policy 
on tourism. 
In this context, the Green Paper should make it possible to: 
describe the actions currently being carried out by the Community in the field of 
tourism and the instruments it already possesses for this purpose; 
conduct a more in-depth examination of the value added brought by the 
implementation of a policy at Community level; 
present the prospects for progress in this field, bearing in mind the options which 
could be envisaged for defining the future role of the Union in the field of tourism. 
A. ACTIONS CARRIED OUT BY THE COMMUNITY IN THE FIELD OF 
TOURISM 
I. TOURISM AND THE STAKES INVOLVED 
1. The growth of tourism 
All the economic analyses show that the tourist industry, which on average accounts for 5.5% 
of GDP in the Union, and almost double that figure in some Member States, is one of the 
sectors of activity which has enjoyed steady growth over a long period of time6. 
The analyses also confirm that Europe remains the main driving force behind international 
tourism in terms of arrivals, revenue and flows to non-Community countries. Nevertheless, the 
loss of market share (approximately 11% between 1970 and 1994 in terms of arrivals and 14% 
in terms of receipts7 to the emerging destinations in Eastern Asia and the Pacific illustrates she 
capacity of these countries to respond to the requirements of the growing demand for tourism 
in a world market which is open to more competitors. However, market shares are only one 
aspect of the economic growth of tourism. On the one hand, the volume of tourist arrivals in 
Europe which seems to be continuing to increase in the medium term, must be seen in the light 
of evaluating the real or potential saturation point on the supply side. On the other hand, the 
quantitative growth of tourism demand - in absolute value or market share - is only one of the 
indicators of an increase in activity, which may be marginal in the light of trends in the 
profitability of tourist demand or in the competitiveness of tourism supply. Achieving the 
balance between quantity (particularly as regards mass tourism) and profitability (in particular 
the per capita profit expected) is basic to the future of the European tourist industry. 
Thus, conditions are favourable for further growth in the numbers of tourists, particularly at 
international level, because of the ageing populations in the industrialized countries, higher 
levels of education, more widespread paid leave and shorter working hours. These are all 
grounds for forecasting a further expansion in short-stay holidays, more frequent holidays, and 
greater access to tourism for young people and retired persons8. Also, on the one hand, the 
probability of considerable expansion in weekend tourism may form a basis for an expansion in 
local tourism, which creates jobs in segments of the market relatively shielded from 
international competition. On the other hand, increased awareness of the opportunities for 
travel, facilitated by the advent of the information society which involves more than just better 
reservation facilities using more sophisticated technology, together with improved transport 
systems and reduced prices for air travel may either have a positive effect on the supply side of 
European tourism by boosting domestic and international demand, or, on the contrary, divert 
what has hitherto been a relatively captive demand to destinations outside the Community. 
2. The changes to which enterprises must adjust 
The supply side of European tourism must adjust to the globalisation of the market and the 
increasing competitiveness of new destinations, as well as to increased demand for tourism, 
particularly European tourism. Some common features can be seen in the strategies already 
For a detailed analysis of recent tourist trends in Europe, see the EC publication "Tourism in Europe", DG XXIII-Eurostai, 
which is in the process of publication. Some basic indications of trends in 1994 are given in Annex 2. 
Cf. World Tourism Organisation, Tourism in 1994 - Highlights, January 1995, Madrid 
Besides these considerations, relating to demographic changes and socio-economic developments on the international scale, 
some observers consider tourism to be a typical example of the "global paradox" which will be a feature of society in the 
year 2000 and beyond. The spread of information systems and the offers of "virtual journeys" by the media will only 
increase the need for real journeys, cf. in particular John Naisbitt, "The Global Paradox", W. Marrow, 1994. On the 
increasing importance of the intangible economy, see Charles Goldfiriger, "L'utile et le futile", Édition Odile Jacob, Paris, 
1994. 
5 
employed by the main groups in the sector on two fronts, i.e. specialization in defined market 
segments, together with concentrated efforts to achieve international level, and differentiation 
between activities offered locally and internationally by developing segments which are often 
complementary. 
However, several factors determine the capacity of tourist industry enterprises to implement 
strategies for adjusting: 
the need to adapt to the administrative and legislative environment which binds all 
enterprises, and which can in some cases be accompanied by provisions specifically 
aimed at the tourist industries, in particular from the point of view of protecting the 
tourist, or caring for the environment; 
the need to respond at short notice to the direct and immediate effect on demand of 
factors external to the industry, such as weather conditions, international events and 
natural disasters, which require rapid adjustment on the supply side. This is often 
difficult, since such events, or their magnitude, cannot be foreseen; 
awareness of the obviously local nature of the market or some branches of activities, 
which may give an imperfect perception of the developments in the international demand 
for tourism. Here in particular, the trend in demand is away from its being determined 
mainly in quantitative terms (availability of supply, price), and towards qualitative factors 
(environment, services, the personal touch). The increased demand for quality is reflected 
by a move towards less impersonal service for tourists. This does not necessarily mean 
that rationalizing the supply side of the tourist industry in the direction of mass 
production, in an effort to achieve economies of scale which could mean economizing on 
staff, offers an significant advantage ia competitiveness. On the contrary, a strategy of 
adjustment can tend in such cases to break each segment of the tourism market down into 
sub-markets or small enclaves of activity, in which the competitiveness of the enterprises 
is established, in some cases in the absence of real competition; 
the advantage or disadvantage of the - often small - size of the enterprises in the sector9. 
Small businesses must cope not only with the effect of concentrations in the sector or 
general developments in international competition, such as the cost of services, but also 
with the problems of managing the business, marketing, using new technologies and 
innovation in general, access to capital to expand the shareholder-base or, again, 
difficulties in obtaining cooperation between firms or forming groups as associations or 
voluntary chains, as well as, in certain cases, changes in local competition when an 
increase in demand produces an increase in the number and range of firms involved in 
tourism, as in the case of rural tourism. 
The difficulties which may hamper the tourist industry in adjusting to the increased demand 
explain why a number of measures have been implemented aimed at creating favourable 
conditions for businesses in the tourist industry, providing for, in particular, increased 
information - including statistical information - on the tourist industry, and changes in the legal 
situation regarding enterprises, bearing in mind the completion of the internal market. 
e.g. in the hotel and restaurant industry, half of the estimated 1.3 million enterprises in the European Union in 1990 were 
made up solely of the head of the enterprise, 80% of the hotel beds available were provided by independent hotels, and 
micro-enterprises (0-9 employees) made up 96% of the enterprises in the accommodation and catering sector. These 
enterprises accounted for 57% of turnover in the sector and 63% of the estimated total labour force of 4.6 million persons. 
EC DG XXHI-Eurostat, Enterprises in Europe, 3rd report, 1994. 
3. Employment in tourism 
3.1 A significant contribution 
Approximately 9 million persons are estimated to work in the tourist industry in the 
Community, accounting for almost 6% of total employment in terms of jobs directly linked to 
tourism products and activities. In addition, the recent work of the Organization for Economic 
Cooperation and Development (OECD)10 seems to confirm the tourist industry's potential for 
contributing directly to reducing unemployment and creating new jobs via the generation of 
tourist flows and income. 
Tourism is therefore one of the ways forward to the 21st century, in line with the 
Commission's thinking set out in its White Paper on Growth, Competitiveness and Employment 
of December 1993, on which the recent European Councils have called for the rapid 
implementation of an action plan. Tourism is therefore one of the seventeen major fields where 
the prospects for expanding employment in the medium term have been perceived positively in 
the light of changes in habits, living standards and the technologies which can be used.11 
At the European Council in Essen, the Commission presented the results of this field survey, 
which analysed the nature of the many innovative local initiatives to create jobs, as well as the 
obstacles encountered and the conditions which ensured success. The common guidelines which 
emerge for the development of the local initiatives regard tourism and its players as 
protagonists in the desired changes towards a "society of initiatives"12 based on the cohesion of 
the social fabric and on the network of associated cooperation projects. The establishment, as 
called for by the Corfu and Essen European Councils, of a framework of more coherent actions 
in favour of local employment, together with the development initiatives, can also contribute 
towards exploiting the potential for creating new jobs in tourism. 
3.2 Employment in the tourist industry is linked to the specific nature of the work and the 
organization of the tourist industry 
Because of the nature of the tourist industry, which is based mainly on supplying services in 
discontinuous periods of time alternating with activity in the other economic sectors, working 
and employment conditions are very specific. They involve, for example, seasonal work, 
weekend working and long working days, with all these factors having repercussions on each 
other. In particular, the seasonal nature of the work, which means that employment is 
precarious and a factor in the instability of incomes, tends to produce a distribution of work 
throughout the year which is different from the usual pattern in the economy. 
These specific characteristics, together with the predominance of SMEs in the sector, no doubt 
explain, and in some cases are the reason for, the disproportionate employment of particular 
categories of labour in the tourist industry, i.e. between 45 and 65% of staff are females, there 
are many young people and many staff with few or no qualifications. 
These features have certain consequences. The rapid turnover or - from the employee's point 
of view - precariousness of employment can prevent people from acquiring skills and 
qualifications in certain branches of the tourist industry, at the very time when the increasing 
accent on quality requires more professional standards in the industry, and it can even lead to 
shortages of labour which hinder the expansion of employment and tourism. 
10 
H 
12 According to the analyses presented at the seminar organized by the OECD Tourism Committee on "Tourism and 
employment", (Antalya, 24-26 April 1994), the effect on employment of the growth in tourism consumption is more rapid 
than in the other sectors of the economy; see also the estimates by the WTTC published in "Travel and Tourism - Special 
Report on Employment", Brussels, 1993. 
Commission working document on "new sources of employment" due for publication. 
European Commission, Implementation of the White Paper on Growth, Competitiveness, Employment - Report V, 
"Innovations in Job Creation, Results and Prospects for Local Action". 
7 
According to experts in the field, the common factor governing the main features of 
employment in this sector is that the tourist industry is seasonal. This means that workers 
recruited into the tourist industry, like those in most seasonal activities, have few qualifications 
and receive only little training for acquiring qualifications, because of lack of time and of 
motivation. It is clear that these aspects are a key factor in managing businesses, in the brand 
image of this sector of activity and in strengthening its position in the face of competition from 
other regions of the world. 
On the other hand, the fact that employment in the tourist industry is so seasonal calls for a 
major study on employment - and, more generally, on the social aspects - since this sector can 
be used as a test ground for trying out projects based on spreading the working hours of 
seasonal or casual workers throughout the year. This would mean a fundamental rethinking of 
the breakdown of working periods, inactivity (or unemployment) and training for substantial 
proportions of the active population in Europe. Such a study naturally requires the participation 
of the social partners, in particular at Community level. 
II. THE COMMUNITY'S RESPONSE 
1. The instruments available 
On a general level, the Community has a variety of legislative instruments to accomplish its 
task, some with mandatory effect (regulations, directives, decisions), others non-binding 
(recommendations, communications, opinions). They may be more of an operational nature 
(e.g. action plans and work programmes laying down the priorities for measures) or strictly 
regulatory (laying down the rights and obligations of the parties involved). These acts may 
therefore be exhortative (proposing lines of action which the Community would like to see 
followed on a voluntary basis) or combine all these elements. In the framework of broader 
international cooperation, the Community may also accede to, negotiate or promote 
conventions and other agreements on specific topics involving other international organisations 
or third countries. Finally, for the implementation of certain tasks for which neither 
partnership nor collaboration with the private sector or the economic and social operators, nor 
even administrative decentralisation, has offered satisfactory solutions, the Community has 
decided to establish decentralised Community bodies in the case of a clearly defined field 
which do not encroach on the powers of the institutions for the Community policy concerned. 
2. Using these instruments to benefit tourism 
This panoply of instruments has already been used to develop Community measures to assist 
tourism, as the annual report on Community measures to assist tourism clearly demonstrated13. 
Direct measures 
An initial Community action plan to assist tourism (Decision 92/421/EEC of 13 July 1992 on 
the basis of Article 235 of the Treaty)14 was implemented for a duration of three years as of 1 
January 1993. The priorities set out in the Annex to the action plan have made it possible to 
carry out a series of pilot projects, particularly in the fields of rural, cultural and social 
tourism, vocational training and the environment. These projects have also provided 
opportunities for operators in the field of tourism in the different countries and regions of 
13 COM 94(74) final of 6 April 1994. 
14 OJ No L 231 of 13.8.92. 
Europe to work in partnership. The implementation of this action plan will be independently 
evaluated. 
Actions have also been carried out since 1990 under the two-year programme for developing 
Community tourism statistics15 under Article 213 of the Treaty. 
Actions forming part of the action plan implemented under Council Decision 92/241/EEC of 
13.7.92 
1. Improving knowledge of the tourist industry and ensuring greater consistency of 
Community measures 
2. Staggering of holidays 
3. Transnational measures 
4. Tourists as consumers 
5. Cultural tourism 
6. Tourism and the environment 
7. Rural tourism 
8. Social tourism 
9. Youth tourism 
10. Training 
11. Promotion in third countries 
Indirect measures 
At the forefront of these measures come the 5th Community action programme in the field of 
the environment16 and the Directives on the environment, particularly those concerning the 
assessment of the environmental impact of projects, the quality of the natural environment and 
nature conservation, which meet the objectives of the policy on the environment set out in 
Article 130r. Also in this capacity, the Community is a contracting party to International 
Conventions aimed at regions particularly affected by tourism, such as the Barcelona 
Convention on the protection of the Mediterranean and the Convention on the protection of the 
Alps. 
The actions carried out for the promotion of culture, as laid down in Article 128 of the Treaty, 
mainly deal with the protection of cultural heritage of European significance, particularly 
within the context of the "RAPHAEL" Community action programme17. 
Enterprises involved in tourism have also been able to benefit from all the measures provided 
for under Decision 93/379/EEC of 14 June 199318 on a multinational programme of 
Community measures to intensify the priority areas and ensure the continuity and consolidation 
of policy for enterprise, in particular small- and medium-sized enterprises, in the Community. 
In the field of research and development and on the basis of the principles set out in Articles 
130f and 130g, a Tourism Information Marketing project has been implemented under the third 
RTD framework programme, and several pilot and demonstration projects for electronic 
tourism information services have been carried out under the IMPACT programme; as part of 
this same programme, a field for specific research has been opened up on "technologies for 
protecting and restoring the cultural heritage in Europe". Under the 4th RTD framework 
programme19, the programme on the environment and climate, and in particular Topic 4 
15 Council Decision 90/665/EEC of 17 December 1990, OJ No L 358 of 21.12.90. 
16 See the 1st interim review, COM(94) 453 of 30.12.1994. 
17 COM(95) 110 of 29.3.1995. 
18 OJ No L 161 of 2.7.93. 
19 COM(94)68. 
9 
concerning the human dimension of environmental change, the aim of which is to improve the 
political basis and measures to support sustainable development in Europe, may make it 
possible to carry out projects of interest to tourism. 
The implementation of measures for the establishment of the internal market will create a 
favourable environment for the growth of trade likely to promote intra-Community tourism and 
encourage the emergence of a single tourist destination for tourists from outside the 
Community. An example of this is the removal of customs checks and formalities at the 
Community's internal frontiers. Certain measures related to the abolition of checks at internal 
frontiers, as provided for by Article 7a of the Treaty, now apply in some Member States, 
thanks to the entry into force of the Implementing Convention for the Schengen agreements20. 
Other measures have still to be adopted by the Member States, such as the agreement on the 
crossing of the external frontiers of the Member States by nationals of third countries. At the 
same time, the progress made towards the completion of the internal market regarding the free 
movement of workers, the right of establishment, freedom to provide services and the abolition 
of tax frontiers, which simplifies movement within the Community and the cross-border 
establishment of tourist businesses, gives substance to the idea of a transnational tourist 
industry. Such a situation, given the size of the market, is likely to increase the dynamism of 
the European tourist industry. Various Regulations have thus been adopted to simplify the 
crossing of borders, such as Regulations 3925/91 and 1832/92 on controls and formalities 
applicable to baggage. Similarly, Directives such as those on fiscal matters (Directives 
91/680/EEC or 92/12/EEC) aim to simplify purchases by tourists outside their place of 
residence, including tax-free sales. 
Another example of the stimulating effect of Community provisions on the growth and 
competitiveness of tourism is that of the completion of the internal market in transport 
services21. Moreover, the White Paper on the future development of the common transport 
policy22, which stresses the establishment of a Community framework which will ensure 
sustainable mobility, sets out a global approach which takes account of an improvement in and 
more rational use of infrastructures, increased safety for users and improved environmental 
protection. 
Tourism may also be particularly interested in the actions launched by the Community to help 
establish and develop trans-European networks in the areas of transport, telecommunications 
and energy infrastructures, as laid down in Article 129b of the Treaty. 
In applying the rules governing competition, the Commission also takes care to ensure that 
certain anti-competitive practices engaged in by undertakings or Member States, and which 
might adversely affect conditions on the tourism market and thus delay or prevent its balanced 
development, are punished. 
However, certain agreements or aid measures may be permitted when, for instance, they allow 
structural changes in the tourist industry to be speeded up or contribute to the development of 
less-developed regions. In the field of tourism, therefore, competition policy is contributing to 
the achievement of a frontier-free area and to economic and social cohesion, by opening up 
markets protected by cartels, abuses of dominant positions or state aid. 
Further to this, the second Commission three-year action plan for consumer protection23. 
On 22 December 1994, the Schengen Executive Committee decided upon the irreversible application of the Convention as of 
26 March 1995 for 7 of the 9 signatory countries (B, D, E, F, L, NL and P). Italy and Greece have not yet fulfilled all the 
preconditions. 
See the Commission report on Community Actions affecting Tourism (COM (94)74 final of 6 April 1994) for further details 
of internal market provisions that have an impact on the development of tourism. 
22 The Future Development of the Common Transport Policy (COM(92) 494 of 2.12.1992). 
23 COM(93) 378 of 28 July 1993. 
10 
which was drawn up in accordance with Article 129a, opened the way to work on distance 
selling and consumer access to justice, and the adoption of Directives on time-sharing 
(94/47/EEC) and unfair clauses in contracts (93/13/EEC). Other actions taken in this field of 
the protection of tourists as consumers include the adoption of Council Recommendations 
86/665/EEC and 86/666/EEC on standardized information and fire safety in existing hotels 
respectively, and & Directive on package travel (90/314/EEC). 
The structural funds make a major contribution to the development of tourism in the 
Community and seek to achieve the objectives of economic and social cohesion as defined 
under Article 130a. Aid is concentrated on the underdeveloped regions (Objective 1), those 
affected by the decline of industry (Objective 2) and those concerned by rural development 
(Objective 5b). These regions are defined as priority regions for the application of the 
structural funds (EAGGF-Guidance, ERDF and ESF). Tourism is included amongst the 
measures under the priority areas for development under Community support frameworks, the 
operational programmes and the unique programming documents. Actions are also taken under 
certain Community initiatives (such as LEADER, INTERREG, REGIS, etc.) to assist regional 
development within the Union. Opportunities for tourism to implement joint measures, set up 
networks and try out new action in favour of exchanges of experience, particularly in the field 
of supporting local initiatives, are also planned under the Community's ENVIREG, RECITE, 
PACTE and OUVERTURE programmes. During the period 1989-1993, the tourist industry 
received between 2% and 20% - depending on the regions and objectives concerned - of the 
Community aid available from the Structural Funds24, i.e. a total of more than 
ECU 3 thousand million for co-financing investment and infrastructure projects for tourism and 
also projects to upgrade cultural and historical resources in the less developed regions, 
improve the supply of tourist amenities and generate new activities in areas of industrial 
decline, and to provide infrastructures for the reception of tourists, protecting the environment, 
diversifying activities and promoting tourism in rural areas, particularly to supplement farmers' 
incomes. 
Important measures have also been carried out in the field of education and vocational 
training, either via the European Social Fund (Articles 123 and 125) or through the various 
programmes drawn up in response to the objectives defined in Articles 126 and 127. Decisions 
setting up the FORCE ongoing training programme and the PETRA initial training programme 
introduced a tourism component to human resources, and the transnational exchange 
programmes and pilot projects of the recently-adopted LEONARDO programme should help to 
extend the measures already undertaken at Community level in the field of training. 
B. COMMUNITY ADDED VALUE IN THE FIELD OF TOURISM 
As emphasised above, a broad range of Community measures may be implemented to assist 
tourism. By taking such measures at Community level, value is added to the measures carried 
out by national, local and professional bodies or those ensuring the representation of the 
various interests of the tourist industry, thus enabling tourist activities to contribute to the 
achievement of many Union objectives. 
I. A RESPONSE TO THE OBJECTIVES SET OUT IN THE TREATY ON 
EUROPEAN UNION 
It may be useful to recall that in the first paragraph of Article b of the Common Provisions the 
Union sets itself the objective 
24 For a more detailed presentation, see the Commission's report on Community actions affecting tourism (COM(94) 74 final of 
6 April 1994) and in the summary table in Annex 4. -
11 
- to promote economic and social progress which is balanced and sustainable, in 
particular through the creation of an area without internal frontiers, through the strengthening 
of economic and social cohesion and through the establishment of economic and monetary 
union, ultimately including a single currency in accordance with the provisions of this Treaty. 
It is on the basis of this objective that the Treaty establishing the European Community defines 
the Community's task. Establishing a common market and an economic and monetary union 
and implementing the common policies or activities referred to in Articles 3 and 3a are, 
according to Article 2 of the above treaty, intended to "promote throughout the Community a 
harmonious and balanced development of economic activities, sustainable and non-inflationary 
growth respecting the environment, a high degree of convergence of economic performance, a 
high level of employment and of social protection, the raising of the standard of living and 
quality of life, and economic and social cohesion and solidarity among Member States." 
The extension of the Community's responsibilities to tourism in Article 3t thus makes explicit 
the measures already carried out to assist tourism under the various Community policies for 
attaining the objectives of the Treaty. 
If overall circumstances are changing as a result of the international economic situation and 
changes in demand, as a number of experts suggest, the attention paid to tourism in 
Community policy-making assumes greater importance. The measures already taken by the 
Community, particularly those connected with the various policies it implements under the 
Treaty, have been implemented taking full account of existing national measures. The Member 
States are taking steps to stimulate tourism either directly or in conjunction with other 
administrative and political authorities at regional or local level. A broad range of measures is 
involved, reflecting each country's development and the type of potential tourist attractions. 
Such measures have also changed over the years, thus reflecting the volatile nature of tourism 
and the way supply can adapt considerably to meet demand25. 
II. TOURISM CONTRIBUTES TO REINFORCING ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COHESION IN THE UNION 
Articles 130a and 130b clearly state the direction of the Community's actions to reinforce 
economic and social cohesion, by reducing the differences between levels of development in 
the various regions and the lack of progress in the least-developed regions, including rural 
areas, by implementing Community policies and schemes, by completing the internal market 
and, above all, by using funds intended for structural purposes (the ERDF, ESF and EAGGF), 
as well as the European Investment Bank and other existing financial instruments.26 
Tourism can assist in bringing about a better distribution of activities and jobs in the Union, 
thus contributing to the desirable aim of redressing the imbalance between the regions in the 
Community. Accordingly, in recent years there has been a convergence of objectives with a 
tendency to diversify the supply side of tourism and the aim of cohesion in the Community, 
which has appeared in the form of support, particularly financial support, for expanding 
tourism in less-developed regions or those eligible for structural funds as objectives 2 and 5b. 
By diversifying tourism on the supply side, either to respond to the increased demand or to 
attract new categories of customers, it has been possible to enlarge its range of services to 
cover activities described as cultural or rural tourism, or make its services more specialized by 
2-* See Annex 3, Summary sheets, by country of the European Economic Area, on the principal bodies in charge of tourism 
policy at national level. 
European Parliament, the role of the EC in regard to tourism and regional development, Directorate-General for Research, 
Working Paper, Luxembourg, October 1993. 
12 
offering other services additional to lodging, such as cooperation between tourist areas around 
a theme (the route to Compostella - a Council of Europe project which is receiving financial 
support from the Union - wine routes etc.). The result has been to make tourism an alternative 
source, or even a prime source, of economic activity in run-down areas, often resulting from 
the geographical delimitation of the area covered by structural funds. 
However, precisely because of the organization of Community aid as structural funds, 
questions have been raised as to how long the tourist industry can be called on as a driving 
force for developing some local areas, and particularly as to the compatibility of this 
development with preserving the cultural and environmental diversity of the Community.27 In 
the case of rural tourism in particular, the Committee of the Regions, while regarding the 
development of such tourism as essential, is in favour of encouraging a new overall approach, 
with a view to ensuring a "logical, integrated and heritage-conscious exploitation of the tourist 
assets which can open up new horizons for many of our rural areas"28. 
Tourism affects the development of the whole of Europe, and at the same time depends on this 
development. A sustainable tourism policy could also form part of a plan for developing 
Europe, which the European Ministers for Town and Country Planning have agreed would be 
drawn up jointly by the Member States and the Commission, in particular on the basis of the 
documents presented at the meeting in Leipzig on 21 and 22 September 199429. A plan of this 
kind would be based on three elements, i.e. a system of urban centres, a network of 
environmentally acceptable efficient infrastructures, and a European network of open spaces of 
ecological importance and natural beauty. 
III. TOURISM IS AN IMPORTANT AREA FOR IMPLEMENTING SUSTAINABLE 
DEVELOPMENT 
The future of European tourist activity fits perfectly into the pursuit of the objective laid down 
in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union, i.e. to promote "a harmonious and balanced 
development of economic activities, sustainable and non-inflationary growth respecting the 
environment". It is also basic to the considerations in the Commission's White Paper30 on a 
new development model for the Community, of which one of the keystones would be "to make 
the economic-ecological relationship a positive instead of a negative one", in particular by 
reorienting "existing policy instruments in so far as they encourage the inefficient use of 
resources in the Community Such a review should end up in a set of clear signals and 
incentives to all economic agents and decision-makers". 
The tourist industry can now start to incorporate this sustainable development approach, since 
there are few activities where success is so clearly dependent on the need to make different 
policies converge in order to overcome the complexity of the tourist industry, which is a 
combination of an economic activity most often engaged in under a private set of rules and 
27 Cf. in particular the European Parliament Resolution of 13 July, 1990 [OJ C 231], and particularly recital I "regretting that, 
in many cases, tourist development has taken place to the detriment of the environment, without any form of planning, as if 
it were a renewable consumer resource" and point 6, which "calls on the Commission to make funds available for tourism 
projects from the ERDF and other EEC funds only where such projects are clearly not harmful to the environment within the 
meaning of the Directive on Environmental Impact Assessment.... ". 
° Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on "A policy for the development of rural tourism in the regions of the EU" (CR 
19/95 of 2.2.1995). 
2" Europe 2000+: Cooperation for European territorial development ( COM(94) 354 of 27 July 1994); Principles for a 
European Spatial Development Policy, Committee on Spatial Development (CSD), 4 October 1994. This document specifies 
that one of the main aims of a plan for developing the Community's territory is to contribute to the implementation of 
Community policies which affect the environment, so as to respond to the main objective, which is sustainable and balanced 
development, defined as a process of economic and social change which uses resources for the immediate and future benefit 
of the people. This means that sustainable development implies changes in production and consumption planning, as well as 
in technology, to improve productivity and make more efficient use of raw materials, since in the long term economic 
development depends on the quality of the environment. 
Growth, competitiveness, employment - the challenges and ways forward into the 21st century - Commission's White Paper, 
Chapter 10. -
13 30 
reliant on the availability of public goods (landscapes, cultural heritage, leisure facilities, 
transport infrastructure etc.). The economic dynamics of the sector, tourist-satisfaction and 
preservation of our natural and cultural heritage cannot be separated. There are many examples 
to illustrate the fact that an environment which has been spoiled - whether because of the 
quality of the water or of the countryside, for example - is less attractive to tourists. On the 
other hand, when the natural and cultural heritage has been preserved intact and is Well 
presented, this gives a considerable advantage, which is always emphasized in tourist 
advertising. 
The need to make different policies converge on the same objective also means that tourism is a 
field of action ready-made for implementing sustainable development. In addition, the 
foreseeable growth of tourism and the pressures which it exerts, allied to an increased demand 
for quality on the part of tourists, means that such an approach can no longer be delayed. This 
is illustrated particularly by the debates on the spread of property investment, which increases 
the accommodation available, especially in the form of secondary residences or part-time use of 
such property. Article 130r(2) of the Treaty lays down one of the essential methods of attaining 
this aim, i.e. that environmental protection requirements must be integrated into the definition 
and implementation of other Union policies. Integration is the keynote of the Fifth Community 
Action Programme on the Environment. In particular, it permeates the activities of the 
Commission, which has drawn up a series of internal regulations to ensure that the environment 
is taken into account at the earliest possible stage when legal or other measures are being 
drawn up. At the meeting in Santorini on 13 and 14 May 1994, the EU Ministers for the 
Environment recognized the urgency of adopting this integrated approach to tourism, 
emphasized that further efforts must be made to apply Community legislation fully and to 
reduce the effect on the environment of tourism-linked activities, and agreed to take the 
necessary steps in this respect. This concern is shared by the Council of Europe, which has 
organised various events on the topic of environmental protection, with particular regard to 
tourism. 
Accordingly, tourism in the Union could from now on be planned and implemented on 
principles of sustainable development. This could guarantee that the activity continues on a 
regular basis, ensure that tourists are satisfied and contribute to maintaining Europe's natural 
and cultural heritage. In addition, this approach, which is essential and urgent for the tourist 
sector, could serve as an example for other activities, the future of which depends to an equal 
extent, but in a perhaps less directly perceptible way, on ensuring sustainable development. 
The Community could fulfil its role through the implementation of experimental measures to 
stimulate the development of tourism with the threefold objective of improving the tourist's 
well-being, conserving and enhancing the value of heritage and stimulating the growth and 
competitiveness of businesses. 
The Community is, of course, perfectly aware of the fact that it is primarily the responsibility 
of private businesses to implement the appropriate strategies to adapt to changes in demand, 
which will involve paying greater attention to the qualitative aspects of tourism (tourist 
satisfaction and heritage), once they have been helped to understand what is at stake. However, 
the Community can play an important role in implementing an approach comprising responses 
to the complementary aspects of tourism development. For instance, it is in a position to take 
special initiatives to meet the need to internalise, for tourist products, the external costs 
resulting from the use of public property as a factor of production by the tourist industry. Often 
the use businesses make of the public property necessary for their activity (e.g. natural beauty 
spots, cultural heritage, etc.) is not treated in the same way as an investment whose continued 
existence and development have to be ensured, but as an inalterable free gift (according to the 
classic economic definition). In many cases, this results in differences in the evaluation of the 
use of such public property, which may damage the long-term development of tourism, 
depending on whether priority is given to business interests, those of the tourist or those of the 
environmentalist. 
14 
The great heterogeneity of tourism and the small size of most businesses mean that in some 
areas there is no single perception of a common interest. As a result, the response to the 
overall challenges of growth cannot depend on each individual response of those involved. 
Consequently, the Community, possibly in conjunction with national policies to offset market 
weaknesses by stimulating tourism, can also provide value added by taking action to help 
develop tourism, i.e. via the creation or development of infrastructures31, the upgrading of 
manpower32, the conservation and proper use of the environment33 and the testing and 
dissemination of new or diversified tourist products.34 
Support for the testing of new tourism products, such as those relating to rural or cultural 
tourism, responds to the need to improve the overall competitiveness of the tourist economy 
and to increase employment in the sector. It is also based on the fact that the diversification of 
supply may be a way of relieving existing tension in the sector. By extending tourism beyond 
its traditional spheres and periods of concentration (e.g. coastal areas, mountains, summer, 
winter, etc.) the public authorities are trying to reduce pressure on the environment and to 
stimulate ways of increasing the tourist's satisfaction, in accordance with the development of 
demand for high-quality, more personalised services. Support for the testing of new tourism 
products therefore meets three requirements, that of businesses for a diversification of supply 
likely to increase the industry's competitiveness as a whole, that of tourists and that of the 
public authorities attempting to improve the quality of supply by improving the seasonal and 
geographical distribution of tourism. 
As in other areas, the Community could be in a position to provide the tourist industry and the 
Member States with the opportunity to exchange experiences and compare best practices and to 
set up specific, complementary support mechanisms under existing or new Community 
instruments. 
IV. TOURISM CONTRIBUTES TO PROMOTING THE EUROPEAN IDENTITY 
A major innovation in the Treaty of 7 February 1992 was to establish, in its second part, 
citizenship of the Union (Article 8) for every person holding the nationality of one of the 
Member States. The exercise of this citizenship is defined by a certain number of rights35, one 
of the foremost being that of moving and travelling freely within the territory of the Member 
States of the Union (Article 8a). 
In the case of the majority of European citizens, this right of abode and freedom of 
movement will be exercised in the context of tourism, even if exchanges for employment 
purposes expand with the completion of the internal market and the establishment of a Union 
without frontiers. 
31 One of the mainstays of national policies to assist tourism is the provision of basic infrastructures as a precondition for 
private investment in the sector: e.g. communication infrastructures, facilities and energy (e.g. roads, airports, sewage 
works, recreational development of lakes and reservoirs, ski resorts, etc.). This stage of "State-constructor" is already 
complete in its initial form in most Member States and the focus is now on regional development (e.g. the modernisation of 
existing infrastructures which have become obsolete, the restoration of damaged natural or cultural heritage and the creation 
of infrastructures for the protection of existing environmental and cultural heritage) and the provision of the necessary 
engineering for the development of activities (e.g. telecommunication infrastructures). 
3 Despite the extent of training schemes at national and Community levels, the matching of supply and demand in employment 
in the tourist industry is still inadequate. See the project on continuing training in the tourist industry carried out under the 
FORCE programme, October 1994, roneo (provisional). 
33 For example, along the lines of the work on relations between tourism and the environment following the Santorini meeting. 
3 For instance, on the basis of the evaluation of the implementation of Decision 92/421/EEC. 
Relating to the right to vote and eligibility (Article 8b), diplomatic protection (Article 8c), right to petition the European 
Parliament and recourse to the ombudsman (Article 8d). 
15 
The fact remains that there is no strong sense as yet of the connection between improving 
conditions for movement and residence over the entire territory of the Union, even those 
experienced by citizens as tourists, and the establishment of Union citizenship. Greater ease in 
travelling does not automatically mean increased exchanges between citizens of the same 
political area which is under construction, i.e. the Union. It is a commonplace to read, in both 
economic and political analyses, that haste in creating the Union has led to physical barriers 
falling more quickly than the "mental" barriers, and that this gap between strictly economic 
patterns and behavioural patterns could, in the long term, jeopardize the very efforts to create 
the Union. The need to inspire citizens in order to win their assent to the values which are 
basic to the Union, beyond mere institutional manoeuvres, is perceived in various circles36, but 
ways of providing this inspiration, outside the economic field, are not easy to imagine. 
In the context of this search for ways of establishing the meaning of citizenship as instituted by 
the Treaty, tourism is an area which should be explored.-When the citizen is a tourist and no 
longer on home ground, he is certainly conscious of the differences in culture between the 
Member States, and the total or partial lack of common points of reference, be they economic, 
environmental or cultural. However, these differences are not met with the surly look, or even 
flat rejection, which they might encounter in other situations, involving work or trade, for 
example. The strangeness which can be perceived in the use of a different language or in other 
ways of thinking, in other customs or even other interests, is not, in a tourism context, always 
a brake on exchanging ideas, but - on the contrary - may arouse a desire or wish to find out 
about these strange things and understand them. 
In this way, tourism can be a means of reducing the differences between the multifarious 
realities which constitute the Union, and by a continuous process of these differences being 
perceived in a non-confrontational context, can facilitate communication among citizens, and 
thus improve the basis on which exchanges, both cultural and economic, are made between the 
Member States. 
This line of thinking, which has been mentioned in particular in several Resolutions of the 
European Parliament37, deserves attention since it emphasizes a third party in the sector, i.e. 
the tourist, who is not only a beneficiary of the products of the tourist industry and a user of 
tourist areas and heritages, but also a factor in the political and economic construction of the 
Union. 
V. CONTRIBUTING TO THE MANAGEMENT OF STRUCTURAL AND 
TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGES AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF SMEs IN THE 
TOURIST INDUSTRY 
Most sectors of the tourist industry, like certain other fields of activity, are highly fragmentary, 
which makes it difficult for everyone involved to grasp the full extent of the structural changes 
under way. This applies equally to changes in demand, particularly the need for increased 
attention to satisfying and protecting the tourist, to changés in supply conditions resulting from 
technological innovation or international competition, and to the growing importance of 
environmental and cultural aspects for the future of tourism. However, an understanding of 
these matters is essential if the opportunities and risks embodied in these structural changes are 
to be assessed and the adaptation strategies for all players defined. 
In addition, the application of the many possibilities offered by advanced telecommunications 
systems and information technology may be a decisive factor in the development of tourism, 
3 Cf. in particular D. Wolton, "La dernière Utopie, naissance de l'Europe démocratique", Flammarion, Paris 1993. 
In particular the draft Resolution mentioned (EP 209.897 fin. of 23 November 1994) and the emphasis on encouraging 
young people to travel in the amendments proposed by the European Parliament to the tourism budget (EP 184.353 of 
27 October 1994) 
16 
both to best satisfy tourist requirements and to protect heritage. The work already carried out 
by the Community in this area and the measures implemented or promoted in the future for the 
development of the information society in Europe can, to the benefit of tourism, open the 
markets further, improve the management of tourist businesses and the quality of the services 
they provide, and make European tourism products more competitive and better known38. 
With a view to promoting the anticipation of change, the Community can provide the whole 
tourist industry, especially businesses, including SMEs, with information on tourist flows, in 
the form of statistics or studies, and data enabling the identification of tourist and business 
needs alike, thus mobilising the tourist industry at European level to face the challenge of 
international competition. The Member States' own statistics and studies will gain value when 
they are incorporated in a Community framework in which national data can be compared and 
a fuller picture can be formed of tourism and any shortcomings at Union level. This 
Community approach also helps improve the results of statistics and studies produced nationally 
or regionally by coordinating the efforts made in this area at all levels.39 
The Community could also help businesses adapt to structural and technological change by 
promoting the creation of a legislative and administrative environment likely to promote the 
development of tourist demand or stimulate adaptation to changes in supply. The creation of a 
favourable environment must include not only the traditional approach based on simplifying the 
conditions for exercising business activities (e.g. by means of deregulation or exemptions) but 
also the implementation of a combination of special provisions on tourist activity, 
environmental protection, tourist facilities and tourist protection. 
The Community could create a favourable environment by taking initiatives based on its own 
exclusive competences, as it did in the provisions referred to above concerning the creation of 
the internal market, the adoption of economic policy measures (e.g. on monetary matters), 
consumer protection, qualification needs and respect and proper attention for the 
environment40. In this context it could also act through concerted approaches with the Member 
States, or under international conventions of direct or indirect relevance to tourism. 
According to the Economic and Social Committee, the development of the framework 
conditions resulting from the internal market and the creation of an economic and monetary 
union would not be sufficient to fully exploit all opportunities that the tourism sector has while 
at the same time assuring balanced development without a European tourism policy.41 
VI CREATING ADDED VALUE BY A COHERENT APPROACH TO POLICIES AND 
INSTRUMENTS 
As has already been stressed above, a successful response to the challenges facing tourism must 
be able to put down roots in the economy of the 21st century and must be able to meet the 
combination of objectives likely to lead to a balanced and sustainable growth of activities. 
3° "Europe's way to the information society. An action plan." COM(94) 347 final of 19 July 1994; conclusions of the G7 
summit on the information society, at its meeting in Brussels on 25 and 26 February 1995. 
39 To this end, an initial step has been taken with Council Decision (OJ L 358 of 21.12.1990) on a two-year work programme. 
This programme concerned a series of measures, amongst them an analysis of user needs, the establishment of definitions 
and methods, and the compilation and dissemination of the information already available. Subsequent to the conclusions of 
the implementation of this Decision, the Commission, in collaboration with the Member States, drafted and submitted to the 
Council a proposal for a Directive (COM(94) 582 final of 4.1.1995) concerning the adaptation and development of tourism 
statistics at European level on the basis of a system considered necessary by users. Essentially, this system involves an 
analysis of supply and its utilisation and an analysis of demand. At the same time, a proposal for a recommendation on 
statistical standards and the definitions and methods for compilation is under preparation. 
4U See the report on Community action to assist tourism, quoted above. 
41 ESC. Initiative opinion on Tourism, adopted 15.9.94 (ESC 1021/94) 
17 
It is possible, in the light of the work already carried out by the Community, the guidelines set 
out by the European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the 
Regions and the policies implemented at national level, to identify three main lines of action: 
supporting improvement in the quality of tourism by taking greater account of trends in 
tourism demand; 
encouraging diversification of tourist activities and products by improving the 
competitiveness and profitability of the tourism industry; 
incorporating the concept of sustainable and balanced growth into tourism by taking 
greater account of the cultural and environmental dimensions of tourism. 
Real awareness of the equal value of the three dimensions of tourism and of the need to offer 
combined responses requires the active involvement of all the players concerned: tourism 
enterprises, the citizen as a tourist and administrations and other bodies responsible for 
managing public assets. However, it is hard to see how such involvement can be provoked or 
stimulated if Community action does not have a high profile. 
As demonstrated above, the Community does to a certain extent have the means of 
implementing programmes and actions in response to each of the priorities, albeit without 
reconciling the (at best latent) conflicts which remain between the dimensions of growth, tourist 
satisfaction and heritage protection. Each of these three poles (enterprise growth, tourist 
satisfaction and the protection and renewal of heritage) now has equal standing with regard to 
an overall policy, even if at various stages in economic development one or other of them may 
have been given priority. This overlap between private (tourist supply) and public (heritage 
and tourist protection) interests means that in some cases conflicts have to be prevented and the 
seemingly divergent interests of groups involved with tourism reconciled (for example 
consumer protection with growth of supply, or respect for the natural and cultural environment 
with creation of activities and jobs, etc). 
Clearly, a number of policies and measures implemented by the Member States or the 
Community already contribute, at different levels, to satisfying certain of the interests 
represented in tourism. However, more often than not, this happens in a fragmented fashion, 
and this can be an obstacle to the balanced and sustainable growth of tourism. All the 
Member States have grown aware of the need for dialogue between often diametrically opposed 
interests, and more recently, have recognised the need to satisfy all three objectives (growth of 
supply, tourist satisfaction and respect for heritage). However, Member States' responses to 
the complexity of the interests at stake in tourism seem to vary, depending on whether the 
country is principally a sender/generator or receiver/beneficiary of tourist flows. Taking the 
Union as a whole, this is often characterized by a North/South tourism dichotomy. 
Studies conducted in each of the Member States, as well as the priorities they ascribe to their 
respective policies, would seem to indicate that there is currently a divergence of approach 
between the sender countries (mainly in the North) and the receiver countries (mainly in the 
South). The former appear to give priority to the environmental problems linked to tourism, to 
respect of cultural and natural heritage and to the quality of tourism services, i.e. to demand 
requirements, while the latter - as a result of partially captive demand - appear to focus on the 
quantitative growth of private tourism services, sometimes at the expense of the public 
elements of supply (heritage, culture, protection of the tourist). Conflicting priorities 
frequently exist within each tourist area, so that the Community could serve as a point of 
reference for the reconciliation of such opposing viewpoints. Given the cross-border nature of 
tourism in terms of both tourist areas and tourist flows, it may be desirable for the development 
of tourism in each of the Member States to facilitate a coordinating role; such a role could be 
exercised more efficiently at Community level, in compliance with the principles laid down in 
Article 3B of the Treaty. 
In the field of tourism, more than in certain other areas, the Community could take practical 
steps to try out coordination methods. First of all, horizontally - since each of the three 
dimensions acting on the growth of tourism is, and in certain cases has long been, the focus 
for a specific Community policy - but also vertically, since several levels (local, regional, 
national, professional, etc) are involved in promoting or reacting to tourism. Effective 
mobilisation of the players involved could be achieved via a dual coordination of this kind. 
The value added of a Union tourism policy would therefore be built on that which already 
exists and would move in two directions simultaneously: on the one hand it would ensure that 
proper consideration is given to the tourism dimension of Community policies with a possible 
impact on the growth of tourism and, on the other, it would focus on practical ways of 
combining the three poles of the tourism concept, i.e.- on creating a convergence of the 
interests which have grown up at Community level, at best unexpressed, at worst in conflict. 
The acute need for coordination, growth and integrated management of the sector could, then, 
be met though the formulation - in agreement with the Member States and the professionals 
concerned - of European Union guidelines which take account of the three complementary 
dimensions of tourism. 
VII TOURISM AND COMPLIANCE WITH THE PRINCIPLE OF SUBSIDIARITY 
As developments have shown, the large number of actions taken by the Member States do not 
mean that the Community has no part to play in this field. Community actions are defined and 
implemented in compliance with Article 3b, which states that "....the Community shall take 
action, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, only if and in so far as the objectives 
of the proposed action cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States and can therefore, 
by reason of the scale or effects of the proposed action, be better achieved by the Community". 
However, the question arises here of whetherthe Community should or should not exercise a 
specific competence as regards tourism along the lines of the competences acknowledged for 
the main policy areas with a possible impact on tourism, which are the subject of detailed 
provisions in the existing Treaty (e.g. transport, the environment, consumer affairs, culture, 
training and, depending on how the issue evolves, spatial development). 
C. POSSIBLE DEVELOPMENTS IN THE ROLE OF THE UNION AS 
REGARDS TOURISM 
The ideas developed below are based on the Union's action to date to achieve the basic 
objectives assigned to it by the Treaty within the limits of the powers conferred. 
I. REDUCING OR ELIMINATING SPECIFIC COMMUNITY ACTIONS? 
Since the three poles around which the interests of tourism can be said to revolve are served by 
existing Community policies, one possible option would be to rule out from the start any 
specific action as regards tourism. It could, in other words, be argued that the field of tourism 
is sufficiently or even fully covered by individual measures which, although scattered, have 
proved to be reasonably effective. 
Tourist satisfaction would, under this scenario, be ensured by actions in the field of consumer 
protection, by supporting actions aimed at diversifying the tourism product, in particular via 
the Structural Funds (cultural or rural tourism), or by safety-enhancement measures with 
respect to the use of means of transport in the Community. 
19 
The interests of the tourist industry, on the other hand, could be upheld via coherent and stable 
policies in the fields of taxation, infrastructure creation, competition and, more generally, by a 
number of provisions adopted under the Internal Market. 
As regards the Structural Funds, the Union keeps a close eye on compliance with Community 
policies not only as regards competition rules, contract awards and equality of opportunities 
but also as regards the protection of the environment. It pursues a vigorous policy on natural 
and cultural heritage, which it aims to protect not just through its rural development, 
environment and cultural policies but also by ensuring that every effort is made to achieve the 
objective of sustainable development when measures are taken under other Community 
policies. 
Action to develop tourism in the Community could, then, be envisaged independently of a 
specific coordinating exercise, simply through proper application of existing policies designed 
to meet broader objectives or to cater for areas other than tourism. 
Given the lack of a suitable framework, a comparison of practices at the various levels 
(Community, national, regional and local) and an exchange of best results would obviously not 
be feasible under this option. 
II. RETAINING THE CURRENT FRAMEWORK AND LEVEL OF INTERVENTION? 
It has already been shown that a number of policies formulated under the Treaty and in 
compliance with the principle of subsidiarity have enabled the Community to take steps to 
assist tourism. It has, for example, been possible to use various instruments to the benefit of 
one or other of the poles of tourism development, be it by creating a favourable environment 
for tourist mobility, improving vocational training in the field of tourism, paying proper 
respect to the environment or backing experimentation with new tourism products. 
However, the Community cannot draw on a specific legal basis for this action, since Article 
3t), in which tourism is mentioned in the Treaty for the first time, simply expresses the 
desirability of extending the activities of the Community to include the spheres of energy, civil 
protection and tourism for the purposes of achieving the objectives of Article 2. The 
Community can only take specific action in these fields on the basis of Article 235. 
The lack of a specific basis for tourism in the Treaty establishing the European Community did 
not prevent the Commission from presenting and the Council from approving, under Article 
235, a Community Action Plan to assist tourism42, once a number of measures on which 
common action among the partners of the Union could be based had been identified. 
The Community Action Plan of July 1992 is positive in that it provides a base for organizing 
cooperation between Member States and stimulating dialogue with industry and the sectors 
concerned. It already represents an experimental platform for comparing ideas and experience, 
building common'projects and developing common strategies. However, this action plan is 
limited both in its duration and in its scope. 
The active participation of all the Member States in the actions tested as part of the plan has, 
however, given a real indication of the advantages of transnational cooperation as a tool for 
tourism growth and European integration. Since effective dialogue between all the parties 
concerned and at the various administrative levels (regional, national and international) is seen 
as the backbone of an effective Community plan, the actions provided for are founded on 
cooperation between different operational administrative levels, without interfering with the 
latter's own powers of initiative, in order to provide wide-ranging opportunities for 
42 Council Decision 92/421/EEC of 13.7.1992. 
20 
participation in Community actions to assist tourism. This is mainly a matter of facilitating the 
comparison of national and regional tourism initiatives with the aim of encouraging exchanges 
and common actions and guaranteeing greater transparency for actions carried out at different 
levels, in a new spirit of cooperation. This could lead, not only to the transfer of best 
practices but also to a more rational exploitation of existing options. 
in. STRENGTHENING COMMUNITY ACTION VIA THE EXISTING TREATY? 
Although implementation of the first action plan demonstrated that there is an interest in 
transnational cooperation as regards tourism, the plan itself was not sufficient to ensure that 
the full potential of tourism and related actions was harnessed to the benefit of the Union's 
measures. 
One possible response to this insufficiency might perhaps be to strengthen existing measures 
with an impact on tourism (cf. above) and to increase the funding allocated to them, bearing in 
mind the distinct implementation procedures for each of these instruments. 
The Community could, within the framework of the Treaty, increase its support for efforts to 
achieve greater growth and competitiveness in the tourist industry, assist in improving the 
safety and well-being of tourists and, finally, accord priority to encouraging the protection and 
proper use of the natural and cultural heritage.43 
It could achieve these ends by, for example, supporting the further development of trans-
European networks and pushing forward the development of the information society (the 
consequences of which will require careful assessment), it could also do so via consumer 
policy, actions to encourage training and quality, regional policies, actions in the field of 
culture, environment policy, R&D programmes, completion of the internal market, actions to 
assist the further development of transport, enterprise policy (particularly with regard to SMEs 
and the craft sector) and specific actions to assist tourism. 
The Community could also endeavour to ensure that greater account is taken of specifically 
tourism-related interests, for example as regards actions taken in the fields of infrastructure 
and major networks (including information networks), by marking off - within the procedures 
specific to each policy, programme or measure - a section focusing on tourism, taking as a 
reference the spheres set out in the current Article 3t). Strengthening the various Community 
actions to assist tourism could therefore be geared towards meeting sectoral or specific tourism 
requirements. However, higher-profile Community action might also create a multiplier effect 
for the value added of each of the policies, since it might encourage better coordination 
between the various types of policy (enterprise, consumer, regional, environment44) and 
between the various levels of action (Community, national, regional, local), for example along 
the lines of partnership between the public and private sectors. 
IV. TOWARDS A COMMUNITY TOURISM POLICY? 
The question of increased Community intervention to assist tourism has been raised on a 
number of occasions over the past few years. The demand for such intervention itself raises 
the following questions. 
Retaining the existing framework would not, moreover, rule out Commission initiatives to strengthen the internal 
coordination of its activities in order to make them more coherent with tourism. 
For example, in order to cope with the difficulties of training in the field of tourism, the Community makes available to 
businesses in the sector instruments such as participation in specific programmes or financial support from the Social Fund 
without, however, ascertaining whether standard industrial training practices can be readily transposed to what is essentially 
a seasonal activity. 
21 
Could the Community play the part of information disseminator and act as an interface 
between the Union and the various parties concerned (Member States, professionals, major 
organisations active in the sector, consumers, third countries and international organisations), 
thus allowing the Member States to consult each other in liaison with the Commission and, 
where necessary, to coordinate their actions with a view to balancing the diverse interests at 
play in the field of tourism? If it could indeed play such a part, the Commission could also 
take any initiative it considered useful in promoting this coordination. 
Should the Community have a role to play in stimulating coordination between national 
initiatives in order to encourage, by its example, a convergence of policies via the rational 
organisation of exchanges of information and transfers of best practices among Member States? 
Such a role could extend to the formulation and implementation of actions to supplement those 
of the Member States, filling in any gaps left by national policies whenever they might be 
damaging to European tourism as a whole. 
It is also possible to envisage a Community policy, complementary to the policies of the 
Member States, which could be drawn upon in defining the other Community actions with a 
potential impact on tourism. Would a Community policy along these lines generate a 
demonstrable Community response able to meet the need for balanced consideration of the 
triad of interests underlying tourism and for the integration of these interests in a logic of 
sustainable development? 
the Member States 
the Council 
the European Parliament 
the Economic and Social Committee 
the Committee of the Regions 
representative organizations, the social partners and other bodies active in tourism at 
the European level or at Member State or regional level 
are requested to give their reactions to the options put forward in this Green Paper on the role 
of the Union in the field of tourism 
by 30 June 1995 
European Commission 
Directorate General XXHI 
"Tourism Green paper " 
200, rue de la Loi 
B-1049 Brussels 
For additional information : telephone (+32 2) 299 47.49 
fax (+32 2)296.13.77 
22 
ANNEXES 
1. Towards a definition of tourism. 
2. Tourism in the European Union: Trends in 1994 
3. Summary sheets, by country of the European Economic Area, on the principal bodies 
responsible for managing tourism policy at national level (drawn up on the basis of the 
information provided by each Member State as at 30 September 1994) 
4. Summary table of amounts set aside for tourism within the Community support 
framework for the period 1989-93 
5. Glossary 
23 
ANNEX I 
TOWARDS A DEFINITION OF TOURISM 
Defining the reference population in the sphere of tourism is a controversial operation which 
directly influences the recognition of the role of this activity and the weight that can be attached 
to it at institutional level. 
Quite apart from the technical definitions used to identify the various components of tourism 
and to grasp its economic importance, there are two elements at the conceptual level which 
highlight its specific features: 
• the central importance of the consumer/tourist who, when he buys and uses both 
market and non-market goods and services, classifies these activities as "tourist" in 
nature^; 
• the importance of public property, both in the production process and in tourist 
consumption, particularly by reason of the strong attraction which these goods 
themselves exercise on tourist demand. 
Very few activities are as directly involved in the process of transforming and developing 
modern societies as tourism. More than a matter of habit or a heterogeneous set of economic 
activities, tourism has become, within less than a century, a determining factor in the life of 
millions of people. Tourism changes with the improvement in living and working conditions 
and is simultaneously an essential element of this improvement and a result of it. Paid holidays 
were one of the first demands when bargaining was introduced into labour relations, and not 
going on holiday - particularly for economic or health reasons - is regarded as a feature of 
social exclusion. 
However, tourism is not regarded or experienced only as an indicator of social promotion. In 
the collective imagination and in practice, even in a global society with media which facilitate 
exchanges between different cultures and ways of life, tourism is the "medium" par excellence 
for direct encounters and discovery; it is becoming the ideal terrain for bringing people closer 
together. 
As tourism becomes a general need at the intellectual, physical, cultural, social and 
professional level, new or existing economic activities emerge or adapt to serve what they 
regard as a new market. From the economic point of view, tourism is often regarded as a 
market rather than a sector because of its structural characteristics. 
The heterogeneous and multi-faceted nature of this consumption include, on the one hand, 
those goods and services which can be classed as "typically tourist" (e.g. accommodation and 
the planning, organisation and sale of travel and stays) and, on the other, those which are not 
used exclusively by tourists but which benefit - to varying degrees - both tourists and residents 
(e.g. passenger transport, restaurants, vehicle hire). To this must be added an induced 
production which, as in other fields, supports the production of the foregoing categories (for 
instance, the foodstuffs industry or the construction industry for hotels and restaurants, to 
mention only two). 
45 In fact, unlike other economic activities, tourism is difficult to define in relation to the products and services generated or to 
the production process, or even in relation to its object (A. Bull, "The economics of travel and tourism", Pitman-Wiley, 
London, 1991). The World Tourism Organisation's (WTO) definition, adopted by the statistical Commission of the United 
Nations in March 1993, reflects this approach which aims to define tourism demand. According to WTO, tourism includes 
"those activities deployed by people during the course of their journey and their stay in the place situated outside of their 
usual environment, for a continuous period of less than one year, for leisure or business purposes or other reasons." (UN-
WTO, Recommendations on tourism statistics "Statistical Papers", ST/ESA/STAT.SER,M/83. 
24 
At the same time, the supply side of tourism goes far beyond tourist production, since it 
includes the utilisation of natural, cultural and artistic resources which are often unique and 
linked to a precise site, and which are of the nature of public property. This indicates the role 
of the state as a guarantor of the optimum balance between development and safeguarding the 
resources for future generations, between efficiency and equity46. 
The heterogeneity of the activities deployed to satisfy tourists, the conflicts of interest which 
may arise between professions in the same field, and the important part played by the common 
good in the success of a tourist destination are all aspects of the same phenomenon. 
The interconnections between tourist consumption and tourist production thus permeate society 
as a whole and evolve together with it over time, so that it is difficult to grasp their contours 
and to clearly assess the attention which can be devoted to tourism at institutional level. These 
difficulties, which already exist at national level, become greater when viewed in a European 
context, and this explains the apparent paradox between the widespread perception of the 
important role which tourism plays at world level and the imprecise vision of its identity -
which has not helped tourism to gain its legitimate place as an industry in its own right4?. 
The work undertaken in recent years by the Community, although not yet completed, has 
allowed significant progress to be made towards an improved understanding of the sector by 
stimulating cooperation between Member States and with other international organisations such 
as the OECD and WTO48. 
Cf., on the more general problem, K. Arrow, "The trade-off between growth and equity", in "Theory for economic 
efficiency", MIT Press, Cambridge, 1979. 
Despite the complexity of the tourism offer and the production functions of the branches involved, tourism is increasingly 
referred to in economic analysis as an industry in its own right. 
See, in particular, the analysis made by J. van der Borg, M. Manente and M. Tamma in "Dimensione dell'industria italiana 
dei viaggi e del turismo", Costa-Rispoli, CONFINDUSTRIA, SIPI, Rome, 1992, and R. W. Mcintosh and C. R. Goeldner, 
"Tourism Principles, Practices, Philosophy", John Willy & Sons, New York, 1986. Application of this concept assumes, 
above all, that one can grasp the economic weight of the activities relating to tourism by bringing them into a single 
aggregate, even though this possibility does not exist with the current structures of national accounts (cf. in particular the 
results of the work undertaken by the OECD and published in the "Manual on the economic accounts of tourism", OECD, 
Paris, 1991). 
This assumption is the basis for the interest of the United Nations which, in cooperation with the WTO, is proposing the 
establishment of "satellite accounts" on travel and tourism, with a view to consolidating all tourism-related production (an in-
depth analysis of this concept is given in J. Lappiere, "A proposal for a satellite account and information system for 
tourism", International Conference on Statistics on Travellers and Tourism, Ottawa, 1991). 
48 Cf. EEC COM(93)345 final of 1.9.1993. 
25 
ANNEX 2 
TOURISM IN THE EU: TRENDS IN 1994 
Introduction 
The data currently available allow only a rough assessment of tourism trends in 1994. For most 
countries, the data available represent the movements of the first three quarters of 1994. In 
terms of overnight stays, the data available cover from 80% to 95% of total overnight stays for 
the year, so that its is clear that the estimates made now will not be very different from the 
final figures. 
In the case of certain countries, the 1994 data are not available to Eurostat, and these countries 
are left out of the analysis below. 
Principal conclusions 
After stagnating for some three years, during which period the variations in tourist movements 
were non-significant for most countries of the EU, 1994 is the year in which major changes 
took place. For some countries these changes are extremely positive in terms of overnight stays 
and receipts. 
Overall, the findings are as follows: 
These was more international tourism, whereas tourism involving residents within a country 
was slightly down. In terms of overnight stays, there was an estimated 11% increase in 
overnight stays by non-residents, a decline of 2.3% in overnight stays by residents and a 4.4% 
increase in total overnight stays within the EU. 
Alternative establishments are the big winners, with increases in terms of overnight stays 
reaching some 13% for the EU as a whole, whereas the same variation for hotels is about 3%. 
1 Hotels and similars <:- ": ^Alternatives - • 
" .4>4 •• Total •'":-.•:* 
Overnight stays 
for the residents • Overnight stays 11 Total of the 
for the non-residents overnight stays 
*,.*" -ttfefr^j .m.-totifcV&>foriB>»• „*~A»3i§£&>a»***£* '•*»*-«. &w&&£i&i 
26 
In the countries of southern Europe there were unexpected increases in terms of overnight 
stays: 20% for Spain, 14.2% for Italy and 9.4% for Greece. If overnight stays by non-residents 
are examined, one finds even larger increases of 23.8%, 24.7% and 11.7%, respectively, for 
the same countries. 
EU: Variations 1994/1993 
Overnight stays by residents 
Overnight stays by non-residents 
Total overnight stays Hotels and similar 
-1.8 
10.5 
3.1 Alternative ace. 
11.1 
23.4 
13.4 Total 
-2.3 
11.1 
4.4 
Source: Eurostat estimates 
More income (4.1%) and more expendimre (2.4%) under the "travel" heading in the balance of 
payments in 1994. 
To some extent the variations in 1994 can be explained by the economic recovery at EU level 
and by monetary fluctuations, which explains an increase in competitiveness within the same 
countries. 
Trend in overnight stays 
The variations in overnight stays by residents within the total for accommodation were 
relatively modest in 1994 compared with 1993. Only in Italy was there a major increase of 8%, 
whereas for some countries the figure was slightly negative. 
In the case of non-residents the variations become more significant for the countries of southern 
Europe, while for the other countries of the EU the variations are around 0%, except for 
Finland, where there was an estimated increase of 12.6%. 
A study of overnight stays by form of accommodation shows major increases in overnight stays 
by non-residents in hotels and even greater increases for alternative accommodation in terms of 
overnight stays by both residents and non-residents. 
27 
HOTELS 
Residents 
Total overnight stays in 1993 
(1000) 
Variation 1994/92 
Availability of data in 1994 
(months) 
Non residents 
Total overnight stays in 1993 
(1000) 
Variation 1994/92 
Availability of data in 1994 
(months) 
Total 
Total overnight stays in 1993 
(1000) 
Variation 1994/92 
Availability of data in 1994 
(months) B 
2557 
4.6% 
10 
6751 
1.8% 
9 
9309 
2.6% 
9 DK 
5639 
6.8% 
11 
5880 
-6.5% 
11 
11519 
-4.6% 
11 D 
142130 
-1.5% 
10 
26030 
0.3% 
10 
168160 
-1.2% 
10 GR 
12059 
1.4% 
9 
36475 
11.6% 
9 
48534 
9.2% 
9 E 
54879 
3.4% 
12 
82872 
17.9% 
12 
137751 
12.1% 
12 F 
90160 
-10.7% 
9 
55455 
-1.7% 
9 
145614 
-7.2% 
9 I 
122270 
0.3% 
9 
64495 
16.0% 
9 
186765 
5.7% 
9 NL 
7640 
4.8% 
6 
7973 
-7.1% 
6 
15613 
-1.6% 
6 P 
7201 
-3.8% 
8 
15965 
14.5% 
8 
23166 
8.7% 
8 FIN 
7985 
0.0% 
9 
2588 
15.9% 
9 
10572 
4.0% 
9 Total 
452519 
-1.8% 
304484 
10.5% 
757003 
3.1% 
ALTERNATIVE 
ACCOMMODATION 
Residents 
Total overnight stays in 1993 
(1000) 
Variation 1994/92 
Availability of data in 1994 
(months) 
Non residents 
Total overnight stays in 1993 
(1000) 
Variation 1994/92 
Availability of data in 1994 
(months) 
Total 
Total overnight stays in 1993 
(1000) 
Variation 1994/92 
Availability of data in 1994 
(months) B 
9695 
-1.5% 
9 
4930 
-2.6% 
9 
14625 
-1.9% 
9 DK 
8191 
-1.0% 
10 
4573 
8.6% 
10 
12764 
2.4% 
10 D 
134252 
1.9% 
10 
8664 
-3.3% 
10 
142915 
1.5% 
10 GR 
478 
14.9% 
9 
633 
21.4% 
9 
1110 
18.6% 
9 E 
13634 
53.2% 
8 
5260 
55.3% 
8 
18894 
53.8% 
8 I 
45912 
35.9% 
9 
20849 
42.9% 
9 
66761 
38.1% 
9 NL 
31351 
0.5% 
6 
9205 
7.5% 
6 
40555 
2.2% 
6 P 
6257 
-4.3% 
8 
1866 
-20.7% 
8 
8123 
-8.2% 
8 FIN 
1753 
-0.7% 
9 
341 
-8.4% 
9 
2094 
-2.0% 
9 Total 
251521 
11.1% 
56320 
23.4% 
307841 
13.4% 
28 
TOTAL ETABLISHMENTS 
Residents 
Total overnight stays in 1993 
(1000) 
Variation 1994/92 
Availability of data in 1994 
(months) 
Non residents 
Total overnight stays in 1993 
(1000) 
Variation 1994/92 
Availability of data in 1994 
(months) 
Total 
Total overnight stays in 1993 
(1000) 
Variation 1994/92 
Availability of data in 1994 
(months) B 
12253 
-0.3% 
9 
11681 
-0.2% 
9 
23934 
-0.2% 
9 DK 
13830 
-1.8% 
11 
10453 
0.1% 
11 
24283 
2.2% 
10 D 
276381 
0.1% 
10 
34694 
-0.7% 
10 
311075 
0.1% 
10 GR 
11863 
2.1% 
9 
37108 
11.7% 
9 
49617 
9.4% 
9 E 
68513 
0.0% 
11 
88132 
23.8% 
8 
156644 
19.9% 
8 FUJ 
90160 
-10.7% 
9 
55455 
-1.7% 
9 
145614 
-7.2% 
9 I 
168182 
8.0% 
6 
85344 
24.7% 
6 
253526 
14.2% 
6 NL 
38991 
1.5% 
6 
17178 
-0.4% 
6 
56169 
0.9% 
6 P 
13457 
-4.1% 
8 
17831 
10.0% 
8 
31289 
3.7% 
8 FIN 
9737 
-0.2% 
9 
2929 
12.6% 
9 
12666 
2.8% 
9 Total 
703367 
-2.3% 
360804 
11.1% 
1064816 
4.4% 
(V Hotels only 
29 
Tourism income and expenditure in the balance of payments - Variations in exchange 
rates 
In general, there were increases in income in all countries for which the figures are available, 
with the exception of Portugal (-15%) and Germany (-4.4%). Expenditure shows the same 
trend, except that there were remarkable falls in Spain (-17%), Italy (-17%) and Portugal (-
13%). Overall the BLEU heads the table, with increases in income and expenditure of 29.3% 
and 20.6% respectively. 
BALANCE OF PAYMENTS: 
BLEU DK TRAVEL (Mill. 
ECU) 
INCOME 
Variation 1994/92 
Availability of data in 1994 
(months) 
EXPENDITURE 
Variation 1994/92 
Availability of data in 1994 
(months) UEBL 
3479 
29.3% 
10 
5439 
20.6% 
10 DK 
2599 
2.8% 
9 
2738 
11.7% 
9 D 
8974 
-4.4% 
10 
32041 
9.2% 
10 GR 
2861 
10.1% 
10 
857 
11.5% 
10 E 
16516 
8.3% 
10 
4021 
-17.0% 
10 F 
19922 
2.1% 
10 
10919 
6.8% 
10 I 
18840 
5.3% 
9 
12006 
-17.6% 
9 NL 
4015 
0.3% 
9 
7672 
-0.4% 
9 P 
3568 
-15.0% 
8 
1574 
-13.1% 
8 TOTAL 
80775 
4.1% 
93130 
2.4% 
A study of the exchange rate variations in 1994, as compared with 1993, shows major 
variations which partly explain the increase in the competitiveness of the countries of southern 
Europe (GR, I, E, P) and the consequent increases. 
&7KœigiïRm&ti§sflMÀ M;tKe'èxçftangeTatë agai 
!*• ..J ... t.jr.3.*/* iiSCXj£K:iti3»?-j&; -& !:\i- t '-•<<-*•- - &J-H, .. * 
- --t.-» •/* ;~>;^%x- •'' 
ï0&S<Sf "7 ' "" .*-• 3/1''- - V^;/^f-'; - :;•$£ r~. ; 
•2;o°/o-
r~iM—t + GB riL r~i,n? 
IRL NLf-: :p. 
Exchange rate against the ecu 
Average value in 1993 
Average value in 1994 
Average value 1994/1993 B 
40.47 
39.66 
2.0% DK 
7.59 
7.54 
0.7% D 
1.94 
1.92 
0.6% GR 
268.57 
288.03 
-7.2% E 
149.12 
158.92 
-6.6% F 
6.63 
6.58 
0.8% I 
1841.23 
1915.06 
-4.0% IRL 
0.80 
0.79 
0.8% NL 
2.18 
2.16 
0.8% P 
188.37 
196.90 
-4.5% FIN 
6.70 
6.19 
7.5% SW 
9.12 
9.16 
-0.5% UK 
0.78 
0.78 
0.5% USD 
1.17 
1.19 
-1.6% 
30 
31 
ANNEX 3 
SUMMARY SHEETS, BY COUNTRY OF THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA 
ON THE PRINCIPAL BODIES RESPONSIBLE FOR MANAGING 
TOURISM POLICY AT NATIONAL LEVEL 
32 
AUSTRIA 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL BUNDESMINISTER FUR WIRTSCHAFTLICHE 
ANGELEGENHEITEN (Minister for Economic Affairs) 
BUNDESMINISTERIUM FUR WIRTSCHAFTLICHE 
ANGELEGENHEITEN (Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs) 
ABTEILUNG FUR NATIONALE TOURISMUS­
ANGELEGENHEITEN (unit for national tourism policy) 
Responsible for: 
- General tourism policy orientation, (transport policy, regional 
policy, educational policy, statistics, studies and promotion); 
- The Austrian National Tourist Office and the tourist industry. 
ABTEILUNG FUR TOURISMUSFORDERUNG (Division for 
national subsidies) 
Responsible for: 
- Monitoring and financial support of national tourism projects 
with emphasis on the development of quality. 
ABTEILUNG FUR INTERNATIONALE 
TOURISMUSANGELEGENHEITEN (Division for international 
tourism relations) 
Responsible for: 
- Representation of Austria's tourism policy abroad and 
representation of Austria in the EU and in other international 
organisations; 
- Negotiation of bilateral agreements in the field of tourism and 
attending to their implementation. 
33 
(at national level) WIRTSCHAFTSKAMMER ÔSTERREICH, SEKTION 
TOURISMUS UND FREIZEITWIRTSCHAFT (Austrian 
Federal Economic Chamber, Section Tourism and Leisure 
Industry) - Body established by Public law with obligatory 
membership for all self-employed in industry and commerce. 
Responsible for: 
- Representation of the interests of those self-employed in the 
tourist industry; 
- Initiation and evaluation of draft legislation; 
- Co-operation with Parliament, Government and administrative 
authorities; 
- Advisory services; 
- Contribution to work done by the Austrian National Tourist 
Office; 
- Vocational training; 
- Management consulting for enterprises in the tourism 
industry. 
BUNDES ARBEITSKAMMER (Federal Chamber of Labour) 
Responsible for: 
- Representation of the interests of those employed in the tourist 
industry; 
- Initiation and evaluation of draft legislation. 
AT REGIONAL LANDESREGIERUNGEN (Federal Provincial Governments) 
LEVEL 
TOURISMUSABTEILUNG (Tourism department) 
Responsible for: 
- One government official is specifically responsible for 
tourism; 
- Legislation; 
- Executive competencies to promote and support related 
projects and development measures; 
- Control of the implementation by the local tourist agencies. 
PUBLIC/PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL ÔSTERREICH WERBUNG (Austrian National Tourist Office -
LEVEL ANTO) 
An association between the Federal Ministry of Economic 
Affairs, the 9 federal provinces, and the Austrian tourist industry 
(represented by the Economic Chamber) to promote tourism in 
Austria on the domestic market and abroad. 
34 
(at national level) KURATORIUM DES ÔSTERREICHISCHEN FREMDEN-
VERKEHRS (Board of Trustees of Austrian Tourism) 
Responsible for: 
- Coordination committee of the Federal state, the Federal 
Provinces, and the Federal Economic Chamber. 
BÛRGES. Bank of the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs for 
the administration of support schemes for SMEs in tourism. 
AT REGIONAL LANDESFREMDENVERKEHRSVERBÀNDE (regional 
LEVEL associations) - groupings of the tourist offices of various regions 
Responsible for: 
- Joint promotional and marketing activities. 
AT LOCAL LOKALE FREMDENVERKEHRSBUROS (local tourist 
LEVEL information offices) 
Responsible for: 
- Providing information on accommodation and local events; 
- Undertaking promotional and marketing activities on local 
level. 
PRIVATE SECTOR 
AT NATIONAL ÔSTERREICHISCHER KURORTE- UND HEILBÀDER-
LEVEL VERB AND (The Austrian Association of Health Resorts and 
Spas). 
HOTELTREUHAND GmbH (The Tourism Investment 
Services). 
ÔSTERREICHISCHER REISEBUROVERBAND (Austrian 
Association of Travel Agencies). 
OSTERREICHISCHE HOTELIERVEREINIGUNG (Austrian 
Hotel Association). 
BUND ÔSTERREICHISCHER GASTLICHKEIT -
RESTAURANTS (Association of Austrian Hospitality). 
35 
BELGIUM 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL NO MINISTRY COMPETENT 
AT REGIONAL 
LEVEL 
- FLANDERS VLAAMS MINISTER VAN KUULTUR EN BRUSSELSE 
AANGELEGENHEDEN (Minister for Culture and Brussels 
Affairs.) 
VLAAMS COMMISSARIAT GENERAL VOOR TOERISME -
VCGT (The Flemish Tourist Office) 
Responsible for: 
- Preparation and implementation of tourism legislation on 
hotels, campsites, social tourism and on travel agencies; 
- Provision of financial aid to the tourism sector in order to 
develop the tourist infrastructure and tourism activities in 
Flanders; 
- Development and monitoring of own investment projects in 
the tourism sector; 
- Research, planning, development and promotion both at home 
and abroad, of tourism in Flanders and the greater Brussels 
region; 
- Co-operation with the "Office De Promotion Du Tourisme" on 
the marketing, promotion, maintenance of eight national 
tourist offices abroad and the tourism office in Brussels. 
VLAAMSE ADVIESRAAD VOOR TOERISME (The Flemish 
Tourist Advisory Office) 
Responsible for: 
- Advice on all policy-related questions coming within the 
competence of the VCGT; 
- Establishment of six technical committees. 
- BRUSSELS MINISTRE POUR TRAVAUX PUBLICS, COMMUNICA­
TIONS, RENOVATION DES SITES D'ACTIVITES 
ECONOMIQUES DESAFFECTES, SANTE ET TOURISME / 
MINISTER VOOR OPENBARE WERKEN, 
COMMUNICATIE, ECONOMISCHE HEROPLEVING, 
GEZONDHEID EN TOERISME (Minister for Public Works, 
Communications, Economie Regeneration, Health and Tourism). 
36 
(Brussels) COMMISSARIAT GENERAL AU TOURISME - CGT (The 
Brussels Tourism Office). 
Since 1 January 1994 tourism has been managed separately in 
Brussels and Wallonie. As a result CGT administrations are 
currently being established within the French speaking and 
Flemish communities of Brussels. 
- WALLONIE MINISTRE POUR ECONOMIE, PME, TOURISME, 
RELATIONS EXTERIEURES, COMMERCE EXTERIEUR ET 
PATRIMOINE (Minister for Economy, SMEs, Tourism, 
External relations, Foreign Trade and National Heritage). 
COMMISSARIAT GENERAL DU TOURISME - CGT (The 
tourist office for Wallonie). 
Responsible for: 
- Preparation and implementation of tourism legislation (hotels, 
travel agents, holiday parks, and rural and social tourism); 
- Tourism development, allocation of tourism subsidies for 
social tourism, marketing, hotel renewals and development, 
tourism buildings (only hotels, open air accommodation and 
self-catering accommodation). 
OFFICE DE PROMOTION DU TOURISME - OPT (Tourist 
Promotion Office) 
Responsible for: 
- Marketing of the regions of Wallonie and Brussels: strategy, 
actions aimed at the trade and general public in Belgium and 
on the eight foreign markets together. 
Together with the VCGT responsible for: 
- Management of the eight national tourist offices in foreign 
countries ; 
- The "Maison du Tourisme" in Brussels; 
- Promotion of business tourism in Belgium. 
CONSEIL SUPERIEUR DU TOURISME (Tourism High 
Commission). 
Responsible for: 
- Giving advice on all tourism-related draft legislation; 
- The establishment of six "COMITES TECHNIQUES" which 
are responsible for provincial tourism federations; cities, 
towns and villages, tourist offices; rural tourism; low-cost 
tourism; businesses providing accommodation; travel 
agencies, open-air accommodation and social tourism. 
37 
- OST- MINISTER-"MINISTERPRASIDENT" (President of the 
KANTONE German-speaking Community) 
VERKEHRSAMT DER OSTKANTONE - VAK (The Transport 
Office) 
Responsible for: 
- Marketing, publicity, information, no legislation. 
AT LOCAL 10 FEDERATIONS PROVINCIALES/PROVINCIALE 
LEVEL FEDERATIES (provincial federations) 
Responsible for: 
- The promotion of tourism in the province and tourism 
information provision. 
PLAATSELIJK BUREAUS VOOR TOERISME / SYNDICATS 
D'INITIATIVES (local tourist offices). 
Responsible for: 
- Providing information on the local villages. 
38 
DENMARK 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL ERHVERVSMINISTER (Minister for Business and Industry) 
ERHVERVSMINISTERIET (Ministry for Business and 
Industry) 
Main duties: 
- Strategic planning and development of tourism; 
- Legal aspects; 
- Creation of good conditions for the tourism industry, 
including negotiations with other ministries and organisations; 
- Working for the preservation and development of the cultural 
and natural heritage in co-operation with other relevant 
authorities; 
- Administration of an " industry network scheme". 
DANMARKS TURISTRÀDS (The Danish National Tourist 
Board) - (A tourism marketing organisation) 
Responsible for: 
- Coordination of the promotion of Denmark as a tourist 
destination abroad and in Denmark (this includes both leisure 
and business tourism); 
- Analysing and monitoring the markets as well as developing 
new markets. 
TURIST POLITISK KONTAKTUVALG (Contact Committee 
for Tourism Policy). 
The committee is an advisory group to the Minister. Members of 
the committee are main industry organisations and other relevant 
organisations. 
It is a political forum for discussing a wide range of tourism 
related subjects. 
AT REGIONAL 
LEVEL AMTSKOMMUNER (county councils) 
Responsible for: 
- Development of regional strategies and Coordination with 
other policy areas. 
39 
AT LOCAL KOMMUNER (Municipalities) 
LEVEL x, . +. ... . , , 
Main activities include: 
- Provision of information and services for tourists through the 
TURIST BUREAUER (Tourist Information Offices); 
- Local strategies and development. 
TURIST BUREAUER (Local tourism information offices) 
Main duties: 
- Information, guidance etc.; 
- Reservation of hotel rooms. 
PUBLIC/PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS 
AT REGIONAL TURIST EKSPORTGRUPPER (Tourism Exporting Groups) 
LEVEL 
The tourism exporting groups are composed of participants from 
both the private and public sector. 
Main duties: 
- Promotion abroad and in Denmark of the geographical area 
that the exporting group covers; 
- Development of tourism in the region. 
CONGRESS AND CONVENTION AGENCIES 
In the four largest towns in Denmark congress and convention 
agencies have been established. 
Main duties: 
- Promotion; 
- Assisting in the practical implementation of arrangements. 
PRIVATE SECTOR 
AT NATIONAL TURISMENS F^LLESRÂD (The Tourism Industry Council) 
LEVEL 
An umbrella organisation for private industry (e.g. major hotel 
chains or SAS etc.). 
The Council acts as a partner to the Ministry responsible for 
tourism and gives advice. 
It co-ordinates tourism industry activities. 
AT LOCAL TURISTFORENINGER (Local Tourist Associations) 
Responsible for: 
- In co-operation with the local authorities, local tourism 
information offices (turistbureauer); 
- Provision of a forum for discussing the development of 
tourism locally. 
40 
FINLAND 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL ULKOASIANMINISTERIO (Minister For Foreign Trade) 
KAUPPA- JA TEOLLISUUSMINISTERIÔ 
(Ministry Of Trade And Industry) 
KAUPPAOSASTO (Trade Department) 
Responsible for: 
- Co-ordination and implementation of tourist policies; 
- Management of the Finnish Tourist Board; 
- International co-operation. 
YRITYSKEHITYSOSASTO (Business Development 
Department) 
Responsible for: 
- Development and financing of small and medium-sized 
enterprises. 
YMPARISTOMINISTERIO (Ministry Of Environment) 
Responsible for: 
- Integration of environmental policy; 
- Land use planning; 
- Nature conservation; 
- Outdoor recreation; 
- Preserving cultural heritage and landscape. 
LIIKENNEMINISTERIÔ (Ministry of Transport and 
Communication) 
Responsible for: 
- Transportation; 
- Telecommunications. 
OPETUSMINISTERIÔ (Ministry Of Education 
Responsible for: 
- Vocational training in the field of tourism; 
- Youth tourism. 
41 
(at national level) MAA- JA METSÂTALOUSMINISTERIÔ (Ministry of 
Agriculture & Forestry) 
Responsible for: 
- Administration of state-owned areas: recreation, fishing and 
hunting sports. 
SISÀASIAINMINISTERIÔ (Ministry of the Interior) 
Responsible for: 
- Regional tourism development. 
SOSIAALI- JA TERVEYSMINISTERIÔ (Ministry of Social 
Affairs and Health) 
Responsible for: 
- Social tourism. 
KULUTTAJAVIRASTO (National Consumer Administration 
Responsible for: 
- Consumer affairs regarding tourism; 
- Supervision of the guarantee system regarding package travel. 
MATKAILUN EDISTÀMISKESKUS (Finnish Tourist Board) 
A Government agency whose members of the board of directors 
come mainly from the tourist industry. The Chairman is the 
Secretary General of the Ministry of Trade and Industry. 
Responsible for: 
- Marketing tourism in Finland to both the domestic market and 
abroad; 
- 14 tourist offices abroad. 
EU-ASIAIN KOMITEAN ALAINEN MATKAILUPALVELUT 
JAOSTO (EEA/EU Subcommittee For Tourism Services) 
This bqdy consists of representatives of the Ministries of Trade 
and Industry, Foreign Affairs, Transport and Communications, 
and the Environment, the Finnish Tourist Board, the National 
Consumer Administration, The Association of Finnish Local 
Authorities, Hotel and Restaurant Council, Hotel and Restaurants 
Workers Union, the Association of regional tourism 
organisations, Association of Finnish Travel Agents, the Finnish 
Ship owners Association and Finnair. 
Responsible for: 
- Proposals and co-ordination. 
42 
AT REGIONAL LÀÂNINHALLITUKSET (Provincial state offices) 
LEVEL 0 ... ~ 
Responsible tor: 
- Handling of tourism-related questions. 
MAAKUNNAN LIITOT (Regional councils) 
Formed by the municipalities to deal with tourist issues. 
Responsible for: 
- Development of initiatives similar to those undertaken within 
the framework of the EU structural funds. 
AT All municipalities belong to the Association of Finnish Local 
MUNICIPALITY Authorities. 
I FVEL 
The larger municipalities have tourist offices, while in the others, 
tourism is mostly handled by the industry officials. 
PRIVATE SECTOR 
AT NATIONAL MATKAILUN KOULUTUS- JA TUTKIMUSKESKUS 
LEVEL (Centre For Tourism Studies - CTS) 
Responsible for: 
- Promotion of the tourist industry at the regional, national and 
international level; 
- Collection and dissemination of information; 
- Research on tourism; 
- Consultation with travel companies; 
- Training on the provision of tourist services and tourism 
professions. 
HOTELLI- JA RAVINTOLANEUVOSTO (Hotel And 
Restaurant Council) 
Umbrella organisation for hotel chains and private enterprises. 
KESKUSKAUPPAKAMARI (Central Chamber of Commerce) 
Minor role in the development of tourism. 
SUOMEN MATKATOIMISTOALAN LIITTO (Association of 
Finnish Travel Agents) 
Umbrella organisation for tour operators and travel agencies. 
SUOMEN VARUSTAMOYHDISTYS (Finnish Ship Owners 
Association) 
Umbrella organisation for Finnish ship owners. 
43 
(at national level) LINJA-AUTOLIITTO (The Finnish Bus and Coach Association) 
Umbrella organisation for Finnish bus companies. 
SUOMEN RETKEILYMAJAJARJESTO (Finnish Youth Hostel 
Association) 
Umbrella organisation for youth hostels. 
SUOMEN MATKAILULIITTO (Finnish Travel Association) 
Responsible for: 
- Managing camping sites belonging to the Association's 
national network. 
LOMARENGAS (the holiday chain) 
The main cottage rental association in Finland. 
HELSINKI - FINLAND CONGRESS BUREAU 
Umbrella organisation for congress and conference cities, centres 
and service providers. 
FINLAND FESTIVALS 
Umbrella organisation for major cultural events. 
AUTOLIITTO (Automobile and Touring Club of Finland) 
SUOMEN LATU (Finnish Ski Track Association) 
SF-CARAVAN 
Consumer organisations which provide members with tourism 
information and services. 
MATKAILUASIAMIEHET, SUOMEN OPASLIITTO (Tourist 
Officers Association, Federation of Finnish Tourist Guides) 
Professional organisations. 
AT REGIONAL 
LEVEL SUOMA - SUOMEN MATKAILUN 
ALUEORGANISAATIOIDEN YHDISTYS (Association of 
Regional Tourism Organisations) 
Umbrella organisation for regional tourism bodies. 
44 
FRANCE 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL MINISTRE DE L'EQUIPEMENT, DES TRANSPORTS ET DU 
TOURISME (Minister of Establishments, Transport and 
Tourism) 
MINISTERE DE L'EQUIPEMENT, DES TRANSPORTS ET 
DU TOURISME - DIRECTION DU TOURISME (Ministry of 
Establishments, Transport and Tourism, Tourism Directorate) 
Responsible for: 
- Legislative power; 
- International relations; 
- Economic policy- monitoring and control of regional policies; 
- Promotion activities; 
- Financial and budgetary power. 
COMITE INTERMINISTERIEL POUR LE TOURISME 
SOCIAL (Inter-ministerial committee for social tourism) 
AGENCE NATIONALE DU CHEQUE VOYAGE (National 
Agency for Travel Cheques) - A body controlled by the 
Ministère de l'Economie et du Tourisme. 
Main activities: 
- Promotion of social tourism; 
- Consultation. 
CONSEIL NATIONAL DU TOURISME (National Tourism 
Council) - consists oJ representatives of the industry and local 
authorities and comes under the Minister responsible for tourism. 
Main activities: 
- Consultative body for tourism - related questions; 
- Disciplinary commission for those working in the tourist 
industry, monitoring of quality; 
- Participation of tourism professionals in devising national 
policies. 
45 
AT REGIONAL 
LEVEL DELEGATIONS REGIONALES AU TOURISME ( State 
Services - Regional offices of the national central administration) 
Responsibilities include: 
- Participation in the implementation of the tourism regulation; 
- Public funds planning, budgetary and financial management 
of planning contracts; 
- Advisory services to the council members and to the 
economic operators; 
- Economic monitoring. 
COMITES REGIONAUX DU TOURISME (Regional 
Committees for tourism) 
Responsible for: 
- Development and follow-up of the regional plan for tourism 
and leisure development; 
- Promotion of the region in France and abroad; 
- Budget planning and planning control; 
- Economic monitoring 
COMMISSION REGIONALES D'ACTIVITES 
TOURISTIQUES (advisory committee) - created by law 
(13.07.92), it consists of representatives from the public and 
professional sectors. 
- Advisory body on all tourism related issues. 
PREFECTURES DE DEPARTEMENT (departmental 
adminisatrations) 
Responsible for: 
- Implementation of national legislation. 
COMITES DEPARTEMENTALES DU TOURISME 
(departmental tourism committees) 
Responsible for : 
- Contributing to the development, promotion and marketing of 
tourist products in cooperation with economic operators and 
other bodies concerned 
COMMISSIONS DEPARTEMENTALES D'ACTIONS 
TOURISTIQUES (tourism advisory committees for the 
Départements) 
Responsibilities include: 
- A consultative role in disciplinary questions and classifica­
tion; 
- Administrative power with regard to the practice of 
commercial tourism activities. 
46 
PUBLIC/PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL MAISON DE LA FRANCE - (A partnership between the 
national administration, local authorities and the industry, under 
the control of the Directorate responsible for Tourism.) 
Responsible for: 
- Promotion of France abroad. 
AGENCE FRANÇAISE D'INGENIERIE TOURISTIQUE 
(AFIT) - (Public sector body under the control of the State) 
Responsible for: 
- Tourism product development for the domestic and export 
market. 
OBSERVATOIRE NATIONAL DU TOURISME (National 
Tourism Observatory) 
Main activities: 
- Socio-economic analysis of tourism; 
- Statistics. 
47 
GERMANY 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL DEUTSCHER BUNDESTAG (Federal Parliament)- A 
Parliamentary Committee for Tourism has existed since 1991. 
Main acitivity: 
- Preparation of parliamentary decisions. 
WIRTSCHAFTSMINISTER (Minister For Economic Affairs) 
PARLAMENTARISCHER STAATSSEKRETÀR IM BMWi 
(Parliamentary Secretary Of State For Economic Affairs) 
BUNDESMINISTERIUM FUR WIRTSCHAFT - BMWi 
(Ministry for Economic Affairs) 
Tourism Unit in the Directorate General for Enterprise Policy, 
services, research and technology - policy in the Federal 
Ministry. 
Responsible for: 
- Co-ordination of interests at federal level: (foreign affairs, 
justice, transport, environment); 
- Development of strategic policy lines and improvement of the 
business environment, provision and maintenance of 
framework conditions; 
- Enhancement of the efficiency and competitiveness of the 
German tourism industry (especially SMEs); 
- Formation of Bund-Lander activities. Co-operation with 
Tourism Advisory Committee; 
- Representation of Germany in EU and international 
organisations. 
PUBLIC/PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL DT. ZENTRALE FUR TOURISMUS - DZT (German National 
Tourist Organisation) - A body with public and private 
membership (private sector associations), which is in receipt of 
public and private sector funding, with a board of directors made 
up of representatives from industry, the federal ministries, and 
the Lander. It is the official tourist organisation responsible for 
promotion abroad. 
Activities include: 
- Strategic marketing planning for Germany as a tourist 
destination particularly for international visitors; 
- NTO representation of the interests of German tourism in 
national and international bodies. 
48 
(at national level) DEUTSCHER FREMDENVERKEHRSVERBAND e.V. - DFV 
(German Association of Regional Tourist Organisations) - An 
association concerned with the development and promotion of 
domestic tourism on a national level. DFV is a member of DZT. 
Activities include: 
- Representation of members' interests at national level; 
- Representation of own members within DZT; 
- PR and marketing services are offered to members. 
PRIVATE SECTOR 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL DEUTSCHER REISEBÙROVERBAND - DRV (German 
Association of Travel Agencies and Tour Operators) 
Activities include: 
- Representation of member interests at national and 
international level; 
- Special services offered to members (counselling on questions 
of management, finance, training, and marketing). 
DEUTSCHER HOTEL- UND GASTSTÀTTENVERBAND 
DEHOGA (German Association of Hotels and Restaurants) 
Activities include: 
- Representation of members' interests (economic, labour 
relations, professional, etc.) at national level; 
- Assistance is given to members in the areas of 
promotion/marketing and training management. 
DEUTSCHER BÂDERVERBAND e.V. - DBV-(German 
Association of Spas and Health Resorts) 
Activities include: 
- Representation of members' interests at national level; 
- Support and development of spa and health tourism; 
- Preservation of natural and recreational resources; 
- Support for scientific research; 
- Development of quality standards. 
VERBAND MITTELSTANDISCHER REISEUNTERNEHMEN 
asr (Association of Independent Travel Agencies and Tour 
Operators). 
BUNDESVERBAND DEUTSCHER OMNIBUSUNTER-
NEHMEN (Association of German Coach Enterprises). 
INTERNATIONALER BUSTOURISTIK VERBAND, RDA 
(International Association for Coach Tourism). 
49 
(at national level) DEUTSCHES FREMDENVERKEHRSPRASIDIUM (German 
Association of the Tourist and Travel Industry) 
Activities include: 
- Representation of the common interests of the German 
tourism industry to Parliament and Government; 
- Conceptual work on the development of future tourism 
policies. 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT REGIONAL LANDER PARLIAMENTS AND GOVERNMENTS 
LEVEL (Parliamentary Committees and Ministries for Economic Affairs) 
Main duties: 
- Leading role in tourism at state level; 
- Support for infrastructure development; 
- Support schemes for tourism SMEs and destinations (spas and 
social affairs, marketing and research). 
LANDES- UND REGIONALFREMDENVERKEHRS-
VERBÀNDE (Tourism association for the German Lander and 
regions) 
<n 
GREECE 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL YnOYFTOE TO YPIEMOY (Minister of Tourism) 
YnOYPTEIO TOYPISMOY (Ministry of Tourism) 
Responsible for: 
- the control and co-ordination of the actions of the Greek 
National Tourism Organisation and its local offices; 
- the development and implementation of tourism policy; 
- The Hellenic Chamber of Hotels; 
• The State S chool of Tourism Professions. 
EAAHN1KOZ OPrANIXMOZ TOYPISMOT (EOT) 
(Greek National Tourism Organisation -ONTO) 
This is the main body for implementing and developing 
programmes for development and co-ordination of tourism 
related actions. 
Responsible for: 
- Promotion of Greece - domestic and abroad; 
- Organisation of cultural events; 
- Provision of tourism infrastructure; 
- Information for tourism professionals (i.e. tour operators, etc.) 
and tourists; 
- Licensing and monitoring of hotels, all tourism facilities. 
travel agencies and tourism professions. 
AIOIKHT1KOIYMBOYAIO EOT 
The Administrative Council ofGNTO is made up of the President 
and the Secretary General ofGNTO, a representative of the 
Ministry of Culture, and four representative members ot the 
tourism sector, selected by the Minister.) 
SENGÛQXHAKO ETTIMEAHTHPIO EAAAAOI 
(HELLENIC CHAMBER OF HOTELS -XEE) 
Represents the Greek hoteliers and advises the GNTO. 
AT LOCAL 
LEVEL 11 riEPttEPElAKEX MET0YN2HI E-O.T, 
(11 REGIONAL GNTO DIRECTIONS) 
Responsible for: 
- Operation of tourist offices; 
- Tourism information provision for both professionals (i.e. tour 
operators) and travellers in the domestic market and abroad. 
51 
ICELAND 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL RÀDHERRA FERDAMÂLA (Minister for Tourism). 
LEVEL SAMGONGURADUNEYTIO (Ministry Of Communication 
Transport And Tourism) 
Responsible for : 
- Co-ordination; 
- Representation at the international level. 
PUBLIC/PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL FERBAMÂLARÂB ISLANDS (Icelandic Tourist Board) 
LEVEL 23 Members (Five members are appointed by the Minister and 18 
are appointed by the industry.) 
Responsible for: 
- Organisation and planning of tourism in Iceland; 
- Marketing and PR. abroad; 
- International relations; 
- Consulting and assisting providers of tourist services and co­
ordination of their activities; 
- Environmental initiatives; 
- Monitoring of the quality of tourist services; 
- Operation of offices abroad. 
AT LOCAL LOCAL OFFICES 
LEVEL 
- Promotion of tourism in the region; 
- Information services. 
52 
IRELAND 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL MINISTER FOR TOURISM AND TRADE: 
DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM AND TRADE - TOURISM 
DEPARTMENT 
Responsible for: 
- Policy formulation; 
- Funding and monitoring executive agencies; 
- Overall co-ordination of the "Operational Programme for 
Tourism", involving expenditure by a number of State 
departments and agencies and private sector initiatives. 
BOARD FAILTE EIREANN (BFE) 
(IRISH TOURIST BOARD) 
The executive agency responsible for promoting and developing 
tourist domestic and inbound traffic to Ireland, through the 
implementation of government policy. 
Responsible for: 
- Administration of grant schemes for the development of 
accommodation and amenities, using national and EU funds; 
- Overseas marketing and market research; 
- Coordination of industry activities; 
- Monitoring of quality and standards. 
COUNCIL FOR EDUCATION, RECRUITMENT AND 
TRAINING FOR THE HOTEL, CATERING AND TOURIST 
INDUSTRY (CERT) 
Responsible for: 
- Provision of training for those entering the hotel, catering and 
tourism industry; 
- Provision of vocational training. 
53 
PUBLIC/PRIVATE SECTOR INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL TOURISM COUNCIL - An advisory body chaired by the 
T FVFT 
i^ v n,u Minister of Tourism consisting of 24 Members who represent 
government departments, state agencies and major tourism 
sectors e.g. Aer Lingus, the National Airlines. 
Responsible for: 
- National forum for consultation between the tourism industry, 
state tourism agencies and governmental departments; 
- Advisory body to the Minister for Tourism - operates via three 
specialist working groups which focus on key issues affecting 
tourism development. The subjects covered are access, 
marketing and product quality/development. 
AT REGIONAL 6 REGIONAL TOURISM ORGANISATIONS (RTOs) 
LEVEL (Established and controlled by the BFE): 
Responsible for: 
- Provision of information and services for tourists through the 
operation of a national network of Tourist Information 
Offices; 
- Regional marketing; 
- Production of regional and local tourism development plans; 
- Encouraging of environmental awareness; 
- Initial assessment of investment projects applying for fund 
support; 
- Accommodation inspections and monitoring of standards; 
- Management of the County Tourism Committees; 
- Organisation of an Annual regional forum of all the 
committees. 
AT LOCAL COUNTY TOURISM COMMITTEES (New institutional 
LEVEL structures, in the process of being established, based on county 
divisions.) 
Responsible for: 
- Stimulation and coordination of tourism projects at the local 
level; 
- Formulation of county tourism action plans for incorporation 
in the regional tourism plans produced by the RTOs. 
54 
(at local level) SHANNON FREE AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT COMPANY 
LIMITED (SFADCO) Acts as RTO for the Shannon Region. 
Responsible for: 
- Promotion and development of activities concerning airline 
services, passenger traffic and freight traffic through Shannon 
airport; 
- The development and marketing of SFADCO-owned tourism 
products overseas. 
55 
ITALY 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
; , 
AT NATIONAL SOTTO-SEGRETARIO DI STATO ALLA PRESIDENZA DEL 
LEVEL CONSIGLIO (Under-Secretary of State at the Presidency of the 
Council of Ministers) 
PRESIDENZA DEL CONSIGLIO DEI MINISTRI -
DIPARTIMENTO DEL TURISMO (Presidency of the Council 
of Ministers - Department of Tourism) 
Responsible for: 
- Definition of general policy, mainly concerning international 
negotiations and agreements; 
- Participation in the definition and implementation of the 
Community activity; 
- Orientation and coordination of the activities of the Regions 
and of the tourist enterprise regulation; 
- Collection and preparation of statistical information; 
- Control of relevant national bodies: ACI (automobile club), 
CAI (alpine club), ENIT (National Tourist Board). 
ENTE NAZIONALE ITALIANO PER IL TURISMO - ENIT 
(Italian State Tourist Board) 
Responsible for: 
- Organisation and implementation of promotions abroad. 
AT REGIONAL ASSESSORATO (Regional "Ministry") in every region 
LEVEL r> -ui r 
Responsible tor: 
- Planning and implementation of tourist development and all 
administrative competencies regulating the sector. 
AT LOCAL AZIENDA DI PROMOZIONE TURISTICA (Tourist Promotion 
LEVEL Board) in some regions it can cover the whole territory 
PRO-LOCO (Local Agency) 
PROVINCIA (District) 
COMUNE (Municipality) 
Responsible for: 
- Promotion and management of local resources. 
56 
LUXEMBOURG 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL MINISTRE DU TOURISME (Minister For Tourism) 
LEVEL MINISTERE DU TOURISME (Tourism Ministry) 
Responsible for: 
- Implementation of the 5th Five-year-programme for the 
development of the tourism infrastructure; 
-' Execution of the projects of the municipalities, tourist offices, 
modernisation projects for the hotel industry, environmental 
projects; 
- International relations and cross border co-operation; 
- Holidays-on-a-farm project; 
- Preservation of the cultural heritage; 
- Improvement of information facilities such as data bases; 
- Studies on the tourist infrastructure; 
- Camping holidays; 
- Cycling tracks; 
- Organisation of tourism fairs abroad; 
- Conference tourism; 
- Youth hostels; 
- Management of local tourist info-offices. 
OFFICE NATIONAL DU TOURISME (National Tourist Office) 
- Market analyses; 
- Promotion activities (publicity campaigns, exhibitions, etc); 
- Tourism training and education for employees. 
57 
NETHERLANDS 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL STAATSECRETARIS VOOR ECONOMISCHE ZAKEN 
LEVEL (The Secretary Of State For Economic Affairs) 
MINISTERIE VAN ECONOMISCHE ZAKEN - Afdeling 
Tourisme 
(Ministry For Economic Affairs - Tourism Division) 
Responsible for: 
- Co-ordination, formulation and execution of tourism policy; 
- Co-operation with the Ministries of Welfare, Public Health 
and Culture, Transport and Public Works, Agriculture, Nature 
Management and Fisheries; 
- Funding of the NBT Dutch Tourist Board, which promotes 
tourism in the country and abroad; 
- International relations and representation in international 
organisations. 
MINISTERIE VAN LANDBOUW NATUURBEHEER EN 
VISVANGST (Ministry of Agriculture, Nature Management and 
Fisheries) 
Responsible for: 
- Promotion of open-air recreation. 
PUBLIC/PRIVATE SECTOR INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL NEDERLANDSBUREAU VOOR TOERISME - NBT (Dutch 
LEVEL Tourist Board) 
Responsible for: 
- 50:50 co-financing by industry and government; 
- Promotion and stimulation of domestic and incoming tourism. 
KONINKLIJKE NEDERLANDSE TOERISTENBOND -
ANWB (The Royal Netherlands Tourist Association) - a 
consumer organisation which promotes tourism and leisure 
activities. 
Responsible for: 
- Preparation and introduction of classification schemes; 
- Supply of consumer information services and research; 
- International price comparisons. 
58 
(at national level) STICHTING TOERISME & RECREATIE (The Tourism and 
Leisure Foundation) - AVN (ANWB, VVV, NBT) 
- Set up by the three above-mentioned organisations to co­
ordinate promotional activities for domestic tourism. 
AT LOCAL VERENIGINGEN VOOR VREEMDELINGEN VERKEER 
LEVEL (local tourism offices) 
- 400 local tourism offices, 15 regional "promotional" offices; 
- Varying scale of operations, available budgets and 
professional staff (smaller ones rely on volunteers). 
59 
NORWAY 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL ' NÀRINGS - OG ENERGIDEPARTEMENT (Ministry of 
LEVEL Industry and Energy, Industrial Policy Department) 
Responsible for: 
- Official tourist policy; 
- Interdepartmental co-operation; 
- Increasing the tourist industry's profitability; 
- Foundation of the National Tourist Board (NORTRA), the 
central marketing agency of the Norwegian tourism industry. 
INTERDEPARTMENTAL GRUPPE FOR TURIST 
SP0RSMÀL I E0S (Inter ministerial Committee related to 
Questions on Tourism in the EEA) 
Responsible for: 
- Co-ordination of tourist policies. 
AT REGIONAL KOMMUNER KONTORER (Offices Of The County 
LEVEL Municipalities And Municipalities) 
60 
PORTUGAL 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL MINISTERIO DO COMERCIO E TURISMO (Ministry of 
Commerce and Tourism) 
SECRETERIA DE ESTADO DO TURISMO (Secretary of State 
for Tourism) 
Responsible for: 
- General Directorate for Tourism (see below); 
- National Institute for Training in Tourism (see below); 
- General Inspectorate for gambling activities (inspection and 
exploitation of gambling activities); 
- National enterprise for tourism (ENATUR, SA) (management 
and exploitation of the "Pousadas" chain, exploitation of the 
national heritage for tourism purposes); 
- Tourism Fund (stimulates investments by credit assured for 
the sector); 
- Investments, commerce and tourism - ICEP (tourist 
information and promotion, Public Relations, technical 
assistance); 
- Coordination between the national and regional authorities. 
DÏRECÇAO GERAL DO TURISMO (General Directorate for 
Tourism) 
Responsible for: 
- Organisation and distribution of the documentation on 
Portuguese tourism; 
- Managing and protection of tourist resources and of cultural 
heritage; 
- Development and management of tourist services; 
- Definition of the tourist policy; 
- Promotion. 
INSTITUTO NACIONAL DE FORMAÇÂO TURISTICA 
(National Institute For Training In Tourism) 
Responsible for: 
- Promotion and co-ordination of education and training for 
employers in the tourist industry; 
- Promotion of the tourist profession abroad. 
61 
(at national level) COMITÉ CONSULTIVO DE TURISMO (Advisory Committee 
on Tourism) 
Responsible for: 
- Consultation and coordinating tasks between the Department, 
the tourist regions and public as well as representatives from 
the private sector of the tourist industry. 
AT LOCAL DEPARTAMENTOS REGIONAIS E LOCAIS DE TURISMO 
LEVEL (Regional and Local Departments of Tourism) 
Responsible for: 
- Exploitation of regional tourist resources and local heritage; 
- Promotion of the tourist supply in the domestic market and 
abroad. 
62 
SPAIN 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL COMISIONINTERMINISTERIAL DE TURISMO 
LEVEL (Intergovernmental body created by Royal Decree 14 January 
1994). 
Responsible for: 
- Developing greater co-ordination between the different 
government departments of the national administration on 
issues that concern tourism; 
- Devising work groups to consider particular tourism issues; 
- Considering all proposed actions, measures with an impact on 
tourism. 
MINISTRO DE COMERCIO Y TURISMO (Minister For 
Commerce And Tourism) 
MINISTERIO DE COMERCIO Y TURISMO (Ministry For 
Commerce And Tourism) 
Responsible for: 
- Co-ordination of all tourist related policies of the various 
ministries and public administration; 
- Evaluation and formulation of the basic action plans for the 
government; 
- Regulation of academic tourism qualifications; 
- International and diplomatic relations; 
- Tourism statistics. 
63 
(at national level) SECRETARIA GENERAL DE TURISMO (Secretariat General 
for Tourism). 
Responsible for: 
- Implementation and administration of the government's tourist 
policy; 
- Control of government tourist services; 
- Co-ordination of the foreign tourism policy between the State 
and the autonomous regions; 
- Co-ordination and encouragement of public and private sector 
external promotional activities and initiatives; 
- Determination of general guidelines for the promotion of 
tourism abroad; annual preparation of the "General 
Programme for the Promotion of Tourism Abroad" for the 
benefit of the autonomous regions; 
- Implementation of architectural projects involving the 
Paradores de Turismo (public hotel chain); 
- Provision of financial support to companies for the 
implementation of tourist promotion projects abroad and the 
opening of tourist markets ; 
- Granting state aid to companies to launch and widen their 
commercial activities abroad; 
- Tourism training and education - this responsibility is shared 
with the Autonomous regions; 
- Statistics, studies, evaluation of the market trends. 
DIRECCION GENERAL DE ESTRATEGA TURISTICA 
(Directorate General for Tourism Strategy) 
Responsible for: 
- Co-ordination of tourist related matters and competencies 
between the autonomous communities and territorial entities. 
- International relations; 
- Preparing and drafting of international instruments such as 
conventions; 
- Administration of funds for tourist projects; 
- Studies of the different aspects and impacts of tourism, 
especially on the infrastructure of the sector concerned; 
- Development of tourist projects (innovation of the sector, new 
promotion schemes); 
- State aids for companies and public or private Spanish 
institutions: analysis of the contribution, products and 
destination of the company. 
64 
(at national level) DIRECCION GENERAL DE PROMOCION TURISTICA 
(Directorate General for the Promotion of Tourism) 
Responsible for: 
- Tourism promotion and marketing activities abroad according 
to the directives given by the Secretaria General de Turismo 
as an important sector of the national economy; 
- Integrated presentation of the Spanish tourism supply, 
highlighting the individuality of the various regions; 
- Running of info-campaigns, PR., advertising; cooperation 
with the Press; 
- Publication of printed material, production of audio-visual 
info-material; 
- Distribution of tourist information in Spain and abroad. 
- Establishment of tourism-related databanks; 
- Participation in tourist fairs and exhibitions; 
- Co-operation with local administrations and industry. 
OFICINAS ESPANOLAS DE TURISMO EN EL 
EXTRANJERO (Spanish Tourism Offices Abroad) 
Responsible for: 
- Overseas promotion and marketing activities as directed by 
TURESPANA; 
- Co-operation with the autonomous regions concerning their 
promotion overseas in line with the General Programme of 
overseas tourism promotion. 
INSTITUTO DE ESTUDIOS TURISTICOS (Institute of 
Tourism Studies) 
Responsible for: 
- 'Gathering documentation, information and research on 
tourism; 
- Provision of specialist services in market research and training 
of human resources; 
- Development of distribution systems and dissemination of 
information. 
ESCUELA OFICIAL DE TURISMO (Official School of 
Tourism) 
- The national tourism school for the training of tourist 
professionals and providers of tourist services. 
PARADORES DE TURISMO (public hotel chain) 
Responsible for: 
- Monitoring of the quality of tourist accommodation 
establishments; 
- Protection of the cultural heritage and environment. 
65 
AT REGIONAL "CONSEJERIAS" (Administrative regional councils in the 
LEVEL autonomous provinces) 
Responsible for: 
- Tourism promotion and planning activities at the regional 
level; 
- Control of the tourist activities of companies. 
AT LOCAL MUNICIPALIDAD (Municipality) 
LEVEL T-» MI c 
Responsible tor: 
- Promotion of tourist activities on a local level. 
PRIVATE SECTOR 
AT NATIONAL CONFEDERACION ESPANOLA DE ORGANIZACIONES 
LEVEL EMPRESARIALES - CEOE (Confederation of Spanish 
Industry). 
Responsible for: 
- Representation of the tourist industry as a social partner 
organisation; 
- Active participation in the policy - making process. 
66 
SWEDEN 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL NÀRINGSMINISTER (Minister For Industry and Commerce) 
LEVEL NÀRINGSDEPARTEMENTET (Ministry of Industry and 
Commerce) 
Responsible for: 
- Representation of Swedish tourism interests with international 
organisations; 
- Development of co-operation between state and industry. 
PUBLIC/PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL STYRELSEN FOR SVERIGEBILDEN 
LEVEL (Image Sweden - Agency created by the Government) 
The board of Image Sweden consists mainly of business and 
marketing professionals. 
Responsible for: 
- Strategic planning of promotional activities; 
- Evaluation of promotional activities already carried out; 
- International tourism contacts; 
- Dissemination of information abroad about Sweden. 
TRAVEL AND TOURISM COUNCIL Inc. ("Next Stop 
SWEDEN") - created following a decision in the Parliament. It is 
a joint enterprise which includes a large part of the tourism 
sector. 
Responsible for: 
- Practical implementation of joint promotional activities on 
behalf of Image Sweden; 
- Management of offices established abroad to promote 
Sweden. 
SVERIGES EXPORTRÂD (Swedish Trade Council) 
- Supplier of services to Image Sweden. 
SVENSKA INSTITUTET (Swedish Institute) 
- Supplier of services to Image Sweden. 
67 
AT REGIONAL/ 
LOCAL LEVEL Joint actions between the municipalities and industry to run local 
offices with information services and implementation of 
promotional activities. Co-ordinatated actions between the 
national and regional level. 
68 
UNITED KINGDOM 
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS 
AT NATIONAL 
LEVEL MINISTER : SECRETARY OF STATE FOR NATIONAL 
HERITAGE 
MINISTRY : DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL HERITAGE 
Responsible for: 
- Tourism policy for England; 
- Co-ordination of UK tourism policy. 
MINISTER FOR TOURISM 
Responsible for: 
- Day to day co-ordination. 
DEPARTMENT OF NATIONAL HERITAGE - The Tourism 
Division is divided in two branches 
Branch 1 
Responsible for: 
- Sponsorship of the tourist industry in England; 
- Inter-departmental co-ordination on issues like deregulation; 
- Tourism representation at the international level. 
Branch 2 
Responsible for: 
- All issues related to the British Tourist Authority and the 
English Tourist Board; 
- Statistics on tourism worked on in a tourism unit within the 
Central Statistical Office; 
- Tourism in England; 
- Encouragement of inward and domestic tourism; 
- Coordination of inter-departmental links; 
- Representation of the British tourist industry abroad and in 
international organisations; 
- Funding of the British Tourist Authority (BTA), which 
promotes Britain abroad and has a responsibility to further the 
development of tourist amenities and facilities throughout 
Great Britain; 
- Funding of the English Tourist Board (ETB) which is 
responsible for development and promotion of tourism within 
England. 
69 
(at national level) REGIONAL UNIT of the Department of National Heritage 
Responsible for: 
- Co-ordination between regional bodies, e.g. tourist boards, 
arts or sports councils with a view to forging stronger links 
and reduce overlapping actions; 
- Advice to the Department of Environment on the funding of 
projects through the European Regional Development Fund. 
BRITISH TOURIST AUTHORITY - BTA 
(Funded by the Department of National Heritage, the BTA 
operates through its 32 overseas offices and representatives) 
Responsible for: 
- Promotion of Britain abroad; 
- Development of tourist amenities and facilities in Great 
Britain. 
AT COUNTRY 
LEVEL MINISTER : SECRETARY OF STATE FOR WALES 
WELSH OFFICE 
Responsible for: 
- Tourism in Wales; 
- Funding of the Wales Tourist Board. 
MINISTER : SECRETARY OF STATE FOR SCOTLAND 
SCOTTISH OFFICE 
Responsible for: 
- Tourism in Scotland; 
- Funding of the Scottish Tourist Board. 
MINISTER : SECRETARY OF STATE FOR NORTHERN 
IRELAND 
DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 
(NORTHERN IRELAND) 
Responsible for: 
- Tourism in Northern Ireland; 
- Funding of the Northern Ireland Tourist Board. 
ENGLISH TOURIST BOARD - ETB 
(Funded by the Department of National Heritage.) 
Responsible for: 
- Development and promotion of tourism in England; 
- Provision of information on tourism in England. 
70 
(at country level) WALES TOURIST BOARD - WTB 
(Funded by the Welsh Office.) 
Responsible for: 
- Development and promotion of tourism in Wales; 
- Provision of information on tourism in Wales. 
SCOTTISH TOURIST BOARD - STB 
(Funded by the Scottish Office.) 
- Development and promotion of tourism in Scotland; 
- Provision of information on tourism in Scotland; 
- Promotion and marketing of Scotland overseas, in 
collaboration with BTA. 
NORTHERN IRELAND TOURIST BOARD - NITB 
(Funded by the Department for Economic Development -
Northern Ireland.) 
Responsible for: 
- Development of tourism amenities and facilities in Northern 
Ireland; 
- Provision of information on tourism in Northern Ireland; 
- Promotion and marketing of Northern Ireland overseas. 
AT LOCAL LOCAL AUTHORITIES 
Responsible for: 
- Provision of facilities and amenities; 
- Promotion, development and marketing of tourism in their 
area; 
- Funding and operation of Tourism Information Centres; 
- Influence tourism development through planning process; 
- Supporting their regional tourist boards. 
TOURIST INFORMATION CENTRES 
(Mainly funded and operated by local authorities.) 
Responsible for: 
- Mainly funded and operated by Local Authorities; 
- Tourist information services; 
- Booking and reservation services; 
- Collection of TIC usage figures for use by the regional tourist 
boards and others. 
71 
PUBLIC/PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS 
AT REGIONAL 11 REGIONAL TOURIST BOARDS (RTBs) FOR ENGLAND 
Responsible for: 
- Operating programmes on behalf of the England Tourist 
Board; 
- Representing private sector and local authority interests; 
- Maintaining the network of 570 tourist information centres in 
the country. 
32 AREA TOURIST BOARDS FOR SCOTLAND 
(They represent private sector and local authority interests.) 
Responsible for: 
- Operating programmes under contract to the Scottish Tourist 
Broad; 
- Tourism advisory services to the industry and information to 
tourists. 
AT LOCAL TRAINING AND ENTERPRISE COUNCILS - TECs 
LEVEL (In Wales and England) 
Government funded. The tourism industry is represented on the 
management boards of these TECs. 
Responsible for: 
- Providing information, advice and training services to SMEs; 
- Vocational tourism training which leads to obtaining a 
National Vocational Qualification (NVQS); 
- Liaison with the regional tourist boards. 
LOCAL ENTERPRISE COUNCILS - LECs 
Similar responsibilities as TECs in Scotland only. 
PRIVATE SECTOR 
AT NATIONAL BRITISH HOSPITALITY ASSOCIATION 
LEVEL 
Mainly representing hotels, restaurateurs and caterers. Well-
organised and influential group which lobbies government on 
behalf of its membership. Takes lead on issues such as training 
and raising standards. 
72 
(at national level) TOURISM SOCIETY 
Membership consists of the major operators in the British 
tourism industry. 
Responsible for: 
- Lobbying Government putting forward the views of industry 
on tourism; 
- Consulting Government both officially and informally; 
- JICTOURS initiative - aimed at improving the statistics 
available to the industry. 
ASSOCIATION OF LARGE VISITOR ATTRACTIONS -
ALVA 
Represents the interests of large UK visitor attractions to 
Government. 
AT REGIONAL 3 REGIONAL TOURIST COMPANIES FOR WALES 
LEVEL (Recently created private sector bodies) 
Responsible for: 
- Co-ordinating tourism activity at local level; 
- Representing tourism industry interests. 
ANNEX 4 
Summary table of amounts set aside for tourism 
within the Commumty support framework 
for the period 1989-93 
COUNTRY 
GREECE 
SPAIN 
FRANCE 
IRELAND 
ITALY 
PORTUGAL 
UK 
DENMARK 
GERMANY 
NETHERLANDS 
BELGIUM 
LUXEMBOURG 
TOTAL Obj.l (1989-93) 
243.6 
182.0 
34.3 
188.6 
786.0 
203.0 
46.2 
1683.7 Obj.2 (1989-93) 
24.7 
173.9 
0.5 
5.7 
10.1 
12.9 
271.9 Obj.5 (1989-93) 
17.68 
105.60 
51.20 
5.80 
9.0 
4.40 
0.40 
194.08 TOTAL 
243.60 
199.68 
184.00 
188.60 
861.9 
203.00 
225.9 
0.50 
5.70 
19.10 
17.30 
0.40 
2149.68 
"objective 2 (1992-1993) ECU 156.2 million 
73 
ISSN 0254-1475 
COM(95) 97 final 
DOCUMENTS 
EN 16 
Catalogue number : CB-CO-95-143-EN-C 
ISBN 92-77-87681-6 
Office for Official Publications of the European Communilies 
L-2985 Luxembourg