Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-11-28-Speech-3-222"
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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to congratulate the Committee Chairman, Mr Costa, on his report. The report makes clear the great extent to which tourism is influenced by different Community policies, but above all, it shows how important this sector is for Europe as a whole.
The Commission unveiled its new ‘Agenda for a sustainable and competitive European tourism’ last month. The components of that ‘Agenda’ constitute a response to the calls set out in this and the previous report from Parliament. I think that here too, we can look forward to continued good cooperation in future.
It is my hope that the ‘Agenda’ will be adopted by all tourism industry stakeholders and, indeed, by tourists themselves, and given that all of us in this Chamber are frequent travellers, that includes us as well.
Tourism is an expression of Europe’s lifestyle and prosperity but it is also a key economic sector with substantial potential for growth and employment. In fact, tourism already accounts directly and indirectly for more than 10% of gross domestic product in the European Union and provides around 12% of jobs.
However, it is not just Europe that is seeking to benefit from the extraordinary economic prospects afforded by the development of tourism. We have to equip ourselves with the capacities that will enable us to flourish in competition with other traditional and new tourism markets.
Here, Europe can build on the competitive advantages which already make it a highly attractive destination. We have an unparalleled heritage, a unique geographical concentration of attractive and culturally diverse sites, and we rightly have a reputation for a high level of service.
These are trump cards that we must play as we seek to develop Europe as a tourism product in future. Quite simply, our destinations must be the best and the most attractive, forming an offer that makes Europeans and non-Europeans want to spend their holidays here, again and again.
This means that the criteria which have to be met in other sectors of our economy have to be met in tourism as well: we need European tourism to be a product that is innovative and provides an optimum choice for consumers, that meets the highest quality standards and that is as environmentally friendly as possible. In short, it must be a product which is an expression of our European values and strengths.
Let me give you some examples of how we are promoting cooperation and keeping this competitive edge in the tourism sector. Last month, we had the European Tourism Forum in Portugal, an annual event bringing together all actors in this sector, and it is an excellent opportunity for cooperation and for showcasing Europe. On that occasion, I had the honour of presenting the ‘European Destination of Excellence’ award to 10 European destinations nominated as the Best Emerging European Rural Destinations of Excellence. This pilot project is helping to raise the profile of all Europe’s destinations outside Europe and draw attention to the diversity and quality of tourism in Europe. I would like to remind everyone that this type of project was explicitly called for in Parliament’s previous report initiated by Mr Queiró. I would like to thank the European Parliament and Mr Costa in particular for the generous support given to this successful initiative. I am pleased to say that far more countries are now participating in the second round of the competition.
We can also tell you at this stage that the web portal for ‘destination Europe’ has been a success and provides a sound basis with potential for expansion. We are currently exploring other ways of improving Europe’s image as a tourist destination and are hoping for your support here.
In conclusion, let me emphasise that increasing sustainability in tourism is a key aspect of our policy. I am convinced that if we integrate sustainability aspects into all areas of our tourism industry, this will enable us to protect those competitive advantages which already make Europe the world’s most attractive tourist destination."@en1
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