Boris Johnson is speaking as Mayor at the Visit London awards this evening. The advance press release is full of warm words. But the reality of Boris Johnson's administration has been huge cuts, almost one third, in budgets to promote London abroad and the departure of the Chief Executive of Visit London. Therefore ignore the words - just focus on the budgets. The key issue this evening will be whether Boris Johnson will be forced to declare he is reversing his cuts to the budgets to promote London abroad
First the words in Mayor's Office press release: ''The Mayor is expected to reinforce the message that London remains a top destination for tourists and is better value than ever for overseas visitors, in a keynote speech at Thursday's Visit London Awards... The Mayor wants to ensure that people continue to come to the capital from across the UK and overseas, to help the city's economy through the downturn.'
The reality of this administration? London Unlimited, the strategic body responsible for integrated promotion of London has been entirely abolished, its staff dismissed, and its budget abolished - London Unlimited brought together Visit London (tourism), Think London (inward investment), Film London, London Higher (London's higher education sector) and other agencies. Simultaneously Visit London's budget has been cut. The Chief Executive of Visit London has departed.
These cuts amount to a reduction of £6.5 million in the slightly over £20 million a year budget for promoting London - or a reduction by one third plus the departure of a Chief Executive admired in the industry. These cuts would be wrong at the best of times. They are totally damaging to London at a time when it faces economic recession, when tourism is one of London's most important industries, and when the importance of inward investment from the large new emerging economies of India and China is even more important to London than ever. It is even more ridiculous when the fall in the exchange rate of the pound means London has just become a cheaper, and therefore more attractive, destination for tourists and inward investors into London - this message should be being hammered out through increased spending on promoting London abroad not through cuts in such expenditure. Instead one of the world's most admired and effective city marketing machines, which brought many many millions of pounds of benefit to London's economy in increased tourist numbers, has either been abolished or seriously weakened by Boris Johnson's administration
Boris Johnson's administration has been subject to so much criticism on this that he may just be forced to announce these cuts are being reversed at Visit London's awards this evening. Those attending, and London as a whole, may ignore the words. They should concentrate on one thing - whether he will announce that the damaging cuts he imposed on promoting London abroad will be reversed.
Hopefully he will announce the reversal of the cuts - if not there should be uproar as his is deeply damaging London on this issue during a recession. But even if the cuts are reversed it shows the problem with Boris Johnson's administration. Occasionally reality comes along and hits it so hard on the head that it is forced to reverse course from its own failure to understand the key issues facing London. But London does not need an administration that is dragged along kicking and screaming in the wake of events - least of all when it confronts the biggest financial crisis for eighty years. It needs an administration that foresees what the the big challenges that confront London are. On the promotion of London Boris Johnson's administration has shown it totally fails to understand the modern world.
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