Conference of Ministers responsible for Tourism

NEWS RELEASE – MINISTERS CHART DIRECTION FOR TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN CANADA

CALGARY - May 9, 2000 --Canada's Ministers Responsible for Tourism agreed on critical directions on four distinct themes to support growth in the tourism industry at their annual meeting today in Calgary.

"This has been a tremendously successful meeting," said conference host Jon Havelock, Minister of Alberta Economic Development. "There has been a thorough discussion on a number of the challenges facing tourism development, resulting in a commitment to continue to work together to promote growth of the tourism industry and deliver strong messages to the federal government."

Discussions focused on four key aspects of the tourism industry: Transportation and Infrastructure; Sustainable Development; Access to Capital; and Product Development Needs. Ministers or their designates from all provinces and territories participated.

The Ministers agreed to meet again in May 2001 in Toronto.

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For more information:

Gordon Vincent
Director of Communications
Alberta Economic Development
(780) 719-7279


Backgrounder

Transportation and Infrastructure

Airline services, highway, rail and other tourism-related infrastructure, were the primary subjects of discussion regarding transportation and infrastructure. The provinces and territories agreed that:

       
  • As a result of the recent Air Canada/Canadian Airlines merger, competition within, and access to, affordable airline services on a regional, national and international basis in the short term is critical to improved levels of service for tourists within and to Canada;
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  • The federal government must increase resource allocation to Canada's highway system, providing highway access for parts of the country not being served currently, such as Nunavut, improving existing highways, including basic access to and within Canada's North, such as completion of the MacKenzie Valley Highway, and assisting provinces or territories with upgrades to routes within their jurisdictions such as Trans-Canada Highway twinning. Flexibility is needed to allow for funding for upgrades to provincial, territorial or international routes. Trans-Canada Highway twinning needs to be fully realized.
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  • The federal government recognize the importance of the VIA rail system and regional rail carriers as scheduled carriers and as tourism services, and the rail system be adequately funded, modernized and promoted.
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  • There should be equitable access to federal agencies and funding programs for provinces and territories. In federal/provincial/territorial negotiations relating to new transportation and infrastructure, tourism-related infrastructure improvement should be treated as a priority, and federal support for the development of tourism infrastructure should be provided on a provincial and territorial, not exclusively regional, basis.
Sustainable Development

Consistent with the September 21, 1999 Federal-Provincial-Territorial Meeting of Ministers responsible for Parks in Québec which "underscored the importance of Tourism in the development of the provinces and territories while maintaining a balance between park attendance and the high level of protection required to conserve these quality natural spaces," the Ministers agreed on the following recommendations regarding sustainable development in Canada's national parks:

       
  • That the legislative process for Bill C-27 be delayed pending a meaningful consultation with and input from, provincial and territorial governments, the Tourism Industry and the general public;
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  • That a formal framework for such consultation and dialogue with the federal government and Parks Canada be developed and implemented in conjunction with provincial and territorial governments - the provinces and territories expressed the willingness for immediate and ongoing dialogue;
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  • That, while recognizing the importance of environmental and ecological science to the decision-making process, this be balanced with the social and economic data that reflects a total parks' experience and be incorporated into the federal government's decision-making process; and
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  • The principles of National Parks Tourism include:    
             
    1. the ecological vitality and the special experience of the parks being sustained;
    2.        
    3. the Parks being affordable and accessible for people;
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    5. the Parks continue as the cornerstone of the Tourism sector; and
    6.        
    7. the equitable treatment of Canadians living in the National Parks.
    8.    
       
Access to Capital

Difficulties faced by SMEs in obtaining access to financing led to a number of recommendations to improve the ability of tourism operators to access capital. The Ministers agreed that:

       
  • businesses should be encouraged to increase year round productivity, utilize available market research, acquire a more aggressive, open attitude to non-traditional markets, and use new technologies.
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  • Provinces and territories work to increase lender awareness of tourism industry issues regarding the accessing of capital, and encourage financial institutions to use alternative lending approaches such as flexible repayment schedules, assuming interest payment in start-up periods, and deferring principle payments during start-up periods.
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  • Government programs at the national, regional, provincial and territorial levels should be harmonized. An agreement should be established between the federal and provincial/territorial governments to stimulate tourism industry development, especially in emerging and expanding sectors, that considers provincial and territorial needs and priorities, and existing tools.
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  • A national database should be created that would list available programs, assistance and consumer/market research. The database would be shared with industry operators and partners for purposes of strengthening business plans.
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  • Meetings of the CTC on investment and tourism financing should be continued, and provinces and territories should work with the CTC to update their framework document on access to capital.
Product Development Needs

Discussions on improving product development resulted in agreement on the following best practices:

       
  • Industry should lead tourism product development, in partnership with provincial, territorial and federal governments.
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  • A long-term commitment at all levels on an integrated "Research-Product-Marketing formula should be established, with appropriate allocations of staff and resources.
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  • Product development activities should be supported by investment where appropriate in tourism anchor products and icons and creation of models and templates to measure economic impact of tourism product development, in a manner consistent with provincial and territorial policies.
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  • Government program delivery be enhanced by:    
             
    • Fostering a more coordinated approach in federal, provincial and territorial partnership funding. Programs should fit provincial/territorial priorities and avoid duplication of efforts.
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    • Provinces and territories need equitable access to federal and CTC new product development programs. That access should consider the unique needs of provinces and territories, such as the level of industry maturity and market readiness.
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    • Focusing on programs that have the ability to adapt quickly to ever-changing visitor demands
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    • Creating infrastructure programs that will stimulate product growth through the private sector; and
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    • Ensuring tools to enable the private sector to champion product areas, such as best practices and packaging opportunities.
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    • Consultation and information sharing between provinces, territories and CTC be increased, with adoption of a "lesson-learned" approach for fundamental initiatives such as best practices, quality assurance, national standards, common research, technology, and federal initiatives such as product clubs.
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