An estimated 50,000 tourism jobs may be lost this year as a result of poor service in British hotels, the VisitBritain chairman Christopher Rodrigues has warned.
In an interview with The Independent, Rodrigues said research carried out by VisitBritain had revealed British service falls far short of the courtesy given in America, the Mediterranean and Asia. Instead, he said British hotels are blighted by grumpy ‘Basil Fawlty’ characters.
“We`ve had a period in which people could get away with not being of the highest quality,” he said. “We`re now in an environment where you have to do quality. Poor value for money and poor service costs jobs and will cost more jobs in a recession.”
His outburst comes after an undercover investigation by Which? Holiday magazine found some leading budget UK hotels to be in a poor state, with reports of blood-stained sheets, ‘soiled’ mattresses and urine-splattered toilets.
Lorna Cowan, editor of Which? Holiday, said the investigation raised concerns over the state of British hotels. “It’s clear from our research that some of the hotels are getting it right when appropriate cleaning methods are being used, (but) paying guests should be guaranteed, at the very least, a clean room.”
While the government is today launching a £6m tourism campaign to show foreign tourists how cheap Britain has become as a holiday destination, Rodrigues warned that bad hotel service habits might still result in many closures in 2009.
“It would probably be true to say of the tourism industry that as the tide goes out you recognise those people who are doing well with service and those who aren`t,” he said. “There will be one or two people who fall by the wayside because their product isn`t up to snuff, they`re greedy on price, the bank doesn`t support them and there`s no marketing.”
As 2012 approaches, the government is preparing the hospitality industry to deal with overseas visitors, with the introduction of specialist advice and training programmes. Businesses should contact their local council to see how they can help prepare themselves for the Olympic Games.