Tourism businesses in York and North Yorkshire are to be given more support with a new vision to help to ensure that the multi-billion pound visitor economy reaches its full potential. A joint bid for a Local Visitor Economy Partnership (LVEP) for both York and North Yorkshire has been approved, paving the way for a far more co-ordinated and strategic approach to promoting the tourism sector. Local Visitor Economy Partnerships have been introduced as part of the Government’s response to an independent review of how the nation’s visitor economy is co-ordinated and promoted and have the potential to draw in additional support and funding from Westminster. It is hoped that the new partnership, which has been approved by a panel involving the VisitEngland tourism organisation and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, will ensure that the greatest benefits are achieved for both York and North Yorkshire’s visitor economy. Tourism is worth more than £3.2 billion each year in York and North Yorkshire, and in excess of 60,000 workers are employed in the sector. Council leader, Cllr Carl Les, said: “This announcement marks a watershed in the way we can help promote the visitor economy in both York and North Yorkshire. “We know only too well how valuable the visitor economy is, providing jobs for tens of thousands of people and attracting visitors from across the globe. “It is particularly important for North Yorkshire, as we now have the opportunity for a countywide strategy to promote the visitor economy following the launch of North Yorkshire Council in April.” The announcement of the Local Visitor Economy Partnership is the latest indication of an increasingly close working relationship between City of York Council and North Yorkshire Council with the prospect of a devolution deal and a combined authority. City of York Council’s leader, Cllr Claire Douglas, said: “Known around the world as ‘God’s own county’, York and North Yorkshire are blessed with an incredible experience for anyone wanting to visit and enjoy our region. “Our amazing range of independent businesses and SMEs within the tourism and hospitality sector provide unique services and experiences for visitors, along with a huge range of flexible and interesting roles for people working in the industry. “We will continue to work closely with our colleagues in North Yorkshire to develop this essential industry for our region, to provide as much support as we can to help it grow sustainably, build more resilience and deliver improved pay, terms and conditions and productivity for its workforce.” Local Visitor Economy Partnerships involve both the private and public sectors and will need to follow a new national process to be eligible for support and potential funding from the Government. Established destinations in York and North Yorkshire, such as the coast, the Yorkshire Dales, the North York Moors, Harrogate and market towns, are due to be supported through the proposed Local Visitor Economy Partnership. A draft destination management plan for North Yorkshire and a proposed tourism strategy overseen by Make It York formed the foundations for the bid. Both documents will be considered by the relevant council executives by the start of next year. The York Tourism Advisory Board is currently developing the city’s new tourism strategy alongside Make It York, City of York Council and the York BID. The board’s chair, Brendan Paddison, who is also Associate Professor and Associate Dean at York St John University, said: “Achieving Local Visitor Economy Partnership status is a brilliant outcome for York and North Yorkshire. “This will support Make It York and City of York Council to continue to position York as a leading destination, and working with North Yorkshire Council and the new mayoral combined authority, to advocate for the importance of tourism to the city and region together.” There is a significant crossover in the priorities of the draft strategies for both York and North Yorkshire, adding even greater weight to pursue the joint bid. Both of the proposed plans are looking to promote a year-round visitor economy, while ensuring that it is heavily themed on sustainability and that the industry can thrive alongside communities living in York and North Yorkshire. It is hoped the promotional drive will ensure visitors stay for longer and explore more of what York and North Yorkshire have to offer, while attracting more people to travel from overseas.

Humber Freeport tax sites have already attracted £1bn of investment which will create up to 600 jobs across the region, a major decarbonisation conference has heard. Humber Freeport’s Interim CEO Simon Green told an event during The Waterline Summit that “tangible success” is already being seen at tax sites in Hull and Goole. Major investments announced have included Finnish company Metsä Tissue’s plans to build the UK’s largest tissue paper mill in Goole, creating more than 400 jobs on site. At Saltend Chemicals Park – part of the Hull East tax site – Pensana is investing more than £150m in a rare earth processing facility, while Meld Energy plans to invest £180m in a green hydrogen production facility at the site. Mr Green joined a panel of experts on the final day of The Waterline Summit, discussing the importance of innovation and collaboration across the region to drive clean growth. He said: “The success we have already seen across our freeport sites has been very tangible. Investments totalling around £1bn have been announced, which will create up to 600 jobs in both Hull and Goole. “Crucially, those investments are innovation-led, from companies across the world who are bringing new skills and technologies into the region. “Collaboration is a key measure of success in freeports and what we’ve created across our sites in the Humber is a portfolio which meets the investment needs of the region – from advanced manufacturing and engineering to decarbonisation and clean energy projects.” Mr Green also praised the collaboration between freeport site landowners who have “complemented each other” and brought forward development sites with distinct and unique opportunities for investors. He said stakeholders involved in Humber Freeport were aligned on its three key objectives – to drive clean, low carbon growth, the creation of new skilled jobs, and to become a testbed for innovation and emerging technologies. Mr Green spoke on The Waterline Summit panel alongside Harry Jones, Freeports Programme Director at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. Mr Jones and representatives from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, HM Treasury and HM Revenue & Customs visited the Humber for a two-day tour of the freeport tax and customs sites in Hull, Grimsby, Immingham and Goole. They also spoke to major investors and stakeholders, including businesses which are receiving a share of £25m seed capital funding awarded by Humber Freeport. The Humber Freeport Board recently signed off on funding for seven projects across both banks of the estuary, supporting major new facilities that will accelerate the decarbonisation of the Humber, which is critical for the Government to meet its net zero ambitions. Projects to receive funding include a new Humber Industrial Decarbonisation Centre in North East Lincolnshire, run by industry-led partnership CATCH, and Ideal Heating’s UK Technology Centre in Hull, supporting the manufacturer’s transition to low carbon heating solutions including heat pumps. Mr Jones said: “The path to net zero has to go through the Humber. That is not going to change and the tools we have available to us in the freeport are critical to that energy transition. The scale of opportunity – and need – for investment in the Humber is huge in the drive to net zero. “We need to make sure the momentum we have already generated continues and accelerates. When it comes to the energy transition, there is perhaps no freeport in the country with a more significant role to play.” Delivered by Future Humber and the University of Hull, The Waterline Summit highlighted the Humber region’s vital role in leading the UK’s transition to net zero. Summarising his thoughts at the panel event, Mr Green said “the time is now for the Humber,” with freeport status providing exciting opportunities for growth across the region. The Government visit to the Humber also featured a roundtable discussion held at the Associated British Ports (ABP) offices in Hull, hosted by Humber Freeport Chair Simon Bird, who is also ABP’s Humber Director. Mr Bird said: “The Government visit provided an opportunity to showcase the breadth of inward investment which is already being made by global companies across Humber Freeport sites. “Freeport status has brought with it a renewed sense of aspiration and ambition, with innovation at the heart of what we’re trying to achieve here in the Humber. “As the pre-eminent energy cluster in North West Europe, the investments we are seeing in the region align around a key message – to tackle the climate crisis and transition to a net zero economy, the Humber must be at the very forefront.” The Government delegation was also shown around Siemens Gamesa’s offshore wind turbine blade factory at Alexandra Dock in Hull, which is a Humber Freeport site. The company is investing more than £180m to expand the Hull facility.