Press Cuttings Transcripts
'Rip-off' London drives commerce away
Daily Telegraph, 13 May 2004
A new drive to lure more big-spending business visitors and business conventions has been launched by agencies in the capital.
By Roland Gribben.
Proposals for a huge new convention centre, 20,000 extra budget-priced hotel rooms, and a "hearts and minds campaign" to persuade taxi drivers and shop assistants to be nicer to business visitors with bulging wallets form part of the programme.
They want to develop a "business tourism vision for London" and reverse a situation where London has dropped from the most popular international convention centre in the 1970s to 10th the world league table and where visitors complain that "two scrambled eggs in a London hotel cost more than one hotel night in Vienna".
Business visitors end up spending more money during their stays than tourists on the Buckingham Palace and Tower of London circuit but complain they get poor value. The latest figures, for 2002, show that they spend an average of £154 a day, almost double the £78 outlay by the typical tourist.
Overall, domestic and foreign visitors account for 25pc or 7m overnight visits to London and pump almost £3billion into the capital's economy. A modest 10pc rise could add another £300m, say the two agencies.
London is in danger of losing further ground in the big convention stakes. China alone is building 200 centres, and Barcelona and Vienna are the top European attractions because of their accommodation, conference facilities and travel packages.
Gerry Acher, vice-chairman of London First and a non-executive director of Camelot, who leads a mayoral commission to look at the convention centre, says: "The expectations of the average business punter are getting higher and higher."
Conference organisers have told the agencies that London does not have big enough venues and its hotels, social events and services are too expensive. They also complain that the capital ignores the needs of major conferences, while airports do not make it easy for big groups to clear immigrations and customs.
Toyota told a recent London forum on the issue that despite London's attractions, problems of congestion, a limited range of large function venues and the fact that the capital "is considered expensive and is percieved as poor value for money" kept London off the list.
Mr. Acher believes there is national support for a venture that could provide a regional spin-off.
He says that Birmingham, which boasts two convention centres inside and outside the city, believes that London should have its own international sized conference facilities. A report by the agencies after discussions and workshops with the private sector points to the need for a central accommodation service for business group bookings, a more cheery welcome at "transport gateways", better promotion and dissemination of market intelligence and government funding for hospitality and a "civic pride campaign".
Why London loses out
Business comments about London's attractiveness as an international convention centre included:
• "Two scrambled eggs in a London hotel cost [£40] more than a hotel night in Vienna."
• "We had to organise London in 1999. It was a logisitical nightmare. We would not consider re-visiting."
• "For those of us now operating in the Eurozone, London is now less attractive."
• "The city ignores the needs of major conferences. It does not need major conferences to boost its economy."