By Isle of Wight Observer
Tourists are an absolute pain in the backside, aren’t they? They clog up the roads and take all the best spots on our beaches. On good days, you can’t park anywhere near the seaside. The queues at my favourite cafés are ridiculous and the harbours are rammed. The Island breathes a collective sigh of relief when the kids go back to school in September and things return to normal – until Easter.
I’m kidding, of course! Who doesn’t have family or friends dependent on visitors? Tourism is 38 per cent of our economy; no tourists mean no jobs and no money. Parts of our Island are among the most deprived in Britain – trust me, we really need those visitors.
In recent years, we’ve been ‘losing’ an alarming number of tourists. And this year we’ve seen a flurry of job losses and early closures. When visitor numbers drop, business owners are faced with stark choices. Shut up shop early to save money – or stay open and haemorrhage cash for the next six months. This autumn, for many, that wasn’t an option because they don’t have enough in the bank to survive the winter storm.
People point to eyewatering ferry fares as the root cause of our woes – let’s face it, they are a fair and reasonable target. But do you think the Island’s potential is being maximised? Since our Wight Bid–funded Visit Isle of Wight tourist organisation has existed, visitor numbers have declined by 17 per cent; that’s £100 million in lost revenue annually. Surely, they bear some responsibility for the Island’s decline? Fairly, it’s not just our Bid organisation that isn’t working. Cornwall’s tourism organisation has declared itself bankrupt; others are failing too.
I have a shop in Fleet; like here, shopkeepers are forced to chip in for the local bid. Many are openly opposed to it; few see the benefit. The people who run the Bid in Fleet decided that bringing in market traders from elsewhere was “a great way to promote the town”. Bid payers responded, “But that means people spend money that goes into other traders’ pockets!” Our local VIOW is clearly failing and lacks transparency.
The IW Observer has reported embarrassing facts, including their appointment of a paid Kent-based chairman. VIOW should have been holding elections for board members but have failed to do so for years. They have only 27 bid-payers who are members – effectively the only ones who can vote and have a say in how the company is run.
I signed up to the anti–Wight Bid Facebook group hoping to find some answers and it doesn’t make good reading. When asked how and why those things could happen, their answers were unsatisfactory. Other questions go unanswered, and even simple ones have led to legal letters in response.
Because I’m eligible, I decided to stand for election to the Wight Bid board. I’m tenacious; if elected I promise to find out what’s gone wrong and work with others to put it right. Cheekily, despite its own failings, VIOW uses its legal powers to make local businesses pay up; non-payers are regularly taken to court. No wonder so many hard-pressed local traders are cross with them. Unsurprisingly, some have had enough and want to see an end to the whole thing.
Currently, I can’t see how that will help the Island. Surely, we should do a better job of running the existing organisation and ensure every precious penny is spent more wisely. Let’s get better bang for our buck. As the Mayor in Jaws (almost) said, “The Island is a summer town, we need summer dollars”. Should the Wight Bid fail next October, nothing will replace it, and I believe that will be a disaster for local businesses and jobs.