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May 5, 2022

Letter to MLA Kevin Falcon

Letter from Tourism Industry Association of BC

Advocacy

Dear Kevin,

On behalf of the Tourism Industry Association of British Columbia (TIABC), congratulations on your election as MLA for Vancouver-Quilchena. Returning to the legislature to officially lead the opposition will undoubtedly help draw further attention to the issues that matter to British Columbians and to your constituents, as well as to stakeholders of the tourism and hospitality sector.

As we mentioned in our letter to you in February after you took over as leader of the BC Liberals, we still have an enormous task in front of us to rebuild British Columbia’s visitor economy following the devastating impacts of the pandemic. However, if afforded the right conditions, policies, tools, and support, we also have a tremendous opportunity to reshape our sector into a top economic driver once again, with a key role to play in areas such as reconciliation, sustainability, diversity, and other important priorities.

While we certainly expect you as leader and your colleagues in opposition to hold government to account on matters that impact the tourism industry and other sectors, we also very much believe that strong cross-party relationships and a willingness to work with all members of the legislature is critical to achieving our sector-specific and collective objectives in the aforementioned priority areas, as well as addressing the outstanding issues yet to be resolved.

Kevin, we are keen to meet with you at your earliest convenience to share the challenges of our industry, but more importantly, to learn of your broader goals for the province and your vision for how tourism can contribute to the well-being of British Columbia now and in the years ahead.

Again, congratulations on your election. We look forward to connecting with you very soon.

Best Regards,

Walt Judas
CEO, TIABC 778-953-0620

JJ Belanger
Chair, TIABC Board of Directors 250-266-6457

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