TIABC Voice of Tourism Newsletter – November 29, 2024

As the NDP were getting ready to govern British Columbia back in 2017, I ran into John Horgan in downtown Vancouver. During our brief encounter, I resisted the temptation to tell the incoming Premier to appoint Spencer Chandra Herbert as the Minister of Tourism because Horgan was with a colleague I didn’t know and our conversation was not about politics. I kept my mouth shut even though Chandra Herbert was well-known in tourism circles, had previously served as tourism critic, and was passionate about our sector so I believed him to be a good fit.

As it turns out, Premier Horgan first tagged Lisa Beare for the tourism role. She was eventually succeeded by Melanie Mark who was then replaced by Lana Popham. Chandra Herbert remained patiently on the sidelines for seven years.

In my meeting with the new minister earlier this week, I resisted the temptation to download a full list of issues the Province and his ministry needed to address. That will come in due time as he and his new Deputy Minister, Silas Brownsey, get up to speed on various files. However, given that government will begin focusing on its next budget very soon, I did address two priorities for Minister Chandra Herbert to consider.

The first was for Destination British Columbia (DBC) to be allocated additional funding. You’ve heard me say it before…$60 million to market the entire province is simply not enough, especially considering DBC’s budget has been stagnant for many years, our direct competition is far outspending us, and inflation-related costs have increased by some 20% in the last five years alone.

The second priority I talked to the minister about was placing the tourism sector on a higher pedestal for economic development than previous governments have done. Yes, mining, high tech, construction, oil & gas, forestry and agriculture are all important, but tourism must be elevated to equal or even higher status from the perspective of investment, a favourable regulatory framework, and other considerations as opposed to where it’s been prioritized in recent years. After all, we rank higher than most sectors in measures such as GDP, export revenues and economic impact.

I recall making a similar pitch in 2021 to help inform the development of BC’s economic plan. In our submission, TIABC noted that for the tourism sector to prosper and benefit all of British Columbia , it must formulate a long-term strategy and collaborate with government to address critical issues such as improvements to current infrastructure (e.g. highways, regional airports, ferry terminals), the creation of new partnerships with Indigenous groups to build tourism products and bolster the path to reconciliation, identification and promotion of environmentally friendly visitor experiences and business practices, the recruitment and building of a stable workforce, adoption of technology such as AI, and higher utilization of local products and suppliers, among other recommendations. I would venture to say that we’ve done our part as an industry on many of these strategies but we still need government help.

Each week I hear from industry colleagues about how decision-makers don’t understand our sector nor recognize its value and invest accordingly. Premier Eby intimated otherwise when he spoke at the BC Tourism Industry Conference earlier this year, and certainly the three previous tourism ministers also championed the visitor economy and worked hard on our behalf. However, proof must come in the form of concrete action on multiple tourism files by Minister Chandra Herbert and government as the new regime gets to work. TIABC and its sector association and DMO colleagues will do all we can to advance the interests of BC’s tourism and hospitality industry to ensure its rightful place alongside the other key sectors as a key economic pillar poised for investment and opportunities.

In retrospect, I’m glad I didn’t push for Chandra Herbert to take on the tourism portfolio in 2017 because he actually didn’t want the job given that the enormous commitment and added responsibilities would have taken him away from co-parenting his then-infant son. Today, however, he’s excited to be in the cabinet posting he’s always coveted because the timing is right and he’s primed for the challenge. From what I’m hearing within the tourism sector, Minister Chandra Herbert is being welcomed with open arms and high hopes.

Walt Judas
CEO, TIABC