Richmond MP Rishi Sunak is backing an inquiry into how rural areas can do better out of Britain’s booming tourism industry.
Mr Sunak is a member of a Government watchdog committee which has launched an investigation into why so many foreign visitors to the UK never get beyond London.
Latest figures from Visit England show that more than half of international visitor spending was in the capital and the number of overseas tourists visiting the UK’s rural areas was down.
Mr Sunak said the Parliamentary Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee wanted to find out how best to spread the economic benefits of tourism throughout the UK.
He said: “We want more foreign visitors to come to England’s rural areas, to stay longer and at different times of the year, and firstly we need to find out why that is not happening at the moment.
“Tourism creates jobs and supports the economic viability of rural communities,” he added.
“Right now unpredictable agricultural prices and depopulation threatens businesses and rural services and we will be asking how effectively public programmes and government policies help these areas be globally competitive.
“We will also be asking how we can work to make the growth of countryside and coastal tourism sustainable, balancing economic, social and environmental interests.”
Mr Sunak recently visited one of the many rural business in his Richmond constituency that would benefit from a growth in foreign visitors.
Yorebridge House has established itself as a successful boutique hotel in the former Yorkshire Dales National Park headquarters in Bainbridge, Wensleydale. It has a won a series of top hospitality industry awards since it opened including the Small Hotel of the Year title at the 2016 Visit England Awards for Excellence.
The hotel has recently announced a partnership with the prestige French champagne house Laurent-Perrier to create a special champagne cellar in its basement for tastings and intimate dinners and also to convert a small barn in the grounds to a luxurious bolt-hole.
After meeting Yorebridge House owner David Reilly and seeing the hotel’s existing facilities, Mr Sunak said: “David and Charlotte Reilly’s plans for Yorebridge House are very exciting. This is just the sort of business which would do even better if we can persuade more of our foreign visitors to venture north.”
Mr Reilly welcomed the select committee’s inquiry. He said: “We have a superb offer for tourists here in the Yorkshire Dales. We know that if we can get overseas visitors here they will love it.”