National tourism agency VisitBritain/VisitEngland has announced that its deputy CEO Patricia Yates is stepping up as CEO.
The interim appointment comes as the agency’s current CEO Sally Balcombe steps down from 8 April.
British Tourist Authority (BTA) Chair Dame Judith Macgregor said: “On behalf of the BTA Board and VisitBritain/VisitEngland, I am very pleased to announce that Patricia Yates has agreed to step up to CEO in the interim, ensuring a smooth transition for the organisation as well as for the industry.
“Under Patricia’s leadership and experience I am confident that we can make great progress as we continue to support the industry as recovery begins to get underway.”
VisitBritain/VisitEngland deputy CEO Patricia Yates said: “I am honoured to be stepping up as CEO, continuing our focus on building back visitor spend as quickly as possible and supporting the industry, playing our part to deliver the ambitions of the UK Government’s Tourism Recovery Plan.
“We know there is pent-up demand for travel, Britain is a destination that people want to visit and in 2022 we have a year of landmark events. Our tourism businesses have innovated to survive through a myriad of restrictions and now is the time to drive visitor recovery.
“I look forward to continuing to work with all our stakeholders, rebuilding our industry to ensure it is one of the most successful and productive sectors of the economy and to making the strongest possible case for one of the UK’s greatest sectors.”
The appointment was announced as VisitBritain/VisitEngland brought tourism industry leaders together at a ‘Rebooting the visitor economy’ event on Tuesday 29 March, outlining its focus to ensure tourism rebounds to once again become one of the most successful and productive sectors of the UK economy.
The agency is currently out in international markets with a £10 million GREAT ‘Welcome to another side of Britain’ campaign.
As well as highlighting messages of welcome and reassurance, the campaign is promoting the major events this year, set to be global tourism draws, offering visitors once-in-a-lifetime experiences they can only have in the UK including HM The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
