Assembly Speech 19th February 2008
Mr Speaker
The Programme for Government rightly has confirmed growing the economy is the top priority for the Executive and this has been accepted by the Assembly.
Within this strategic approach tourism has been designated as PSA 5 with the aim:
To develop our tourism sector and promote Northern Ireland as a must-visit destination to facilitate growth and leisure visitors.
Within this strategic approach there are two main objectives:
1. Enhance Northern Ireland's tourism infrastructure.
And within this strategy there are three actions that if sucessfully tackled will see us deliver the objective. These are:
- Take forward key signature projects to improve Northern Ireland's tourism product.
- Manage and develop our inland navigations.
- Manage and develop Northern Ireland's cultural infrastructure.
2. Objective number two is:
Promote the growth of the tourism sector:
This strategic objective has three action points.
However, it is about the five key signature projects that I will speak on for a couple of minutes, prior to coming to the issue of political of terror tourism.
The five signature projects have been identified for their potential to deliver a world-class experience. Projects that will attract visitors from home and abroad. In achieving international stand out the projects will have a significant impact on Northern Ireland's tourism performance. In other words must-see attractions.
No one will be suprised if I list the top priority as the Titanic/ Maritime/ Belfast as being my favoured project and indeed as a brand "Titanic" is, in a world context, second only to a well known soft drink.
Developing this signature project which will include the Thompson Dock, Harland and Wolff building and the iconic attraction based on the Titanic is absolutely fundamental to a successful Northern Ireland tourism strategy.
Now let me turn to the negative aspect of the original motion.
In your thesaurus the word Political = Supporting, Following, Biased, Taking Sides, Opinionated.
There are already iniatives aimed at political tourism in West Belfast, South Armagh and in the city of Londonderry.
A political tourism experience tour organised by the West Belfast Festival, and I want to relay the experiences of an American visitor who booked a place on a political tour:
- First you will be taken on the tour by an approved Sinn Fein guide- you will understand this guide will be completely unbiased- or he may play up a strong republican bias to prove he isn't an MI5 agent.
- You will visit the political murals eulogising the republican heroes who blew up Saturday morning shoppers on the Shankill, bombed shops in Belfast city centre and shot policemen and soldiers in the back.
- You can have your photograph taken at the mural involving that little known communist reprobate Che Guevara.
- In Milltown Cemetary you will have a guided tour of the graves of infamous paramilitaries and hunger strikers- by a Sinn Fein approved tour guide- graves of all those who shot, bombed and starved for Ireland.
- Everything of course starts with a tour of the Sinn Fein bookshop stocking all the political propaganda of the PIRA terrorist campaign.
This is the experience from a visitor from the USA. If this role of political tourism is further developed what would be the additional experiences to develop this area?
- Would the tourist experience mock kneecappings?- maybe even recorded screams of the supposed victims?
- What about dummy bomb runs?
- What about political beatings? Hurley sticks provided!
- Or even more ghoulish what about the activities of the IRA's iniquitous 'nutting' squad? A bit of blindfolding and torture so the tourist can relive the terror of the victim.
