Written question asked by Lord Rowe-Beddoe (Crossbench), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord Davies of Oldham (Labour) on Tuesday, 10 July 2007.

Olympic Games 2012: Cultural Olympiad

Question: asked Her Majesty's Government:Regarding the cultural Olympiad leading up to and during 2012, what plans are being made to maximise the tourism potential, both domestic and inbound, in areas outside of London.

Answer: Through the Culture and Creativity Advisory Forum, we are working with partners to consider how to maximise the cultural benefits of the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games to a range of sectors across the UK. VisitBritain, the regional development agencies and other stakeholders are represented on the forum to help to ensure that the tourism industry maximises the opportunities that the cultural Olympiad offers. In addition, we are setting up a network of regional creative programmers in the eight English regions outside London, whose role will be to facilitate and co-ordinate each region's participation in the cultural Olympiad in the run-up to the 2012 Games. They will work with the nations and regions co-ordinators for London 2012, seeking compatibility between regional cultural plans and the wider regional strategies for 2012, so that cultural events complement local tourism initiatives and events strategies. DCMS and its tourism partners will shortly publish a strategy aimed at enabling the tourism sector to make the most of the 2012 opportunity. One of the principles of this will be that the benefits of the Games are felt as widely as possible throughout the UK.

Secondary information