A LEADING figure in the island’s tourism industry is urging fellow hoteliers and industry staff to air their views. Hospitality and Tourism Group chairman Chris Sharp wants people to have their say on the Tourism Forum, which has recently been merged with the new Chamber of Commerce website.

‘We’re trying to get the industry to put their views forward as to how they see marketing working for them,’ he said.

As many of the issues faced by the industry often overlapped with other non-related businesses, it was a logical move to merge the two and open up the debate even further, said Mr Sharp.

And he said work would be starting again on the steering committee on how Guernsey is marketed and that a meeting would be held over the next month or so.

‘But we’re not looking to bring business to their door as such – that’s up to them,’ said Mr Sharp.

‘We’re basically getting us working together, which I think we have achieved over the last 18 months,’ he said.

The forum will also focus on areas such as housing licences.

Mr Sharp said the tourism industry was heading in the right direction.

‘We must be doing something right,’ he said.

‘We’ve gone past all that doom, gloom and despondency.

‘There was a lot of hanging on to the good old days, but the world’s changed and I think the hotel industry we’ve got now is in a far healthier place.’

*Posts can still be viewed on the existing Guernsey hospitality and tourism forum but to start posting and have your say, visit www.guernseychamber.com/Forum