{"id":24411,"date":"2019-02-21T15:37:36","date_gmt":"2019-02-21T19:37:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?p=24411"},"modified":"2019-02-21T15:37:38","modified_gmt":"2019-02-21T19:37:38","slug":"st-peter-mp-and-former-tourism-minister-speaks-on-tourism-licensing-classification-bill-full-speech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/st-peter-mp-and-former-tourism-minister-speaks-on-tourism-licensing-classification-bill-full-speech\/","title":{"rendered":"St. Peter MP And Former Tourism Minister Speaks On Tourism Licensing & Classification Bill (Full Speech)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Mr. Speaker<\/strong><\/p>

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Let me first of all commend\nthe Attorney General for putting this bill before us for its second and third\nreadings in the very first meeting of parliament after the budget debate<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You will recall, Mr. Speaker,\nthat in the budget debate on February 1st<\/sup>, 2019, I lamented the fact\nthat this bill was on the order paper for 4 sittings over a period of one year\nonly to be removed on every occasion. And through you Mr. Speaker, I asked the\nMinister to insist, in the public interest of safeguarding tourism as the\nbackbone of our economy, that this bill is taken through all three readings and\npassed at the next sitting of this Parliament.<\/p>

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So, I am happy with the\nprompt attention given to this very important matter by the Attorney General\nand privileged to make my contribution to the debate on the Tourism Licensing\nand Classification Bill<\/p>

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Mr. Speaker<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I have said in this\nparliament, with all the advanced plans for state-of-the-art cruise arrival\nfacilities; expansion and modernization of the hotel plant; and more effective,\ntechnology-driven, direct marketing and promotion; we are on track for more\nrecord-breaking performances in the sector. But we need to pay closer attention\nto the integrity of the product and the standards of service excellence that\nwill meet and exceed the expectations of the global tourism market. <\/p>

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We trail 12 Caribbean\ndestinations in cruise passenger spending which means the improvement in\nproduct and service standards will open up significant additional income\nearning opportunities: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

                                                US$(millions)<\/p>

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