'Tourism needs to be front and centre' in election, says industry group

P.E.I.'s Tourism Industry Association says it is "very disappointing" that tourism has been ignored so far in the provincial election and it wants to change that.

TIAPEI says the tourism industry generated more than $490 million in revenue and employed 17,000 people over the last year, so it should be referred to as a primary industry on P.E.I. along with farming and fishing. 

"I am very frustrated, to the point now when you look at the governments past and present that have been in place, tourism hasn't been highlighted as a primary industry," CEO of TIAPEI Kevin Mouflier told CBC News: Compass host Louise Martin Wednesday. 

"What tourism brings to this Island, it is significant. And also the involvement of the hard-working entrepreneurs that are involved in tourism and bring significant impact to this economy."

Tourism generates about $70 million in tax dollars annually, Mouflier said.

"That's to roads, that's to health, that's to education. Again, tourism needs to be front and centre."

More marketing money

There has been little mention about tourism as P.E.I. just passed the halfway point of the election campaign, and Mouflier said the industry would like to see some commitments.

"One of the issues is marketing. We have had four years of growth on Prince Edward Island and we are continuing to grow and there is no additional marketing dollars put into that," he said. 

Mouflier highlighted Manitoba's model, where government returns four per cent of revenues generated by the tourism industry back to the industry for marketing.

Although the picture has been rosy in P.E.I. tourism with several record-breaking years, Mouflier said some sectors of the industry do require support, such as experiential tourism.

"it's significant, it is growing, but we need support to do so."

New growth alliance

The industry is also struggling with finding enough employees, said Mouflier.

"We're going to continue to grow but we have to have the manpower to be able to service that," he said. 

TIAPEI is part of the newly formed Partnership for Growth Alliance, a group of 20 P.E.I. business and industry organizations that formed soon after the election call. 

It is calling for the new government to complete an economic action plan in the first six months following the election.

"We need all parties to commit to it during an election," Mouflier said. "They need to step up to the plate, be committed and be accountable."

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