Minister Open To Further Consultation On Tourist Accommodation Bill

Minister of Tourism and International Transport, Ian Gooding-Edghill, says the request from owners of vacation rental properties for further consultations and discussions on the Tourist Accommodation Bill is a reasonable request. 

The Minister was speaking hours after returning to the island from the United Kingdom on a tourism-related business trip. Mr. Gooding-Edghill was on his way to World Routes in Hong Kong to explore further opportunities for airlift, but due to the typhoon in the region, he had to cancel his trip.

“As indicated on the floor of Parliament two Tuesdays ago, we have held consultations with the Barbados Entrepreneurial Tourism Association (BETA), Intimate Hotels of Barbados (IHB), the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA), and the advertised public town hall meeting held at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Conference Centre.”

In addition, half-day focus groups were held from the inception with tourism stakeholders, regulatory agencies and visitors to the island. Individual interviews were also conducted with various tourism stakeholders and regulatory agencies.

The Minister pointed out that the Bill came after a series of meetings and consultations dating back to 2016. Additional stakeholder meetings were held on September 26, 2023; October 27, 2023; October 30, 2023; October 31, 2023; January 19, 2024; and November 15, 2024, with the BHTA, IHB, and BETA at the Ministry. 

“The request from the vacation rental property owners and operators for further dialogue is reasonable, and as a responsive and responsible Government, we are prepared to pause the Bill to have further meaningful consultations. The Ministry of Tourism and International Transport will convene another public session to clarify any misunderstandings to answer any questions, and provide further explanations regarding the Bill. We will announce a date, time, and the location of the meeting and, like we have done in the past, we will advertise the town hall meeting to ensure that those owners or owners’ representatives who were not present at the last town hall meeting have an opportunity to do so. The officers from the Ministry’s Licensing and Compliance until Unit will also be present to provide any technical support and advice.

“The Tourist Accommodation Bill is about protecting the Barbados brand. It is in no way designed to dampen demand for tourist accommodation in the vacation rental programme.

“I repeat what I said on the floor of Parliament, we need the vacation rental properties as part of our accommodation offering because as we increase airlift and bring more visitors to Barbados, as we have done last year and during the winter season, that increased business will benefit the vacation rental properties as it has done based on the reported $300 million of income from that sector, and I am heartened by the size of the reported earnings from the vacation rental properties. 

“I would also like to encourage the owners and the owners’ representatives of the vacation rental properties to submit their areas of concern ahead of the planned meeting in writing via email. The email address for the questions and concerns would also be provided in the advertisements. This would also help the discussion and provide an opportunity to hear from the vacation rental owners and operators.” (PR/GIS)