Enhancing tourism's potential for employment: recommendations of the High Level Group

At its first reading, the European Parliament adopted the report by Mr. Guido Viceconte (EPP/ED, I). It endorsed the overall strategy indicated by the high level group on tourism. It was unhappy about the lack of a specific legal base for tourism in the Treaties and urged this situation be remedied. In addition, it called on the Commission to: - Ensure that Community policies intended to create tourism-related jobs are co-ordinated with national employment policies; - provide firm support for rural tourism since this is an underdeveloped means of creating jobs and raising incomes, particularly in the least-favoured regions; - promote innovative projects in sensitive areas such as coasts and mountains; - to draw up a progress report on the implementation of Directive 95/57/EC on the collection of statistical information in the field of tourism and a proposal to improve the latter with regard to the indicators relating to employment, sustainable tourism and social demand; - include employment for women in tourism within the fourth multiannual programme for small and medium-sized undertakings, and include tourism in the fifth action programme for equal opportunities, 2001-2005; - ensure that the rules on competition are properly applied to sectors which are closely linked to tourism, with a particular view to combating distortions and monopolies which imperil many small and medium-sized businesses operating in the sector.�