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Minister for Tourism Intervenes in Hotel Closure
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Minister for Tourism Intervenes in Hotel Closure
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Monday, July 16,
2001
–
Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation, Honourable Menissa Rambally has
intervened in the surprise temporary closure the Royal St. Lucian and Papillion
hotels. In an interview with the
GIS, the Tourism minister said she visited both properties on Friday, July 13,
and spoke with management and employees. According
to Miss Rambally whilst she is quite concerned about the present situation, she
is encouraged by the resilience of the employees and the willingness of
management and the wider tourism industry to explore the possibility of
absorbing some of the employees even for a short time frame.
“This
closure is unfortunate given the critical time with the closure of school and
the obligation of some of these employees. I believe at this time the concern
has to be primarily in the interest of the workers,” she added. The
minister said, the managing director of the Rex Group of Companies who own the
hotels in question as well as the Rex St. Lucian which is remaining open, has
responded positively to a request for a meeting in St. Lucia this week, to
discuss the plight of workers and the reemployment policy of the company for the
scheduled re-opening in December. Noting
that the situation is not isolated to St. Lucia, the Tourism Minister said,
“Trends from the other islands are certainly indicating that some properties
are also experiencing difficulty as there seems to be a decline in visitor
arrivals particularly in the Eastern Caribbean.” Nonetheless
Miss Rambally noted that in spite of current visitor arrival statistics, St.
Lucia has continued to uphold its image as a powerful tourism destination. The
minister is assured that investor confidence has continued to remain high in St.
Lucia as there is ongoing dialogue with investors for the possibility for major
hotel investments. Over
the past few weeks there have been positive results with regard to the air lift
situation. The introduction of US Airways flights to St. Lucia later this year
is expected to boost opportunities in the US markets. With the confirmation from Virgin Atlantic for additional
flights out of the United Kingdom later this year; and the announcement by
Condor to reintroduce its flight in the winter season out of the United Kingdom,
St. Lucia is well on its way to improving its air lift position for the upcoming
Winter months. “Whilst these challenges exist, certainly I believe that if the industry works together even in light of the regional trend, St. Lucia can find a way to maintain its own as a tourism destination, the long-term strategy however is for the island to move towards a high quality destination,” said Rambally. |
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