 |
 |
|
Media
BBC Radio 4 Today Programme
19 July 2007
Drug Treatment in Prisons - Click here to listen.
St Albans and Harpenden Review
27 June 2007
Parliamentary Debate - Gypsy and Traveller Sites in Hertfordshire.
BBC London News
20 June 2007
Anne is interviewed by BBC London about Traveller sites.
BBC Newsnight
3 May 2006
Click here to watch video extract Anne's interview on BBC Newsnight (wmv).
House Magazine
6 March 2006
Interview for Columbus Link
Columbus Link is a magazine for people preparing to work in the Travel and Tourism industry. Anne Main gave the following interview on Responsible Tourism
Responsible Tourism
One of the great advantages of travel and tourism is the opportunity it gives for countries to share wealth and education. In recent years however popular tourism in many places has done little to help the local community or the local environment.
Columbus Link met with Anne Main MP:
Anne, Please give us some examples of how you feel tourists are not helping the local environment of the places we visit.
Tourism is essential and it is good that so many people are studying for careers in the Travel and Tourism sector. Whether they decide to eventually work at home or abroad is up to them and their families but they can all make a contribution towards protecting the environment in which we live.
We are already seeing how erosion or pollution in one part of the world is creating tragedy in other places thousands of miles away.
In some parts of the world such as the Red Sea and on the Australian coast, people are diving off and climbing on the coral reefs. Often tourists do not try to protect the reefs and do not appreciate how vulnerable they are.
There are very few turtle colonies left in the world but still in some areas tourists try to touch the turtles and even pick them up. We are destroying their habitat and they will not return.
In spite of laws against it, people are still known to return from their holidays with ivory souvenirs. Of course, the locals will try to take advantage of the tourist, but we have a duty to protect ivory by not buying it.
So how can the tourist help and what can those wishing to work in the industry do in particular?
It is simple really. Take, as an example, safari holidays. There still people that visit the jungle, stay in luxurious accommodation and provide financial support to the local population. There is far less shooting these days than in the past but we still need to remember that it is better to look rather than shoot.
Holidays look wonderful in the brochures and on the internet and we hope that the traveller will find what they have been expecting once they arrive, but it is disappointing when so much has been destroyed by those who got there earlier.
Usually each destination is unique and has different balances regarding its culture, the environment and local nature. Travellers should be educated about this before they leave home. They may then appreciate their destination more and help make it a better place.
I have worked with charities in raising awareness. I have been very closely involved in encouraging whale watching rather than whale-shooting.
How will the local people benefit?
Local communities in many resort areas rely on the tourist for a living. Overall it is our duty to preserve these places, whether they are safari parks in Africa, long stretches of beach in Sri Lanka or temples in Thailand.
We can help by buying locally, taking trips out of our glitzy hotels, and educating ourselves about the local communities and what they have to offer. Local communities are often in a dilemma. Many tourists arrive, ignore the local population, spend hours in the hotel bar and round the pool, then two weeks later pack and go home without spending a cent in the local shops and places of interest.
We need to reinvest in each destination. Help each place to improve and provide a better product for the tourist and, very importantly, protect the local people, wildlife and nature.
You make it all sound so simple
Well it is. We can all do so much more for local communities buy buying locally. Take, for example, basic toiletries. So many people go to Boots ready to stock up for their holiday and often land up bringing half of it back home again or leaving things behind in their hotel room. Why not buy these things on arrival and help the local economy?
We all take far too much baggage when travelling. This burns off more aircraft fuel and causes unnecessary work. Why not take fewer clothes and have them washed locally. Not only does this make life easier for the traveller, but it helps reduce pollution and provides a tiny contribution to the local community. It costs about 30p to have a shirt or blouse washed and ironed in India or Thailand but that is a worthwhile income to the locals.
If every one of us, when on holiday, did that little bit more to help nature and environment, the whole world would benefit.
BBC Radio 4
29 October 2005
The Week in Westminster, BBC Radio Four
Anne was on Radio Four's "The Week in Westminster", on Saturday 29th October arguing against the new licensing laws. For details click here to visit The Week in Westminster website.