Large tourism companies welcome Economic Resilience Fund support of £2m from Welsh Government

As restrictions begin to be gradually eased at tourism sites and attractions across Wales, the Welsh Government’s bespoke Economic Resilience Fund (ERF) has provided vital support of more than £2 million to some of our largest key tourism companies.

Today, Minister for the Economy, Transport and North Wales, Ken Skates, visited one of the fund recipients, Zip World, which re-opened two of its three sites earlier this week, offering thrill-seekers six of the Zip World adventures.

Sean Taylor, founder of Zip World, said:

“We’ve welcomed the support and hard work from all the team at the Welsh Government during this crisis.  We thank them for their continued effort to safely get the visitor economy back up and running again and for recognising the significance of our brand to the local North Wales economy.”

The ERF, which is part of the Welsh Government’s £1.7bn support package for business, is providing significant financial support to companies across Wales and complements the support provided by the UK Government. To date, it has provided more than 8,200 businesses with financial support worth more than £230m.

Other large tourism companies which have received ERF funding include Bourne Leisure; Bluestone and JH Leeke, which operates the Vale Resort.

Speaking from the Zip World at Bethesda, Minister for Economy, Transport and North Wales Ken Skates, said:

“Since the start of the pandemic, we have worked hard in Wales to reprioritise our budgets and repurpose funding wherever we can to make sure financial support is available where it is needed most – and quickly.

“Our package of support goes above and beyond what is available elsewhere in the UK, and I am proud the Economic Resilience Fund is helping thousands of businesses deal with immediate issues critical to their survival and to safeguard jobs.

“The tourism and hospitality sector were among the first to feel the impact of the crisis, which came at a time when they should have been welcoming visitors for Easter.  This continues to be a challenging time for these companies as a phased reopening of the visitor economy gets underway.

“I’m delighted to visit Zip World and to see how the first week of re-opening has gone and to see the safety measures the team have in place to give visitors, staff and the community the confidence for a successful reopening.”