Following a meeting with the owners of an amusement arcade in Hornsea, the MP for Beverley and Holderness Graham Stuart, has called for a revitalisation of the tourist industry along the coast.
Graham has invited Tobias Ellwood, Shadow Minister, Culture, Media and Sport to come to the area and meet business owners struggling to stay afloat in the tourism and amusements industry.
He said: “I hate to admit it, but visiting these arcades in Hornsea was depressing.
“The owners are struggling with rates and council tax payments and at the same time there appear to be fewer people visiting the arcades to spend their hard earned money.”
And he added: “The coastal towns in the constituency used to be thriving tourist hotspots and – while I appreciate times have changed – they could still offer so much to visitors to the area.”
Graham met with mother and daughter owners of Pastimes and Regal Amusements in Hornsea Mrs Barbara Underwood and Miss Alyson Underwood.
They told Graham there needed to be some way of encouraging the amusements arcades to flourish so they would, in turn, entice more visitors to the town.
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Its a bit rich to hear buisness owners complaining that their incomes are falling. Its down to them to attract customers. The amusments in Hornsea are tired and depressing. Its time that both the administative and commercial sectors in this part of the coast woke up.Bridlington has improved a lot over the last few years but there are far to many neglcted and derelect buildings within the central area.Most of them owned by the same people who are demanding that the council help them .They can only do so much the real power to turn things round is with the commercial sector.
The problem in Hornsea is the town is split in half between shopping and sea.On their own neither have a lot going for them but why let a good siet lke the old Wilbur market go to waste? Instead of letting Tesco kill off the present tired retail area surely the coucil could offer some sort of incentives for buisness to move there away from the narrow and crowded centre. Visitors could and should be given free parking and thus open up the town towards the sea front .
On their part the owners of these buisnesses could get their act togeher and smarten them up a bit.This is 20010 but the town is stuck in a 1950 time warp. Both Hornsea and Withernsea seem to have a death wish. Arguments about the floral hall and the fishing compound are futile if the rest of the town is dying on its feet.
Thank you for taking the time to comment on my site.
While I understand your comments in relation to business helping itself, however, many of the traders in our seaside towns now find themselves in a Catch 22 situation. Takings have dropped so dramatically they are now left in a situation where they are simply not able to make the investment needed to get back on track while the local authority is being hamstrung by Government red tape.
Since 2007, the rate of decline has accelerated dramatically to such an extent that the proprietors of the UK’s 1,000 remaining seaside amusement arcades – are warning that without urgent Government intervention, up to half of a sector that employs 26,000 people and contributes £500m to the Exchequer will be wiped out. Part of the cause is an obscure change to the rules governing the fruit machines. Since the 2007 Gambling Act came into force a little-noticed clause has halved the minimum stake for players on fruit machines that offer a jackpot of £500 from £2 a go to £1.
The number of the £500 jackpot machines – which cost £6,000 each and represent the lifeblood of the seaside arcades – was also restricted to four per venue, regardless of its size.
To many it may seem a trivial adjustment and even a good attempt to put a cap on the growing attractions of a burgeoning gambling culture. But according to the arcade industry, its effects have been devastating. Revenues have on average collapsed by more than a fifth, wiping out profit margins across the country and leaving many on the brink of collapse. In the meantime, new casinos have been allowed to introduce machines where gamblers can bet up to £100 a time for five-figure jackpots.
What needs to happen is a combination of the local authority working to assist businesses and, at the same time, traders doing as much as possible to make their premises attractive to visitors.
As an additional lifeline the Conservatives have launched a plan for coastal towns called ‘No Longer the End of the Line. This will encourage enterprise by giving the local authority the ability to develop partnerships and levy business rate discounts. It will promote tourism by removing the responsibility from the faceless Regional Development Agencies and giving it instead to a stronger VisitEngland.
Other measures will help with affordable housing for those from coastal towns, flood protection and assisting with skills and jobs.