Willie Cameron, director of Loch Ness Marketing, has called for changes at the top of VisitScotland and for "a face of Scotland" to lead the agency.

His scathing attack came in the wake of a damning report by an independent committee of academics, the Royal Society of Edinburgh, which claimed there was "frustration and annoyance at a lack of funding or professional tourism support from VisitScotland" among rural communities.

Mr Cameron's comments were also made as a small delegation representing the Highlands' tourism industry returned from a successful visit to China — organised on their own initiative — to encourage Chinese tourists to visit the area.

Mr Cameron said the general consensus which came from the report was that members were extremely dissatisfied with VisitScotland's operation.

Citing the visit to China by Highlands and Loch Ness Marketing, he said: "If VisitScotland was doing its job, why did people in the area feel they needed to do their own thing? What they are now trying to do is fast-track decisions because VisitScotland was paddling about and taking months to get things done."

Mr Cameron acknowledged VisitScotland was strapped for cash. "I don't think the investment is anything like it should be, considering it is one of our major industries," he said. "Compared to what Ireland is getting, we are only getting half."

He also believed the organisation was top heavy. "Far too many staff are doing meaningless tasks," he said. "It is jobs for the boys. I feel there should be streamlining of the organisation. VisitScotland is just a bunch of suits."

He queried whether VisitScotland.com — the tourism agency's centralised booking system — had been successful for Highland businesses and criticised the scrapping of area tourist boards several years ago.

"Doing away with the local set-up was not a good idea," he declared. "To be quite honest, the last few years has been a catalogue of disasters for the organisation."

He believed someone who could be "a face for Scotland" should lead the agency. "We need someone with personality," he declared. "We need someone with a bit of dynamism, a bit of passion — someone who is going to shout our case on the international market."

Nicol Manson, Inverness hotelier and chairman of Highlands and Loch Ness Marketing (HLNM), also voiced doubts over VisitScotland's operation.

"I know a lot of people in the trade have extreme reservations about VisitScotland's ability to perform," he said. "I think it is probably fair to say that a review is overdue."

Mr Manson, owner of The Waterside Hotel in Ness Bank, said that VisitScotland had not been involved in HLNM's trip to China. "We chose to a certain extent to go our own way," he said. "On this particular project, we were extremely lucky in that one of our contacts had invaluable contacts. Whether VisitScotland could have made the same contacts, I am not quite sure."

Graeme Ambrose, owner of the Evergreen B&B at Inverfarigaig and chief executive of Destination Loch Ness, believed there was a need for change within VisitScotland but did not wish to deride everything the organisation did. "Clearly there are problems and something has to be done to change this," he said.

A VisitScotland spokeswoman said the organisation was committed to promoting the islands and rural areas through a vast array of national and international campaigns. For example, the Winter White seasonal campaign, which focused heavily on rural areas. It brought £35 million of revenue to Scottish tourism businesses last year.

v.sweeney@inverness-courier.co.uk

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