European co-operation in the field of tourism

Recommendation 810 (1977)

Author(s):

Parliamentary Assembly

Origin

Text adopted by the Standing Committee, acting on behalf of the Assembly, on 8 July 1977. See Doc. 3992, report of the Committee on Economic Affairs and Development.

Thesaurus

The Assembly,

1. Referring to its Resolution 658 (1977), on European co-operation in the field of tourism,

2. Recommends that the Committee of Ministers invite the governments of member states to keep their tourism policies under regular review, in close consultation with the professional and consumer representatives concerned, in particular with a view to :

making an appropriate and detailed analysis of the various effects on the economy, employment, environment and socio-cultural situation in the areas concerned, before developing tourist facilities ;

accelerating, in the same context, the introduction of an international medical credit card, to facilitate the provision of medical care and the refund of medical expenses incurred abroad as the result of illness or an accident, as advocated in Recommendation 792 of the Assembly ;

making efforts to maintain a fair balance between supply and demand in the tourism sector, particularly with regard to hotels, giving serious consideration to harmonisation of the regulations of the various countries' retirement pension funds concerning the latter's contribution to the cost of holidays abroad for the elderly ;

improving the information value of tourism statistics and their international comparability ;

becoming a Member, if they have not yet done so, of the World Tourism Organisation ;

adhering, if they have not yet done so, to the Council of Europe Convention on the Liability of Hotelkeepers concerning the property of their guests ;

speeding up the conclusion by the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (Unidroit) of a draft convention on the hotel-keeper's contract ;

improving information on available training courses for the hotel and tourist professions, and so facilitating the mutual recognition of diplomas in this field ;

3. Further recommends that the Committee of Ministers :

accelerate its programme of measures to extend the harmonisation and mutual recognition of national identity cards, which should have the same status as passports for identification and travel purposes among Council of Europe member countries ;

initiate a special study on ways and means of facilitating tourism by special groups, such as the elderly, the handicapped and the socially under-privileged ;

take appropriate initiatives in co-ordination with OECD for the protection of tourists as consumers ;

take the initiative for the elaboration, adoption and strict observance of higher safety standards in hotels, in particular with regard to fire protection, bearing in mind that appropriate credit facilities may have to be provided for ;

invite the European Conference of Ministers responsible for Regional Planning to put on its working programme the study of the effects of tourism on regional development, particularly on vulnerable areas such as mountain regions, wetlands, lake shores and coastal areas.