The Tourism Alliance and UKEVENTS, with the support of their member organisations across the UK visitor economy and events industry, have today raised serious concerns over the removal of ringfenced funding for the Business Events Growth Programme (BEGP) and the restructuring of VisitBritain’s dedicated business events function. The organisations have written jointly to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and the Minister for Tourism, formally warning that the decision puts the UK’s international competitiveness in high-value business events at risk and calling for urgent government action to restore national support.
The decision comes despite independently evaluated evidence showing the programme has delivered a 35:1 return on investment, generating £60.6 million in direct economic return from less than £1.8 million of public funding since 2018.
“The decision to withdraw this funding is economically counterproductive,” said Eddy Leviten, Executive Director at the Tourism Alliance. “A programme delivering this level of return is not a cost centre — it is a growth asset. Ending dedicated support risks losing future international trade, inward investment and high-value delegate spend.”
Since its launch, the BEGP has supported 167 international business events across 18 UK cities, with economic benefits distributed across regions including Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester, Leeds and Edinburgh.
Industry leaders warn that the removal of national coordination and specialist bid support puts a pipeline of future events at risk, including major international congresses scheduled through to 2030.
Applications currently in progress are projected to generate more than £41 million in delegate spend, while flagship bids include:
- International Congress of Mathematicians, Glasgow (5,000 delegates)
- World Electric Vehicle Symposium, Birmingham (11,000 delegates)
- ITS World Congress 2027, Birmingham (16,000 delegates)
The UK decision comes as international competitors increase investment in business events:
- Australia has extended its Business Events Bid Fund through to 2032
- Canada has increased funding following industry advocacy
- Singapore and the UAE continue to expand targeted support for international conferences and exhibitions
“The global competition for business events is intensifying,” said Glenn Bowdin, Chair at UKEVENTS. “Countries are investing more, not less. Without comparable support, the UK risks falling behind in a high-value global market.”
The Tourism Alliance and UKEVENTS are calling on the Secretary of State to:
- Assess and protect the current pipeline of international event bids
- Restore ringfenced funding for a national Business Events Growth Programme
- Engage with industry on the forthcoming Visitor Economy Growth Strategy
“The UK visitor economy contributes £147 billion to the economy and supports 2.4 million jobs,” added Eddy Leviten, Executive Director at the Tourism Alliance. “Business events are a high-value driver of that success. Policy must reflect global competition, not retreat from it.”
Author: Sam Hyland
Sam is the assistant content manager for Event Industry News (EIN). Sam is involved in publishing news stories, videos and podcasts. Sam also collates the latest stories for the EIN e-newsletter. If you have a press release or story you think we might be interested to know about please email features@eventindustrynews.com
