Announcing the cabinet decisions recently, the Cabinet of Ministers had granted approval to the proposal laid out by the Minister of Tourism to repeal the Tourism Act No. 38 of 2005 and draft a bill to enact a new Tourism Act which has provoked a spark of controversy between the state tourism authorities and private tourism bodies of the country.  The spark arose between the parties after the confirmation of enacting a new Tourism Act next year which would merge Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA), Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) and the Sri Lanka Convention Bureau (SLCB).  Speaking to The Sunday Morning Business, Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga stated that the measure of enacting a new Act is to have all organisations under one branch which would result in carrying out the task assigned by reducing bureaucratic commitment.  “The new Tourism Act will increase the efficiency of all official authorities in terms of improving communication within the three different departments, reducing duplicated work, cost-saving and also making the chain of command faster with clear directions,” Ranatunga said.  He further pointed out that following the cabinet approval the board is currently engaged with the legal draftsman consultant to draft this document with the input from the industry and the employees so that solutions to controversy could be solved through the discussions.  “We have asked for suggestions and recommendations from private sector authorities. As the first draft is finalised it will be released for public comments and consultation with the industry thereafter it will be submitted to the legal draftsman department to analyses the issues. After that it will be checked by the Attorney general’s department and finally submitted to the cabinet,” Ranatunga added.  Further, conversing with us in this regard SLTDA DG Dhammika Wijesinghe also expressed the same view stating that there are various segments that are involved in duplicating tasks in the tourism industry.  “The existing law would be repealed to reduce duplicated tasks and to amend the diluted authority powers and enforcement abilities in the 2005 Tourism Act in order to take legal actions,” noted Wijesinghe.    Old act has enabled four different tourism bodies  The Tourism Act No. 38 of 2005 with four separate Tourism Institutions was enacted in October 2007 as required at that time. However, during the past fifteen years, successive Governments have always been keen to merge the Institutions in line with global best practices.  With reference to the Tourism Act, the key objectives of the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority are as follows: 

• Advise the Minister in charge of tourism on matters relating to travel and the tourism industry, within the policy formulated by the Cabinet of Ministers, in relation to this sector 

• Provide guidance to the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau to develop, promote and market Sri Lanka as a tourist and travel destination both in Sri Lanka and abroad 
• Provide guidance to the Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management to undertake human resource training and development activities 
• Work towards the enhancement of the tourism and travel sectors in order to secure a contribution for the expansion and development of the Sri Lanka economy 
• Develop and promote adequate, attractive and efficient tourist services, inclusive of the hospitality industry in a sustainable manner 
• License and accredit tourist enterprises in order to develop, enforce and maintain locally and internationally accepted standards in relation to the tourism industry and other related industries 
• Encourage persons or bodies of persons in the private sector to participate in the promotion of the tourism industry and the promotional and training activities connected with the relevant industry 

  However, the Sri Lanka Tourism report published in 2020 explicitly states that the Tourism Act No. 38 of 2005 structure has resulted in inefficiency and waste with an overlap of functions and lack of coordinated effort in developing tourism.  What would the new Act encompass?  Speaking in this regard, Sri Lanka Tourism Chairperson Kimarli Fernando pointed out that the consolidation of three institutions into one was a proposal contained in the 2021 Budget presented by Prime Minister and Finance Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.  As previously said, the proposal to merge all three institutions has been made by all Governments to meet the international standard to meet the best practices. With reference to the Sri Lanka Tourism report the key areas that require attention to be amended or added to the new Act are as follows: Industry consultation in preparing the new Act would be sought, including all Associations, Universities, Sri Lanka Police and any interested stakeholders. A study would also be done on similar statutes in other countries to identify best practices that could be incorporated into the new Tourism Act 

• The responsibilities, authorities and powers granted under the existing legislation are necessary for a National Tourism Authority and should not be further fragmented or dissipated 
• The local Government levy of 1% of the total turnover of a hotel is unique to the Tourism Industry. Hotels have been singled out for this levy; while neither other businesses nor factories pay such a levy. Hotels provide a significant economic benefit to local areas through community employment, procurement and guests patronising local businesses and small entrepreneurs. Hence, it is necessary to work in cooperation with the relevant authorities to ensure that the tourism sector is treated in the same way as other industries 
• Any temporary import restrictions on basic supplies to the hotel industry would need to be reviewed. These items are not available locally to the required standard of tourist hotels, categories of such include kitchen steel utensils, polycarbonate utensils, stainless steel cookware 
• Hotel refurbishments are required to maintain and uplift the product and attract high-yield tourists. It is necessary to review the concessions available for refurbishment projects approved by SLTDA and permit duty-free imports similar to new projects which are subjected to the negative list restrictions for materials locally available 

  The new Act which will be enacted after merging institutions will be named ‘Sri Lanka Tourism’. However, the Tourism Development Fund which provides a reliable, independent base financing for ongoing activities and for the Tourism Strategic Action Plan will be retained as the same in preparing a new Act.    Who is opposing the proposed new Act?  After the announcement by the Cabinet, the private sector voiced their strong opposition to replace the existing Tourism Act with a new one stating that their consultation has not been taken into account before taking such a big measure by the Government authorities.  Voicing their opinion, the Tourist Hotels Association (THASL) and Sri Lanka Inbound Tour Operators (SLAITO) insisted there was no need to change the existing Act given the prevailing Covid-19 situation at hand.    Speaking to The Sunday Morning Business, THASL President Sanath Ukwatte stated they are not against the new implementation but concerned and disappointed for executing such an important decision without their knowledge and consideration.  “We are not against the abolition of the Act but we are in favour of certain amendments of changes to the Act which could be included after discussing with our stakeholders because right now we have no formal engagement from the authorities other than asking for suggestions,” Ukwatte stated.  Explaining the situation, he emphasised that it is not feasible as an organisation to provide suggestions without knowing the actual brief taken by the authorities to formulate in the new Act.  “In tourism, different stakeholders are involved so if any changes are done it should be taken after consulting all the stakeholder’s industry like previously but now, we don’t see the transparency. It is degrading to us hence we are against this, not the changes the Act will bring into the country,” Ukwatte added.  Further, Ukwatte urged the Government to focus on the matter at hand to overcome the prevailing crisis the tourism industry is facing right now rather than focusing the energy on enacting a new Act that is not a priority to the industry right now.  We also spoke to SLAITO President Thilak Weerasinghe who stated that there are so many key burning issues the tourism industry is currently facing in which formulating a new Act is not at all a priority to Sri Lanka right now.  “This is the time the industry should stand together and find a solution to bring the tourism standard back on foot. In comparison to the previous time where we gave our recommendation and consideration, nothing of such sort has happened right now,” Weerasinghe stated.  Further, explaining the situation he noted that they haven't seen the draft yet and should have appropriate formal discussions with all the relevant stakeholders in order to come up with a feasible solution to all the problems faced by the tourism industry at the moment.  Presenting a letter to the Ministry of Tourism, Weerasinghe representing SLAITO stated that:  “We are of the opinion that this is not the appropriate time to amend the Current Tourism Act. as we have far more important things to concentrate on.  We also would like to emphasise the fact that this Act has worked perfectly with Public-Private Partnership (PPP)”.  Meanwhile, speaking to us, Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators (SLAITO) immediate outgoing President Mahen Kariyawasam also expressed the same opinion in regards to opposing the decision taken by the Government.  Expressing his thoughts, Kariyawasam said that the Government should concentrate on measures to increase tourism in the country rather than changing the current Act is functioning quite well at present.  “Tourism industry being a 99% private driven industry, I think private sector participation should be present during the discussions to enact the new Act since there is no consultation with the private sector industry as of yet,” added Karayawasam.    Response from the Government  When inquired by the Minister of Tourism, Ranatunga mentioned that everyone will be included in formulating the new Act after the final draft is released by the Legal Draftsman.  “We have just taken the approval by the Cabinet, no final decision has been taken by us as of yet. The required changes will be made after discussing them with all the stakeholders of the industry. Right now, we have asked for their suggestion, if received we will submit it to a Legal Draftsman to include in the prepared draft copy,” Ranatunge said.  Further, he emphasised that all stakeholders should voice out their suggestions right now so that effective discussions can be made after the final draft is released by the Legal Draftsman.  Meanwhile, speaking to us Secretary to the Ministry of Tourism S. Hettiarachchi expressed the same inputs as Minister Ranatunga. However, he mentioned that there are a lot of things to be done before enacting a new draft.  Hettiarachchi stated that the private sector officials will not be left out in taking decisions that will have an impact on the Sri Lankan economy.  “I’ve promised them in writing that their input will be taken into consideration and for discussion with all stakeholders involved in the industry. What we need right now are their suggestions which we have requested from them. We need their support in order to benefit the future of the tourism industry,” he concluded.