February 28 in blog
It is very, very disappointing to hear that we won’t be coming back to Blackpool after this October for our Party Conference – at least for the forseeable future. It is understandable that with more cities now able to host major conferences, the Party has decided to ring the changes a little – but it is still a blow for Blackpool, doubly so given that the Conference will be going next to our old casino rival Manchester.
But we have to realise that this is yet another wake-up call. If Blackpool wants to be seen to still be a leading conference venue, then it has to invest in a new venue at the very least. The Winter Gardens is a faded glory – and needs substantial investment that Leisure Parcs seem unwilling to devote. This really does call into question the Council’s £1m a year subsidy to Leisure Parcs.
We also have to take on board the fact that our conference venue rivals now have a more varied range of quality accommodation and dining than we do. We need entrepreneurs in Blackpool to take up rapidly this challenge – or else we will find it ever harder to compete. Blackpool has so much to offer, but the product needs to be a quality one.
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