Policy intervention, 'enforced' collaboration and sub-regional tourism development - the case of South Yorkshire

Political intervention can take place at a number of levels with various intentions and outcomes. This chapter examines how policy intervention at supra-national and sub-national levels has contributed to enforced collaboration in tourism at a sub-regional or 'local' level. The case of South Yorkshire, the poorest sub-region of Yorkshire and Humberside in the UK and a former EU Objective One region, provides the focus.

Sub-regional level tourism has always been an under-researched topic area. The way in which UK regional tourism bodies have traditionally worked and the powers of local authorities to engage in tourism activity have resulted in largely, discretionary, ad hoc activities at a sub-regional level.

This chapter examines regional policy events in England and the implications for tourist destinations, enabling the case study area of South Yorkshire to be situated within a broader context. The identification of South Yorkshire as a designated recipient of EU Objective One Structural Funding is important. It enables the chapter to consider 'regional' policy intervention from both a supra-national ('European') and sub-national ('Yorkshire') perspective. Semi-structured interview responses from South Yorkshire tourism stakeholders are used to gain insights into tourism stakeholder perceptions of sub-regional tourism development challenges. These responses allow for analysis of the implications of 'enforced' collaboration arising from multi-level governance and supra-national and sub-national policy interventions.