5 Key issues

5.6 Summary

The main way the Government helps provide sound framework conditions for the tourism industry is to establish such conditions for business activity in general, but the Government also carries out certain targeted measures.

• The Government will further increase the valuation discount for shares and working assets, in accordance with the Storting’s agreement on a tax reform.

• The Government intends to propose a wealth tax relief measure for hotels and other accommodation establishments by significantly increasing the valuation discount in the central government budget for 2018.

• The Government will map public-sector supervisory practices involving the tourism industry in order to create a knowledge base encompassing the design, extent and effect of such oversight. This mapping will provide a basis for considering potential measures to reduce the overall supervisory burden on the industry.

• The Government is working to ensure that public-sector communication with the business community increasingly occurs via digital channels. Small actors in the tourism industry will be among those to benefit.

• The Government will follow up the UN sustainable development goals (SDG) with regard to sustainable tourism, in accordance with Agenda 2030.

• The Government will facilitate efforts by local authorities, in cooperation with other relevant actors, to have the cruise industry reduce greenhouse gas emissions and local pollution.

• The Government will, at an appropriate time, evaluate the effect of the new structure for regional tourism boards on resolving challenges associated with local projects and services of collective benefit. The new structure for regional tourism boards provides a good starting point for the industry to work together towards a common effort.

• The Government extends Innovation Norway’s responsibility for promoting Norway as a destination. Innovation Norway will carry out its responsibility in cooperation with the tourism industry.

• The Government will initiate a project to measure the impact of government-funded marketing on value creation in the tourism industry.

• The Government, in the next comprehensive evaluation of Innovation Norway, will examine the synergies achieved between Innovation Norway’s promotion of Norway as a destination and the organisation’s other work.

• The Government will assist in generating additional statistics about Norwegian tourism in order to better document the tourism industry’s contribution to the Norwegian economy.

• The Government retains its commitment to Innovation Norway as an important partner of the tourism industry as regards expertise, development and marketing. Its primary task is government-funded marketing of Norwegian tourism. Training and development activities can be undertaken by other providers in the market as well. The tourism industry, like all others, is able to avail itself of general support programmes for research, development and innovation.

• The Government continues to support tourism research, emphasising topics defined by the industry itself, in cooperation with research communities and the Research Council of Norway.

Petition resolutions requested by the Storting

In addition to adopting the policy measures contained in the Government’s white paper on tourism, the Storting adopted four petition resolutions seeking additional measures during its consideration of the white paper in May 2017.

I

The Storting asks the Government to draw up a strategy, in cooperation with the tourism industry, for expansion of the tourism industry’s season.

II

The Storting asks the Government to reduce the reporting burden for individuals and businesses, and to ensure compliance with the ‘only once’ principle by submitting a strategy on common information management and increased use of machine-to-machine communication in the public sector.

III

The Storting asks the Government to prepare and submit to the Storting a plan to eliminate the maintenance backlog for cultural heritage sites in Norway.

IV

The Storting asks the Government to initiate a project to increase digital expertise across the full spectrum of parties active in Norwegian tourism.