Despite Welcome To Yorkshire’s work Leeds is still invisible on tourism map – Yorkshire Post Letters

THE article by David Behrens (The Yorkshire Post, December 7) on new Welcome to Yorkshire chief executive James Mason was an unwelcome reminder of the invisibility of Leeds to those with money and influence.

Welcome to Yorkshire has gone from a gravy train to a Pacer – David Behrens

I’m a Leeds lass and boss of a tourist-attraction company based in York – with two attractions in Leeds and seven others from Edinburgh to Portsmouth, from York to Wales.

Welcome to Yorkshire has learned absolutely nothing from Sir Gary Verity’s downfall over expenses at tourism body – Tom Richmond

Other locations and regions have greater resourcing opportunities, for sure.

Never has that invisibility of our region been as obvious to me as it was last Friday.

I was at a TV awards dinner in London and two comments, from professional and 
high-powered folk, frankly made me gag.

”Of course, Channel 4 are only pretending to move to Leeds.” What?

“It’s actually (with verbal emphasis) quite (said with slight shame) nice up in the North” (use of a descriptive term for everywhere not in London or the ‘burbs).

Hold me back.

So there’s a massive job still to do and it’s a reputational job, not just a tourism one.

We need to chorus: “Hey! It’s bloody brilliant outside London and beyond the Midlands – and you poor things (s*ds) for not knowing so!”

Well, maybe more subtle than that. So good luck, James Mason. We all need to work with you on this. It’s far too big a job for one person – whatever their salary.

From: Christine McDade, Morton on Swale.

YOU reported (The Yorkshire Post, December 6) West Yorkshire Police stating the probe into the past expenses claimed at Welcome to Yorkshire is continuing.

Sir Gary Verity has repaid over £25,000 plus of unjustified claims made by him but declined to co-operate with the independent investigations into allegations about his expense spending and behaviour towards staff members

I welcome the appointment of James Mason, as the new chief executive, at a much lower salary than Sir Gary Verity. I wish him well and that Welcome to Yorkshire thrives under his leadership.