Dawn Bowden MS - Wilfully Presided Over Malfeasance And Lied To My MP!

Dawn was the Deputy Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism when it all kicked off again with Visit Wales, back in August of 2023. It kicked off because Visit Wales, in particular Heledd Owen, Director of Marketing, failed to hold true to their and her promise of cleaning up the Visit Wales website and maintaining a level playing field for all.

I accept that Wales Outdoors cannot be listed on the Visit Wales website as Wales Outdoors refuses to pay for an accreditation scheme that is not only not fit for purpose but that is government overreach on a grand scale, Visit Wales being the only tourism portal in the whole of the UK that administers such a scheme, and a scheme that goes far beyond UK legislation.

I don’t accept the platforming of at least 50 tourism businesses that receive both listings and promotions and indeed preferred partner status that offer similar products as Wales Outdoors and also have not been through the Visit Wales accreditation process.

So, the question is simple. Why does Visit Wales apply its rules to Wales Outdoors and not to similar others? This question has remained unanswered since 2020 and Dawn Bowden, the minister responsible for most of that period never engaged or indeed took this matter, now an accusation of corruption and with the South Wales Police, seriously.

Between 6th August to the time of Dawn’s replacement when Vaughan Gething became the First Minister for Wales, I sent to her no less than 20 emails and her couple of responses were corporate, showed no interest in the matter I was raising and failed to, on any occasion, respond to the key questions. Indeed, she took advice from Visit Wales staff and lied to my MP, Kevin Brennan.

Here are the key emails between Kevin, Dawn and myself that detail this.

Kevin’s initial letter

Dawn Bowden MS Deputy Minister for Arts and Sport Welsh Government 5th Floor Ty Hywel Cardiff Bay CF99 1SN Our Ref: NH/KB37457 5 September 2023

Dear Dawn, Re: Andrew Lamb

I am writing on behalf of my constituent Mr Lamb, who has written to me to express his concern with the policies of Visit Wales in regard to the promotion of guided walk providers on their platform. Mr Lamb is the owner Wales Outdoors, an adventure tour company. He has stated that his company Wales Outdoors is not promoted on the Visit Wales website due to his choice to not to acquire further accreditation. However he has “noted many businesses that are not accredited back on Visit Wales, by various means, and [that] this places Wales Outdoors once again at a market disadvantage”.

He has informed me that this is an issue he has previously raised with Visit Wales, leading a meeting with Heledd Owen, Deputy Director of Marketing at Visit Wales. He has stated that during this meeting Visit Wales “made firm promises of a change in behaviour … and that the site would be closely monitored with only accredited businesses being allowed onto the platform.” However, Mr Lamb has expressed concern that unaccredited businesses are being allowed onto the platform. Mr Lamb has further stated his concern with Visit Wales’ policy regarding guides remaining no more than 30 minutes from the guides vehicle. He has stated that: “I can descend from the summit of Pen y Fan in less than thirty minutes, my waterfalls walk is never more than 30 minutes from a road. I have asked for clarification on the ‘thirty minutes from the vehicle’ rule, asking when and by whom was this imposed. But I have also pointed out that I set up a partner business that only delivers low level walks that have good and quick access to public highways and that this business has been disallowed from ticking the ‘guided walking’ box. This in the face of other similar businesses being allowed onto the Visit Wales platform.”

Additionally, Mr. Lamb has told me that “Wales Outdoors delivers walks that any adult would be deemed fit to chose to undertake on their own or with their family. But Visit Wales will not list Wales Outdoors. However, Wales Outdoors can be listed for target shooting, archery, yoga, fishing, motorsports, golf, ‘other activities’, wildlife watching, airsports (flying, ballooning paragliding), self led walking and walking experiences (such as walking with a sheep).”

Mr Lamb has stated that he would like to see “either the removal of all rules regarding the disbarment for unaccredited but professionally qualified guided walks providers from Visit Wales platform OR the permanent removal of all businesses that offer an in person service where that service could possibly lead to the guide or tutor along with client being more than 30 minutes from the guides vehicle.”

I would appreciate if you could address the concerns expressed by my constituent. I look forward to your reply.

Yours sincerely Kevin Brennan MP Member of Parliament for Cardiff West

Dawn’s Response

Dear Kevin,

Thank you for your letter of 5 September, on behalf of your constituent Andrew Lamb of Wales Outdoors. The Welsh Government is committed to creating a more prosperous, equal and greener nation, and the role of Visit Wales is to support destination planning, management and marketing across the tourism sector. Outdoor activities form a core part of Wales’ product offer. We engage with this sector to support its development and we promote a full range of outdoor activities on visitwales.com and feature them in our content and campaigns.

As part of that we administer the Adventure Activity Assurance Scheme, which is a voluntary, non-statutory scheme that has been developed in partnership with the Wales Adventure Tourism Organisation (WATO). Recognition through this scheme is required for all adventure activity businesses that wish to be listed on VisitWales.com. It aims to provide residents and visitors with a quick and easy way to select adventure and outdoor recreation activity providers and operators based on their ability to deliver safe and effective industry practice.

We are not aware that other outdoor activity providers have raised any issues around this approach, but we are nevertheless taking Mr Lamb’s concerns very seriously and we will look again at our processes to ensure they are fit-for-purpose and report back on the results to Mr Lamb when this process is concluded.

Yours sincerely, Dawn Bowden AS/MS Dirprwy Weinidog y Celf

My email to dawn, and copied to Kevin urging him to question this response, which he did. All questions kevin asked, including an explanation of Dawn’s lie to him, remain unanswered…

Dear Dawn, I'd like to bring to your attention and have a response from you a matter regarding your response to Kevin Brennan's original letter. 

Kevin did not ask whether I was alone in complaining about there being no guided walk providers on the Visit Wales platform. But you decided, on Visit Wales staff's nudging, as it is they that wrote your letter, to make it appear to Kevin that I was a lone complainer...

However, an FOI request has revealed that I am not alone. Indeed, I calculate that there are a minimum of 74 complainants, albeit 70 of them are represented by the Blue Badge Guide Association WOTGA.

Please can you explain why you mislead Kevin Brennan MP and what action you intend to take regarding staff at Visit Wales misleading you, in an attempt to belittle my support from my MP.

This is what you said

‘We are not aware that other outdoor activity providers have raised any issues around this approach. but we are nevertheless taking Mr Lamb's concerns very seriously and we will look again at our processes to ensure they are fit-for-purpose and report back on the results to Mr Lamb /you when this process is concluded.’

My FOI returned two other providers in discussion with Visit Wales on just this matter and WOTGA had been in a series of long discussions with Visit Wales management, on behalf of their members, also regarding the same points that I have raised. 

If this was submitted in court this would likely be considered as perjury. 

I await your swift and full explanation. 

Andrew Lamb, Wales Outdoors.

You can book our walks through the Wales Outdoors Website or, if you are a group, you can book us for a bespoke adventure, you choose the date and time, using the ‘Book Your Guide’ option.

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