MARK Smith, Bournemouth's head of tourism, says visitor numbers would drop by 20 per cent if Navitus was built (Echo, October 10). So what is the basis for such a bold statement?
The visitor numbers come from surveys commissioned by Navitus with TSE Research who surveyed 2,027 visitors on the coast. The survey went a bit like this: They started by asking why they were visiting and if they would re-visit. Only 80 per cent said they were likely to re-visit. They were then asked if they liked wind farms and, as expected, a fair few actually dislike wind farms rather a lot.
Then they saw an image of how Navitus would appear out to sea in perfect visibility and asked how much they agreed or disagreed with a number of statements.
The first statement was ‘the wind farm is likely to put me off visiting the area. I’m likely to visit somewhere else’.
Their responses are not, therefore, well-considered opinion but a first-reaction to the prospect of a wind farm off Bournemouth, their chosen holiday destination.
Give that 30 per cent of the population dislike wind farms, it is surprising that only 12 per cent actually agreed with this first statement. Five per cent agreed the opposite – they would be more likely to visit. Nobody said they wouldn’t visit at all.
And this is the basis for Mark Smith’s 20 per cent drop in Bournemouth visitor numbers. I don’t see the logic.
DR MARTIN RODGER, Bloxworth Road, Poole
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