Shropshire Star

Games a great opportunity for Shropshire tourism, says MP

An MP has asked the Government to ensure Shropshire's tourist industry is well placed to make the most of the opportunities presented by the 2022 Commonwealth Games being held in Birmingham.

Published
Birmingham's Alexandra Stadium will host the Commonwealth Games

Daniel Kawczynski said the games would attract hundreds of thousands of people to the West Midlands, and said it was important that the whole region, and not just Birmingham itself, had the opportunity to benefit.

He said he had spoken to Nigel Huddleston, the minister for sports, tourism and leisure about the matter, and had been assured he would do what he could to help.

"I'm asking him formally to ascertain how the Commonwealth Games will be able to help the important counties of the West Midlands in terms of supporting their tourist industries," he said.

The Commonwealth Games comes to Birmingham in 2022

Mr Kawczynski said the event would bring athletes, supporters and media from all over the world into the region, and it was important to make them aware of the many attractions that were just a short distance away.

"The Commonwealth Games will last for 11 days, and will be an opportunity to showcase the West Midlands area to the world, and what better place for those who do visit Birmingham to come to than our beautiful county of Shropshire, less than an hour away?" he added.

Mr Kawczynski said he would be writing to Shropshire Council and Shrewsbury Tourism asking them to work together to encourage as many people as possible to visit the area during the games.

Daniel Kawczynski

He said Shropshire's economy had been heavily dependent on tourism for many years, and had suffered badly as a result of the restrictions in place to tackle coronavirus this year.

"A third of the world lives in Commonwealth countries, and this is a very important sporting occasion, and we want to take full advantage to make sure Shropshire benefits."

Birmingham's Alexandra Stadium will be the primary host for the games, but the cycling events will be held at Cannock Chase and in London, with aquatics events at a new venue in Smethwick.