Tourism is of major economic importance for growth and employment in the EU. Roughly 5 per cent of total employment and of GDP comes from tourism. Eight million people are directly employed in the EU tourism sector, mostly in small and middle-sized companies (SMEs).
The EU has had an active role in tourism since the 1980s. In 1986, a Tourism Advisory Committee was set up to facilitate exchange of information and co-operation. In 1995, the Commission issued a Green Paper on the role of the Union in the field of tourism. The priority in those years was on the employment aspects of tourism. A High Level Group on Tourism and Employment was set up and held a conference in November 1997 and a Communication "Enhancing tourism's potential for employment" identified measures to implement this strategy.
In November 2001, the Commission published a new Communication
"Working together for the future of European Tourism", highlighting the need to enhance co-operation and involvement of all stakeholders.
