Don Foster, MP for Bath and the Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media & Sport has announced his support for an awareness campaign which highlights the importance of the meetings and events industry to the UK economy.

The campaign, launched by VisitBritain in advance of National Meetings Week in September aims to raise awareness of the £22 billion contribution meetings and events make to the UK's economy and the 1.78 million jobs supported. This year, the campaign is also urging companies to support their local economy in light of the credit crunch by holding meetings locally, and not travelling overseas.

"We are delighted with Don Foster's support for this year's National Meetings Week. It is so important to highlight the positive impact the meetings industry has on local communities and economies, for example, one in five trips to the South West region is a business visit, which brings in £161 million every year. Campaigns such as this need support not only on a national level, but a local level too," commented Joss Croft, head of business visits & events at VisitBritain.

"Business travellers can help support the local economy in many ways, and can help boost spending in the months that holidaymakers don't tend to visit. They also tend to spend more, per day and per visit, than the leisure traveller."

Other supporters of this year's campaign include Visit London, ExCeL London, Sodexo Prestige, Barbican and Novotel London West.

For more information, visit www.nationalmeetingsweek.co.uk