Summary and Background to the Act
3.The Scottish Tourist Board is established by section 1 of the Development of Tourism Act 1969. The Board’s main functions are to encourage people to visit and holiday in Scotland and to encourage the provision of tourist amenities and facilities in Scotland. In addition, section 172 of the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 required the establishment of area tourist boards. Originally, there were 14 such boards. In April 2005, the existing 14 boards were wound up and 2 new boards (called network tourist boards) established in their place. The Scottish Tourist Board and the network tourist boards operate under the banner of VisitScotland. The Act is intended to abolish the network tourist boards, to rename the Scottish Tourist Board as VisitScotland and to increase its maximum number of board members.