Minister addresses tour drivers

Press, 30 June 1983, Page 7

Minister addresses tour drivers

Some members of the New Zealand Tour Drivers’ Guild, including the president, Mr M. Mcllraith, of Christchurch, were disappointed with the report in The Press” of June 11 of an address to the guild by the Minister of Tourism, Mr Talbot.

They have claimed that the report, “New Zealand knowledge lacking,” took parts of the Minister’s address out of context and that these parts discredited the drivers without reporting the Minister’s praise for tour drivers generally, and his mention of certain specific efforts by drivers. We have obtained the Minister’s speech notes and now print some further parts of it. Mr Talbot said that drivers had a vital role to play, their work setting the standard for the whole industry. Tourists judged the whole industry by the standards they set. Training courses had been established by the Central Institute of Technology to cater for the tourist trade, said Mr Talbot.

“I expect the tour companies to play their part by ensuring that you as drivers receive regular training to keep you in touch with the latest developments in your important part of the industry,” he said. The tourists who visited New Zealand, particularly from Europe and Asia, were for the most part highly literate, well educated, and sophisticated. Before reaching New Zealand, many had taken the trouble to read a guide book about New Zealand so that they had some idea of what to expect. “Unfortunately, I have heard of quite a number of instances of passengers actually being better informed on some aspects on New Zealand lifestyle than their drivers,” Mr Talbot said.

“I commend you, therefore, to try whenever possible to research your commentaries thoroughly. Do not rely solely on hearsay or ‘common knowledge’; it may not be accurate,” said Mr Talbot. Mr Talbot said that he

received more letters from people enthusiastic about tourism and what New Zealand had to offer than he did from people complaining.

However, he had received one or two comments which they might find interesting. One related particularly to commentary, the content and quality of what they told their passengers. A group of tourists travelling through the central South Island said at the end of their trip that they knew everything about New Zealand’s hydro schemes and little or nothing about the people, mountains, glaciers, plants, and wildlife, yet that was what they wanted to know about.

“I think the message is quite clear. Hydro schemes may be very important to New Zealand, but electricity is something which the urban American, Japanese, or European visitor takes for granted — and they have much bigger schemes back home. “They do not have keas and Mount Cook lilies or the Tasman Glacier. “I am not suggesting you should ignore hydro schemes altogether, but I think you should be aware that technical information and colloquialisms can be very confusing. Especially for people with a limited knowledge of English,” said Mr Talbot. A long diatribe on the merits of particular types of milking shed would doubtless interest any dairy farmers aboard but would seem highly esoteric to a honeymoon couple from Tokyo who might never have seen a cow in the flesh before. “I have been greatly encouraged to hear of a number of drivers who have taken the trouble to learn foreign languages,” Mr Talbot said. One driver he knew, after teaching himself Japanese in New Zealand, took time off to visit Japan at his own expense so that he could polish the skills he had developed and gain some insight into the Japanese way of life, said Mr Talbot. It would be impractical

for everyone to follow his example to the letter, but that was the sort of professionalism which would serve the industry well for years to come. Training schemes had to be co-ordinated by the major tour operators, and not left to drivers because their schedules did not permit much spare time. The guild was established 10 years ago with the aim of raising the professional standards of, and obtaining recognition for the special qualifications and responsibilities of, tour drivers, Mr Talbot said.

“I believe your members have come a very long way during the last decade, and the guild has done a sterling job in improving the quality of the services we can offer our tourists,” Mr Talbot said.