Hoteliers are being urged to bury lingering comparisons with Basil Fawlty by paying more attention to food hygiene and fire regulations.

Calls have been made to close down those establishments which fail to comply with statutory health and safety laws.

A guide is being sent to 1,200 establishments across West Sussex to help managers better understand what is expected of them.

The weighty document, which includes advice on health and safety, was compiled by the West Sussex Economic Partnership.

The partnership was chosen by the Government to pilot a tourism programme called Fitness for Purpose designed to improve standards.

The guide was one result of the project, which included a series of industry training programmes over the last nine months.

Hoteliers have backed the scheme but want to see more done to punish operators who fail to comply with the law.

Antony Wallace, general manager of the Millstream Hotel in Bosham, said: "Attitudes to statutory requirements have changed out of all recognition from the Fawlty Towers image but, in many places, there is still much to be done as customer expectations increase.

"Fitness for Purpose is an excellent initiative but we must ensure it is given teeth.

"If any establishment does not comply with requirements, it doesn't deserve to be in business."

Britain has invested £20 billion in the tourism industry over the last 20 years and has more Michelin stars than any other country.

Even so visitor numbers, hit by a string of food and security scares in recent years, have been in steady decline.

Last week a hotelier in Torquay made the headlines by refusing to provide a free glass of tap water to a guest at a Christmas party.

When she wrote a letter of complaint, he wrote back suggesting she try living in the modern world.

Susannah Wiltshire, head of regions and local branch tourism at the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, said productivity needed to be raised.

She said: "To maintain our position in a globally-competitive marketplace, the industry needs to up its productivity.

"One way of achieving that is to improve the quality of the product.

"Fitness for Purpose underpins our quality agenda by making sure that statutory minimum standards are always met."

Bob Cotton, chief executive of the British Hospitality Association, said: "Our industry faces huge competition.

"Britain has already slipped down from fourth to sixth in the most-visited league and we must fight hard to keep this place."

Pam Foden, West Sussex tourist initiative director, said: "Our partnership with county agencies has been very strong and we were delighted to have been chosen as one of the pilots.

"In terms of helping the industry in West Sussex, it has been invaluable and we will be lobbying the Government hard to make sure the work continues."

Friday February 13, 2004