TOURISM will outstrip manufacturing, retail and communications to become one of the fastest-growing sectors of the economy, according to new research which highlights the importance of the holiday industry to the Westcountry.

More than one in eight people in key marginal seats in the region are employed in tourism-related jobs, compared to the national average of one in 12.

New independent analysis by Deloitte and Oxford Economics reveals tourism is worth £115 billion and employs 2.6 million people. It is Britain's fifth largest industry.

The study reveals that in the next decade, tourism is forecast to be one of the county's best-performing sectors, with its contribution to the economy rising by 3.5 per cent each year.

The research is published today to mark the start of British Tourism Week, and with less than two months until the General Election expected on May 6, detailed figures reveal the reliance on key swing seats on the holiday industry.

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For example, in Torbay, where Lib-Dem MP Adrian Sanders defends a notional majority of 2,727, almost one in five people are in tourism jobs.

In Camborne and Redruth – held by Lib-Dem Julia Goldsworthy but targeted by both Labour and the Tories – more than 10 per cent of people rely on visitors for their work. Nationally, the proportion of jobs in tourism is only 8.2 per cent.

According to VisitBritain, in 1997 83 per cent of Tory-held seats in the seaside areas switched to Labour, proving "there are votes in tourism".

The organisation's chairman, Christopher Rodrigues, said the research highlighted the ongoing importance of tourism to the British economy.

"Tourism is a powerful economic driver, and investing in tourism delivers immediate economic benefits," he said. "Overseas visitors pay around £3 billion a year to the Treasury alone.

"Tourism is one of the few industries that supports jobs across the country in our cities, seaside towns and rural areas, cannot be outsourced and has the potential to grow and support 250,000 more jobs with continued investment."

While British tourism has benefited in recent months from the weak pound and increase in the number of Brits holidaying at home, there are fears that looming public spending cuts could limit the amount of Government investment in tourism promotion.

VisitBritain is particularly critical of the inability of tourism minister Margaret Hodge to operate levers of power to influence policy affecting the industry.

The combined spend of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on museums, libraries, the arts, culture and tourism is less than the annual underspend of the Department of Health.

Critics claim the benefits in income both to the Treasury and to local communities are often "taken for granted".

Deloitte predicts that, by 2020, tourism will account for 2.9 million jobs, 250,000 more than is the case today.