Friday's Budget Statement, while generally full of good news for taxpayers, will have brought little real joy for those involved in the tourism industry.

While Minister Renee Webb has unveiled a new tourism campaign that has been generally well received, there has been no increase in spending for the Ministry to really get the message across to potential visitors.

It would seem that this year more than ever, this was needed, especially given the uncertainty the world faces over war.

Whether the US goes to war alone or with allies, tourism will suffer if there is an invasion of Iraq, at least in the short term. If and when the war ends, Bermuda will have to move quickly to encourage visitors to start travelling again.

Even if there is no war, the tourism industry is still weak.

Although Finance Minister Eugene Cox pointed out that visitor arrivals increased over 2001, that has to be seen in the context that 2001 was the worst tourism year in 30 years and the worst for air visitors since 1968. Arrivals remained well behind 2000, which was also very poor.

Mr. Cox also reported that spending increased year over year, but again it lags well behind 2000. Equally, he said that bednights sold increased year over year for the first time since 1994; again they did not improve over a "normal year" like 2000.

The need to improve tourism is especially true given that Bermuda needs to avoid becoming a one pillar-economy. To be sure, the economy did better than expected last year and Government is forecasting continued growth this year. But much of that was due to the post-9/11 insurance boom which is unlikely to be repeated.

And the Island's position as an offshore financial centre can be damaged quickly by events over which the Island has little control. Efforts are continuing in Washington, DC to stop so-called corporate inversions and it is likely that pressure will continue to mount over the Island's tax status.

For those reasons, the Island needs a stable "second pillar" and tourism remains the most viable one. The other candidates, e-commerce and investment income, have their own problems. E-commerce has not lived up to its early promise and investment income, as the last year must have shown, is a very unpredictable business.

Thousands of Bermudians depend on tourism for employment and opportunity and it needs more than lip service if it is to recover.

The Government, of course, has made some effort to improve the situation, most notably the Hotel Concessions Act that has encouraged major improvements in hotel facilities. Service seems to be getting a little better as well.

Given all of that, it is surprising that more effort is not being made on marketing, especially since the Island now has something to sell.

Yet Ms Webb has admitted that she did not ask for an increase in spending, instead aiming to increase marketing, notably in North America, through efficiencies and cost savings elsewhere. Usually that would be admirable, but at a time when overall Government spending is going up by more than eight percent, it is strange that tourism, which brings money (and taxes) into the community, is getting so little.

Would so much need to be spent on financial assistance (and now unemployment insurance) if Bermuda's hotels were full? That's the question Mr. Cox and Ms Webb need to answer.