Recently, Karen met some representatives from Visit England to discuss plans for promoting tourism in the Moorlands.
Karen said:
"Tourism in Staffordshire is one of our biggest industries; between 2012 and 2015 there were an average of 1.3 million domestic visits to Staffordshire per year, spending £177 million in the local economy.
Visit England - a non-departmental public body funded by my own department, the The Department for Culture, Media and Sport - plays a unique role in building England’s tourism product, raising Britain’s profile worldwide, increasing the volume and value of tourism exports and developing England and Britain’s visitor economy.
One of my key aims when I was re-elected last year was to protect and promote the Moorlands, and I am so pleased that my new role puts me in the perfect position to do just that. I am really looking forward to working with Visit England to find out more about how to promote this beautiful area and boost our local economy."