Brian Ferguson: Homecoming II: The next generation

VisitScotland had rolled out the red carpet that day, not just for Mr Salmond, but for Disney executives as they revealed footage from the film which was about to be hyped mercilessly by the tourism body.

A couple of weeks earlier, a deal had been signed off by Mr Salmond and VisitScotland’s chairman, Mike Cantlay, for £7 million to be spent on a campaign to capitalise on Brave. I can recall thinking a major premiere in Edinburgh was the very least to expect in return.

There will be no flame-haired princesses on hand when VisitScotland’s next big-money campaign gets under way, but I’m assured a colourful cast of characters will be present – along with the First Minister himself – at a handsome mansion house in Edinburgh on Wednesday.

Grizzled old cynics may question the timing of the launch of the second Homecoming just days after Mr Salmond kick-started the campaign for Scottish independence. I’m sure it’s all just a happy coincidence.

But the fact the Homecoming bandwagon is to start rolling so soon shines a slightly uncomfortable spotlight on the relationship between the Scottish Government and VisitScotland.

It’s difficult to avoid the impression that a second campaign is happening in 2014 to coincide with the referendum – despite the obvious tourism benefits of both the Commonwealth Games and the Ryder Cup next year.

What is beyond debate is that Homecoming is very much a Scottish Government initiative, which it has tasked VisitScotland and its events arm with delivering.

Most of the £5.5 million Homecoming budget, which is over and above all spending on the two sporting spectacles, goes towards events fitting strict criteria.

A key difference with this campaign is that it is also being targeted at the Scottish market. Guidelines for potential applicants make interesting reading.

Event organisers have to consider several questions, including “What does home mean to the people from around the world who have chosen Scotland as their home?” and “What does home mean…to those who know no other place, for whom this country will forever be home?”

The guidelines state: “Modern Scotland means something different to everyone and in 2014 all eyes will be on us. Homecoming will aim to showcase the very best of Scotland’s past, present and future.”

With tourist numbers significantly down last summer across Scotland, I’ve no doubt many industry figures will welcome a high-profile campaign. But I can’t help but wonder if VisitScotland would be better off without another Homecoming – not least because of the political headaches it may throw up.

The last campaign, held in 2009 to mark the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns, proved problematic almost from the point of its inception, despite being hailed as an “amazing success” on the new Homecoming website.

Ministers were forced to intervene to take over Homecoming in 2008 after widespread discontent at how it was shaping up. The new Burns birthplace museum, the flagship capital building project, did not open until Homecoming 2009 was finished.

Government claims that the first Homecoming generated an extra £53 million for the economy were greeted with widespread scepticism by MSPs. An independent analysis found its consultants had “substantially over-estimated” its impact.

Then there was The Gathering. There are still people out there, including its mastermind, Tory peer Lord Sempill, who insist the centrepiece clan gathering was a success. It even features prominently on the new Homecoming website.

Despite £700,000 of public money being ploughed into the event, it still managed to make a loss of more than £500,000. Private-sector creditors were left out of pocket to the tune of more than £300,000 after the organising company folded.

If all that amounts to an “amazing success” my question about the next Homecoming is simple – what could possibly go wrong?