Summit boost for Scottish skiing

Jim Mather, the enterprise and tourism minister, is to host a ski summit in Inverness on Tuesday with the aim of planning a way forward for the industry, which profited from the prolonged winter.

Mather will be told that Scotland's five resorts - Cairngorm, Glenshee, Glencoe, Nevis Range and the Lecht - need investment to upgrade to match the expectations of customers used to facilities abroad.

A survey of 300 businesses around the Cairngorm, Glenshee and Lecht resorts highlights concerns that the lack of consistent public funding has resulted in the ageing of equipment, which is now difficult and expensive to maintain.

Businesses taking part in the survey called for better marketing of the resorts, research into snow-making technology and developing lift systems that can access higher areas of the mountains once snow lower down has melted.

Some firms have raised the problem of accessing the ski centres during snow storms.

It has been suggested that more resources are put into road clearing to prevent loss of trade, with ski roads given priority, due to industry's importance to the wider economy.

Alan Rankin, chief executive for the Cairngorms Business Partnership and Visit Cairngorms, which carried out the survey, said: "This area has been renowned as a skiing destination for years, but since ease of access to European destinations has increased, in turn so have customers' expectations.

"Unfortunately, the current infrastructure does not meet these expectations and this is where joined up thinking and investment needs to come in."

Last season was the best for 16 years. The CairnGorm centre near Aviemore opened for business on 28 November and more than 60 skiers and snowboarders were able to enjoy the snow still lying in the Ptarmigan bowl on 21 June, the Summer Solstice.

Skier numbers at the centre for the 2009-10 season were 145,007, against 65,000 the previous year and just 38,000 three years ago.