Scottish tourism briefing apology

Scottish tourism has been hit by foot-and-mouth and a fall in confidence flying after Sept. 11

EDINBURGH, Scotland -- Tourism chiefs have apologised for using pictures of the planes crashing into the World Trade Center in a document on issues facing Scottish tourism.

The 18-page briefing, produced by the VisitScotland tourist board, was shown to five journalists at a private meeting last week.

It carried pictures of the twin towers and outlined how the Scottish tourism industry had been affected by the September 11 attacks -- and by foot-and-mouth disease earlier in the year. The pictures appeared on the same page of the document which included a heading "Opportunities," though officials say this was not a suggestion that the terrorist attacks provided an opportunity for tourism in Scotland.

Politicians condemned the document. The Reverend David Smith, a relative of Trade Center victim Richard Cudina, said he was appalled by the images.

CNN.COM SPECIAL REPORT  CNN NewsPass Video  Agencies reportedly got hijack tips in 1998  MORE STORIES Intelligence intercept led to Buffalo suspects Report cites warnings before 9/11  EXTRA INFORMATION Timeline: Who Knew What and When? Interactive: Terror Investigation Terror Warnings System Most wanted terrorists What looks suspicious? In-Depth: America Remembers In-Depth: Terror on Tape In-Depth: How prepared is your city?  RESOURCES On the Scene: Barbara Starr: Al Qaeda hunt expands? On the Scene: Peter Bergen: Getting al Qaeda to talk

Scottish Tory deputy leader Annabel Goldie branded the brochure "utterly tasteless", while the Scottish National Party's shadow enterprise minister Kenny MacAskill said it was "crass and insensitive," Scotland on Sunday reported.

VisitScotland, a public body, said it had not intended to use pictures of the World Trade Center to promote Scotland as a safe destination.

It said it "regretted" causing offence and said it had sympathy for the victims of September 11.

Spokeswoman Barbara Clark added: "The idea we would be so insensitive is abhorrent to us. There was no attempt to create a marketing opportunity out of such a terrible tragedy."

The Scottish executive also released a statement apologising on behalf of VisitScotland.

It said: "We are fully aware of the tragic consequences of the events of September 11 which have changed the world in which we operate. We in no way wish to minimise the extent of the tragedy and we are sorry if this has caused offence.

"We are trying to salvage Scotland's tourism -- we have had one of the worst seasons because of foot-and-mouth alone, which cost us £350 million."