While Rome burns ... our politicians fiddle. Or, rather, try to explain how they didn't.

But there's a far more serious point about the expenses revelations and election of the new Speaker that is currently engulfing parliament. Election fever is in the air. Is the government actually governing at the moment - or is it riding from crisis to crisis, trying to damp down fire after fire?

I ask because there was an excellent and little reported debate in the House of Lords in May that discussed the state of UK tourism. It was measured. It was positive. It was helpful.

Three points emerged:

1. The need for small tourism seasonal businesses, reliant on overdraft facilities, to obtain appropriate finance from the banks.

2. The need to stop the ceaseless flow of new regulations that are so costly to implement in terms of money and management time.

3. The need to boost UK domestic tourism at a time when the low value of sterling against other major currencies is potentially so positive.

At least our Lordships understand the challenges facing tourism at the beginning of what could be a make or break season for many operators. But at this critical time, the government is so preoccupied by the crises that are overwhelming it that it's like a rabbit staring into a car's headlights. It is doing nothing.

Finance is still difficult to obtain. Whitehall bureaucrats are still determined to saddle industry with increasing regulations (eg: Scores on the Doors, nutritional information on menus, increases in the National Minimum Wage when many workers are having to take a pay freeze or even a pay cut). Meanwhile the summer season gets underway with VisitEngland only just in operational mode and VisitBritain operating on a tighter budget than ever before.

UK tourism faces a testing year. In spite of the fall in the value of sterling, the number of overseas visitors in the first three months of this year was down on 2008 by 13 per cent although spend was more or less the same - a sign that either visitors are spending more voluntarily or, more worrying, that UK prices have increased.

In this scenario, if the government is to take tourism seriously, it should take note of the House of Lords debate. Yet, the government's general policy drift is reflected in its approach to tourism: no clear policies, little support, minimal financial help, and yet more regulations. And little hope that anything will change soon.