Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The wedding of Prince William and Catherina Elizabeth Middleton is not a money making event , said British Ambassador to Indonesia Martin Hatfull here Friday.

"The main focus of this wedding ceremony is to celebrate two young people getting married, this is not a money making event , only a celebration of their love to each other and the start of their life together," Martin said.

Martin also said there was a high level of public interest around the world in the event, and many people were expected to come to the UK to take part in the celebration held in Westminster Abbey in London on April 29, 2011.

According to the Hotel Association in London, there was an enormous increase in demand for rooms in the city and the Western Traders Association (shop keepers association in west London) was expecting a really big boost in sales as visitors spent about 50 million pounds just over the weekend.

"And if you look at the number of additional tourists who came to London for the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, if you think the same number might come this time then again another 50 million pounds of spending can be expected for the event," Martin said.

According to Martin, the British people also believed that the interest in the royal wedding combined with other major events in the next 12 months would help the country`s economy to recover from the recent crisis.

"This will lead to a significant increase in tourism and tourist spending in the UK and, I think, the `Visit Britain` mood will generate maybe two billion pounds sterling over the next couple of years" Martin said.

"I think that the royal wedding will help the British economy recover from the economic crisis as it is creating additional revenue for the country but we are confident that our economy is growing," he said.(*)

(T.A050/HAJM/H-YH)

Editor: Ruslan Burhani
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