Australian Chamber – Tourism, the peak body representing the national tourism groups, welcomes Labor’s Tourism policy platform, which commits continued infrastructure, regional aviation, and Tourism Australia investment.
“Tourism is one of Australia’s greatest success stories. Not only does it contribute to the economy and create jobs, it also embraces the world and the free movement of people who share lasting life experiences,” Executive Chair of Australian Chamber-Tourism, John Hart, said.
“Australia needs to capitalise on massive expansions in key overseas markets, including our Asian neighbours China, India, and Indonesia.
“In 2018, it was estimated that 151 million Chinese travelled overseas and 1.3 million Chinese tourists visited Australia, with this predicted to grow. The recently released ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Visitors Survey also reflects a growing domestic tourism market.
“Boosting Tourism Australia’s budget by $25 million helps to leverage existing investment in tourism marketing that has a 16:1 return on investment.
“Investment to develop agri-tourism is welcome, with the sector attracting approximately 1.8 million domestic and international visitors to Australian farms in 2015-16, and growing by over 9% each year.
“We also welcome the commitment to support regional aviation, existing tourism offerings and infrastructure in our regions, but, to meet our potential this needs to come with funding to develop additional aviation routes. Increased aviation access is critical for greater dispersal and sustained tourism growth.
“We also note Labor’s commitment of $6 million to the Quality Tourism Framework, an initiative by our member the Australian Tourism Industry Council.”
