Perth
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Ladies and gentlemen, it's a pleasure to once more address the Qantas Australian Tourism Awards.
After an eventful twelve months, it is great to be here to celebrate your success.
You are the representatives of the industry which provides a job for one in every 12 working Australians.
You're here having come through the tragic natural disasters in Queensland, wide spread flooding and bushfires here in Western Australia
You are the industry which stands up against the challenges of the strong Australian dollar and natural and man made impacts both here in Australia and overseas.
When I look to Asia though, all I see is a huge wave of visitors heading in our direction - it's the sort of natural event we like to see.
China has overtaken the UK to be Australia's most valuable inbound market.
We're not leaving things to chance- Tourism Australia continues to roll out the successful There’s Nothing Like Australia campaign which brought Oprah to our shores.
And Tourism Ministers across Australia continue to push out the National Long Term Tourism Strategy which is helping the industry to break new ground in areas such as accreditation, labour and skills, deregulation, investment and research.
The Strategy is an agreed way of doing business- it is the tool for every Government to progress the needs of our industry beyond the State Tourism Organisations into the offices of for example the Treasurer, the Ministers for Finance, Environment, Immigration, Skills and Education and other Ministers affecting tourism.
It's the mechanism to discuss solutions to the tourism's skills and labour challenges, the need for new investment, the restrictive planning regulations and the importance of aviation access, accreditation and indigenous tourism.
And it gives you- the industry- a voice and an avenue to progress issues and solutions to overcome the challenges of doing business in such a competitive global marketplace.
I encourage you to actively engage in the process.
National Landscapes Announcement
Now tonight I'm going to pre-empt the awards by announcing two winners up front.
They are two new National Landscapes.
Like the other iconic Landscapes they represent our most spectacular natural and cultural environments.
They capture the essence of Australia - places of cultural, natural and spiritual significance.
They bring together a number of community and regional organisations with an interest in celebrating special places.
Places such as Australia's Red Centre and Kakadu are already part of the program.
So too are the Australian Alps, the Greater Blue Mountains, the Flinders Ranges, the Great Ocean Road, Australia's Green Cauldron, Kangaroo Island, The Kimberley, and Australia’s Coastal Wilderness.
And tonight, we're adding two more iconic Landscapes to the program - Great South West Edge and Ningaloo-Shark Bay.
Both, of course, are here in Western Australia.
Great South West Edge stretches from the Tuart Forrest north of Busselton, along the coastline to Cape Arid and Esperance.
It is home to a unique and pristine environment with a highly bio-diverse wilderness.
This landscape offers extraordinary wildflower displays every spring.
Ningaloo-Shark Bay is another of WA's spectacular natural assets that offers unforgettable visitor experiences.
20 years ago, Shark Bay was inscribed in the World Heritage List in recognition of its outstanding cultural and natural character.
The waters of the Bay contain one of the most varied collections of sea grasses in the world.
And Monkey Mia's dolphin pods are a well-known visitor attraction.
At Ningaloo Reef, visitors can dive with tropical fish, manta rays, dolphins and the world famous whale shark.
These places make an extraordinary contribution to Australia's attractiveness on the world tourism stage, and tonight I welcome them into the National Landscapes program.
Strategic Tourism Investment Grants
I am also pleased tonight to announce the official opening of a new feature of the Australian Government’s $40 million TQUAL Grants program - Strategic Tourism Investment Grants valued up to $1 million.
Large scale tourism grants are designed to deliver large scale success in supporting national priorities such as Indigenous tourism, economic development and tourism employment.
Suggestions for projects are invited from the tourism industry, all levels of government, community groups and individuals.
The Australian Government will select the projects from the suggestions made over the four years of TQUAL Grants and call for grant applications to deliver the selected projects.
I'm pleased to announce the first project suggestion we have selected - which is an Indigenous Tourism Business Skills project at Ayers Rock Resort.
The project will build a skilled tourism and hospitality workforce, assist the growth of an authentic Indigenous tourism experience, and stimulate Indigenous tourism enterprise and product development.
The project will have a lasting legacy for the Indigenous tourism sector and the wider tourism industry by creating and piloting an Indigenous Business curriculum.
Further information about the Grants can be found on my Department's website.
Conclusion
Ladies and gentlemen, tonight is all about you - the industry known to work hard and play hard.
Tonight you are being recognised for your outstanding contributions.
I applaud your great efforts and look forward to continuing our important work and celebrating our victories large and small.
I congratulate all the finalists and winners tonight who value excellence, and are helping defend Australia’s reputation as the ultimate place to visit.
Thank you