Minister McHale, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for the invitation to address you today.
It is a pleasure to be here in Perth and to share lunch with the Tourism Council of Western Australia.
It’s a pleasure to be here because I am proud to be the Federal Tourism Minister.
Tourism is a great and dynamic industry as well as one of the key economic drivers of this nation and I don't say this flippantly.
Tourism is a major export industry – its Australia's largest export services industry and generates over $22 billion in export earnings.
It is also a big employer, creating over 465,000 jobs with one in 17 Australians depending on tourism for their job.
At a time of global economic uncertainty, jobs are what bring certainty to not only our national economy but to the household budgets of working families.
Tourism provides more jobs in Australian than agriculture, forestry and fishing combined.
It is an economic driver of this nation and the Australian Government recognises this.
That's why we elevated tourism to the Cabinet table to ensure it receives the recognition it deserves for the great economic contribution it makes to Australia.
Here in WA you have been part of that economic success story and I would like to say a personal congratulations to the Augusta-Margaret River Tourism Association and to Bruce and Robyn Ellison from Faraway Bay for their recent wins at the Qantas National Tourism Awards.
Innovation is fundamental if we are to drive this industry forward and achieve an increase in not only tourism numbers but yield as well.
Total tourism expenditure in Western Australia increased 8.7 per cent in 2007, making it the third fastest growing state destination in percentage terms.
The primary driver for this growth was the strong lift in international visitor expenditure in Western Australia, which rose 23 per cent to $1.7 billion.
I expect these figures to rise further following the launch of Tourism WA’s Tourism 2020 Discussion Paper as it has already identified some elements which the local industry can capitalise on.
This type of long-range planning and thinking is just what the industry requires and contains many of the elements I have been advocating for years.
A large percentage of this rise came from non-traditional tourist markets – Singapore and Malaysia are standouts. This is a great example of playing to your strengths – you’re closer to these markets than the east coast so they are your natural constituencies.
Emirates, Garuda, Thai Airways and Air Mauritius have also significantly increased their seat capacity into WA during the first quarter of 2007/08 – a reflection on the hard work WA is putting in to secure the future growth of tourism in the state. It also accords with the Government's open endorsement of air services liberalisation.
On a local level, Qantas has announced it will significantly increase intrastate services from Perth to Karratha, Port Hedland, Broome and Newman from June 2008.
This will help with the dispersal of tourism into regional areas as will the welcome $50 million announcement by Qantas to upgrade the domestic terminal at Perth.
Despite international tourism dominating tourism debate, domestic tourism is still vitally significant to our tourism industry.
It is the mainstay of the industry and accounts for around three quarters of all tourism in Australia.
Domestic tourism, however, has, and continues to face, many challenges;
Ø Increasing global competition provides holiday-makers with the option to travel overseas for comparatively the same or better price as travel here in Australia;
Ø Rising petrol costs have radically altered the traditional cost-benefit of drive holidays;
Ø And, perhaps most significantly, changing consumer patterns have increasingly seen discretionary incomes spent on household goods rather than quality time away with your loved ones. The industry now not only competes with the lure and appeal of new global destinations but against wide-screen TVs and the Harvey Normans of the world.
Traditional patriotic appeals to Australians to travel in their own backyard no longer resonate, and are insufficient persuasions on which the industry can reply upon to secure their future growth and sustainability.
We need to objectively yet constructively consider what is needed to reverse the trend of stagnation that has defined domestic tourism for far too long.
I am a strong supporter of domestic tourism and not just because it is the mainstay of the industry but because Australia is a great country worth visiting.
There is a reason why over five million international visitors – many of them long haul - endure lengthy flights, save considerably and accumulate their annual leave to come here.
It’s because Australia as a destination has so much to offer.
I recognise that the markets and product standards for the international and domestic sectors differ – so too do the consumers.
The second in a series of three domestic tourism reports – the third and final of which I recently released - highlighted this fact: that Australians want to feel better value for money when purchasing domestic tourism product.
Many in the industry are acutely aware of this – as am I.
Enhancing product standards is the key reason why I have immediately set about establishing a national accreditation framework.
It was an issue repeatedly raised while I was the Shadow Tourism Minister. It baffled me then why the previous Government chose not to act on such an important matter – especially when the solution was at hand.
Today, I would like to confirm that I intent to vigorously pursue this issue until completion. I would also like to congratulate Tourism WA on your recent work on accreditation.
In July 2008, in consultation with the States and Territories, I will present my vision for a National Accreditation Framework to the Tourism Ministers' Council.
National accreditation will have enormous benefits for Australia’s tourism industry in providing consumers with a quality product choice while also providing businesses with an opportunity to benchmark themselves internally and against industry standards.
For any tourism business that aspires to improve and grow, accreditation offers credibility and opportunities to enhance their bottom line while encouraging continual product innovation.
It must also be cost-affordable to operators and just as critically, a voluntary program that businesses want to join.
For our part, the Australian Government is committed to establishing a national accreditation framework and for the industry's part, it needs to engage in the merits of the program and be committed to actually delivering outcomes that in turn will lead to business sustainability and help secure the future prosperity of tourism in Australia.
Another area that we have moved swiftly on since taking Government just over four months ago is business events.
Business events are a high yielding sector of the tourism industry. Recent ABS figures show that business events are actually outperforming leisure arrivals.
Travellers arriving to our shores for a conference or convention were up 9 per cent year-on-year on top of the 10 per cent growth recorded the previous year.
Total business visitors were up 7 per cent on 2006.
While Australia has a strong history of hosting international business events, significant momentum is required to ensure that Australia maintains and increases its share of global business events.
In a three-way partnership, the Australian Government, working side-by-side with industry and TA, agree that Australia needs to better develop this sector as part of a broader long-term vision to secure the future of tourism in Australia.
To ensure we go forward there needs to be a cohesive approach between Government and industry, as well as strong connections with business to identify events that will deliver results.
This why I have convened a business events working group, in close consultation with the industry, to formulate a long-term strategy.
Business events by their nature have a long lead time, which is why it's important to drive more business from the events already secured to enhance our momentum of growth.
It is also critical that the industry better articulate the strategic linkages from business events that flow to other areas of the economy.
It’s not just about delegate expenditure but the other long-term benefits business events bring to Australia.
I would like to congratulate the Tourism Australia Business Events division, headed up by Joyce Di Mascio, for the tremendous effort they have put in to establishing and delivering the new TA Business Events Brand. This new brand, rolled out earlier this year, has been welcomed by the industry and is already helping realise the enormous potential business events presents to Australia.
That brings me to another important aspect of tourism – that of our national marketing body, Tourism Australia.
As the new Tourism Minister, I have received a lot of questions about TA and how I intend to manage the organisation. I don't want to go over the old ground of the previous Government but I would like to say categorically that the micro-managing of the past has ceased.
As the new Tourism Minister I am consumed with the serious issues that affect our national tourism industry such as labour and skills shortages, quality product standards, and securing our future market share from the emerging markets of China and India while continuing to cultivate our traditional markets of NZ, the UK, Japan and the USA.
I am consumed with elevating tourism to the national status it should accord as one of the key drivers of this economy.
With this priority front and centre, I recently wrote to the board of TA outlining a new Statement of Expectations.
It is a far less prescriptive document than the previous one, and while highlighting to TA the Australian Government's tourism priorities of indigenous tourism, business events and sustainability, it also, without any ambiguity, restores to TA its responsibility to get on with its job of marketing Australia to the world.
I am no marketing expert – I have never claimed to be. I leave marketing decisions to the professionals and TA is a reputable organisation run by professionals.
TA, however, also receives considerable taxpayer funding to complete its work, which is why the third critical aspect of the new Statement of Expectations is an emphasis on transparency and accountability. TA now holds the clear responsibility of effectively communicating and further promoting its own activities with industry and key stakeholders.
There are many success stories out there to be told both within TA and within the broader industry. There are also many challenges that we must confront head-on if tourism’s best days as an industry are to be realised.
Much like a long-dreamt after holiday away, it requires careful planning and preparation and the courage to actually put words into action.
I personally believe the best days for the tourism sector are still to come – but they have to be worked for.
You are not alone. We are in this together – and we will succeed together.
I will work with the States and Territories, and I will work with you to drive policies and programs to move the industry forward.
As the Tourism Minister my role is to provide leadership to the industry and I intend to do just that.
Thank you.