Travel industry calls for election action
The Tourism & Transport Forum Australia (TTF) has called for policies to support and enhance the continuing strong growth of Australia’s visitor economy ahead of the Election on July 2.
It wants Australia’s political parties to come out and champion the visitor economy, and turn it into an election issue.
TTF CEO Margy Osmond said it was time for the political parties to get behind the visitor industry which had been one of the Australian economy’s success stories.
“The challenge for all our political leaders is to back up their strong words of support for the tourism sector. We need to see positive policies that will allow the industry to reach its full potential as an economic wealth and jobs generator for Australia,’’ Osmond told TBF Travel News.
“This is an area that we have continued to see a gulf between words and action in recent times. Now is the time for political parties to get real about support for the visitor economy sectors and the jobs and opportunities they can generate.”
She said the industry generated $47.5 billion, or 3 per cent of Australia’s GDP.
Growing at 5.3 per cent it is expanding three times faster than the total Australian economy, she said.
“In 2015, 6.8 million international visitors (up 8 per cent) visited Australia in which they stayed 248.1 million nights (up 11 per cent) and spent $36.6 billion (up 18 per cent),’’ she said.
“The Chinese market alone is growing at 22 per cent with more than one million now coming to our country every year and spending $8.3 billion – 25 per cent of all international expenditure.
“Australia’s domestic visitor economy performance is just as impressive with 87 million overnight trips (up 7 per cent), 322 million visitor nights (up 4 per cent) and $57.9 billion in expenditure (up 6 per cent).
“There is potential to do even better than these solid results if we put the visitor economy in its rightful place as one of the key economic and job generators in our economic planning.”
by: Australian Hospitality
