30 Aug 2013
Words Tim Admin

Sunny Outlook - Plan to put the Shine Back on Queensland Tourism

If a ‘change is as good as a holiday’, Queensland has embarked on the trip of a lifetime. The March vote to change the government could not have been more emphatic. Even before the new LNP team had their feet under the desks, a palpable mood of optimism had begun to reinvigorate the Sunshine State’s tourism industry. Tourism is back at the big table, recognised by Premier Campbell Newman as one of the “four pillars” on which he will rebuild Queensland’s economy. Relishing the new senior cabinet posting is Gold Coast MP, Jann Stuckey, Minister for Tourism, Major Events, Small Business & the Commonwealth Games. Quite a mouthful, and quite a portfolio. When Informer spoke with Minister Stuckey, she had been in the job for little more than a week. Yet she sounded like an industry veteran. That’s because she’s no newcomer. As shadow tourism spokesperson since 2004, Ms Stuckey already knew her stuff. “I consulted with the industry widely for so long, and was closely involved in compiling our tourism policy. I know the industry has been doing it tough. I know expectations on the LNP are high. We will not disappoint,” she promised. To help ensure they don’t, and to address concerns about regional focus, new Cairns MP Gavin King has been appointed Assistant Minister for Tourism. Central to their new approach is a cross-portfolio, industry-wide “partnership” called DestinationQ. Within government, it refers to a special committee of Parliament that will require collaboration between all ministers and departments with a bearing on tourism. It’s a direction the Queensland Tourism Industry Council (QTIC) lobbied heavily to see taken. “Tourism is right behind the Premier on this,” said QTIC chief executive Daniel Gschwind. “We need tourism to be considered in planning, infrastructure, regulation reform and the environment.” DestinationQ will also see the government partner more closely with the peak bodies that drive tourism marketing and represent tourism industry members – QTIC, Tourism Queensland, Events Queensland and, importantly, regional tourism organisations. To underline their determination to bring everyone to the table, Premier Newman and Minister Stuckey wasted no time in announcing the first DestinationQ Conference would be held before the end of this financial year. “We invite every tourism operator and stakeholder to attend this conference, to help design the way we go forward,” Ms Stuckey said. “We have a 20-year strategic plan to return Queensland’s tourism industry to number one, and a 2020 growth target to lift visitor spending to $30 billion. Industry members must come prepared to talk to us about how we can achieve that together.” Resort Brokers managing director Ian Crooks says he hopes the new air of optimism and confidence can stimulate much-needed capital investment. “When you look back to the decades of the 70s, 80s and 90s, there was massive investment in new tourist attractions, infrastructure and accommodation,” he said. “Think of the casinos, international hotels and golf courses, resorts like Hamilton and Hayman Islands, our iconic theme parks. By comparison, there has been little new development in the last 20 years.” Billionaire chairman of gaming company Crown, James Packer, also recently criticised Australia’s level of investment in large-scale tourism attractions. Describing it as “modest” at best, he says we are missing opportunities to capture the burgeoning Asian market as a result. “On the international front, Asia is certainly the market we must target,” Crooks said. “While no-one can beat our superb climate, beaches and unique natural attractions, we also need significant new investment in the sort of high quality facilities this market wants.” Former Qantas CEO, now chairman of Tourism Australia, Geoff Dixon, has been even more blunt in his assessment, saying Australia must target Asia’s big-spenders. He has embarked on a mission to attract investment in high-end projects ranging from five-star hotels integrated with casinos to remote, luxury getaway resorts. In Queensland, as elsewhere, moves are being made to woo China’s growing well-heeled middle class market. Mining magnate Clive Palmer has hinted at a casino project for the Sunshine Coast, though he denies it will be at his Coolum Golf Resort and Spa. In its Project China strategy, Tourism Queensland states: “The potential for Chinese investment in Queensland tourism could be very valuable in developing or refreshing Queensland tourism infrastructure (particularly hotel stock and island resorts).” Airport bosses last month attended a major Asian airline conference, seeking to court carriers flying out of Hong Kong, China, Indonesia and the Philippines, while a Gold Coast delegation headed to China in a sales pitch to sell prime development proposals. Minister Stuckey says Cairns Airport, which is aggressively pursuing the Chinese market, was the first on her doorstep to seek assistance through the LNP’s new $8 million Attracting Aviation Fund. Establishing a specialised “tourism investment attraction unit” is another of her priorities. “We have tasked the Coordinator-General with special additional responsibility to facilitate and coordinate the delivery of significant tourism projects and upgrades,” she said. But while acknowledging the valuable prospects held out by increasingly mobile Chinese and Indian tourists, Ms Stuckey was at pains to say she also remained focused on other key international markets and, importantly, on domestic tourism. “Some of the most important things we intend to do to quickly and directly help tourism businesses, most of them small businesses, are slashing red tape and reforming the regulatory environment, addressing skill shortages, securing major events and, critically, lowering the cost of living for everyone. “We will also open up our National Parks, creating tremendous opportunities for eco-tourism, a sector which is very exciting and largely untapped.” In Queensland, and nationally, the growth targets are ambitious. Both levels have set their sights on doubling tourist spending by 2020 – from $15 billion to $30 billion in the Sunshine State, and from $70 billion to $140 billion Australia-wide. Telling the industry it has a bright future is one thing, delivering it will be quite another. For Queensland’s fourth Tourism Minister in five years, the pressure is on to make the LNP’s impressive list of promises into reality. And she can only do that if all of us in the industry get directly involved. Perhaps we’ll see you at DestinationQ.