Call for Cadburys Funding to be announced this week …

… As Tourism Operators Recognise Value of Parks & Reserves

Tasmania’s peak tourism industry organisation says it expects Federal Tourism Minister, Andrew Robb MP, to announce during his visit to Tasmania this week details of how $16 million in funding committed to the abandoned Cadburys project will be reinvested into other tourism priorities across the State.

Tourism Industry Council Tasmania CEO, Luke Martin, said the ongoing debate about the likely use of these funds was a disstraction for the industry and that it was a time for the ‘hint dropping’ by local politicians to end.

“The facts are this funding is in AusTrade’s tourism budget this year for the purpose of stimulating tourism growth in Tasmania, and even the Prime Minister has been saying for two years this funding is for growing tourism” Mr Martin.

“It was promised to the industry days prior to the 2013 Federal Election to create a major new visitor attraction at Cadburys, and now that project has fallen over the last thing the industry needs is a protracted statewide lobbying campaign to identify other opportunities across the State to use these funds to stimulate tourism actiity.

“The industry has done a lot of work over recent years developing Destination Management Plans for each of Tasmania’s four tourism regions identify clear priorities for the use of these funds to stimulate visitaion into regional areas.

“This funding presents a critical opportunity to invest strategically in regional tourism priorities to benefit the whole industry, and we dont need to waste more time.

‘The Federal Minister is in town this week and we expct he’ll end the uncertainty and announce details about how this funding will be directed in a strategic and transprent process.

Mr Martin said a good starting point for investing the funds to benefit regional toruism would be through Tasmania’s National Parks & Reserves, and released new industry research showing how much Tasmanian tourism operators value the State’s Parks & Reserves.

“Our twice-annual Industry Sentiment Survey has been out with industry this week, and the results present some compelling evidence of how important Tasmania’s Parks & Reserves are to the State’s tourism industry’.

“69% of tourism oprators across the State describe Tasmania’s Parks & Reserves as important or very important to their business.

“Just 11% of operators said they are not important to their business.

We know 38% of all visitors to Tasmania visit a National Park or Reserve, and our Parks are the major attrractions in regional Tasmania, and with record numbers of visitors to Tasmania and our Parks, investing this Cadburys money in our Parks infrastrcture would repreent a sensible investment to benefit tourism operators in regional Tasmania.
Luke Martin Chief Executive Officer Tourism Industry Council Tasmania