State funding for tourism organisations in regional Queensland will be doubled to help prop up the ailing industry.
Premier Campbell Newman told the DestinationQ conference
in Cairns today the funding would increase from $3.11 million to $7
million through a redirection of resources as the industry struggles to
attract tourists.
But he says the government can't afford to just "throw
buckets of money" at the industry to help it compete with the high
Australian dollar and neighbouring countries.
"Simply preserving what we have will not meet the challenges of the future," he told the 300-plus crowd.
"We can't afford to sit with the status quo and it won't get us to where we want to go."
Mr Newman had campaigned about tourism being one of the
major pillars of Queensland's economy during the lead up to the state
election.
He told tourism operators the conference was about coming
up with a new way forward for the state's tourism as he promised to do
in his first 100 days in government.
Some of the conference's major focuses will include
reducing red tape, attracting and retaining skilled workers in the
industry, marketing strategies and how national parks were operated.
The forum, which several ministers including deputy premier Jeff Seeney are attending, was welcomed by tourism bodies.
Accommodation Association of Australia CEO Richard Munro
said it was important for frontline operators to be able to air their
grievances directly to government.
"It's important for governments at all levels to put in
place policies which promote investment in both existing and new tourism
accommodation products which do not adversely impact on operators", Mr
Munro said in a statement.
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