Tourism Association outlines government expenditure needed for industry growth 

Australia’s peak export tourism industry association, the Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) has delivered a strong message to the Federal Government ahead of next week’s budget, outlining the additional expenditure needed to continue the success of the $43 billion industry.

With a focus on investment that will build on and grow an already successful industry, ATEC argues that Australia’s tourism potential could benefit manifold by small additional funding to key programs including:
 
• Increasing Tourism Australia funding by at least $60 million per annum
• Investing $3.5 million into national export tourism focused capability building programs
• Freezing the Passenger Movement Charge
• Increasing Export Marketing Development Grants funds by at least $12.5 million per year
• Investing $5 million per year into data collection reform at Tourism Research Australia

ATEC Managing Director, Peter Shelley advised “Australia has a successful export tourism industry that currently brings more than $43 billion to our economy each year, and with a small, additional investment in its growth, we can reap much greater returns."

“ATEC is calling on the Federal Government to show its commitment to the ongoing success of our industry by backing its future growth.

“With the coming budget, and subsequent Federal Election, we are urging both parties to recognise that tourism is a valuable economic contributor for hundreds of communities across Australia.  Supporting tourism is supporting these communities because tourism drives growth.”

Shelley said there were other policy actions ATEC is recommending to facilitate greater success for the industry including: 

• Simplifying our visa system to reduce processing
• Addressing Visa processing delays via improved technology
• Unpack & re-structure the passenger movement charge  
• Commit to delivering a strategy to grow regional dispersal
• Reforming the Tourist Refund Scheme
• Improve Wi-Fi connectivity to ensure travellers are always-connected

Shelley concluded "we see these key requests as being critical to assisting the Australian tourism industry in maximising its potential."