TTF highlights the importance of tourism in Victoria

With the Victorian state election little more than six weeks away, tourism lobby group Tourism & Transport Forum (TTF) is highlighting that Victoria’s politicians ignore tourism at their peril, with four of the 10 seats most dependent on tourism for direct employment held by margins of less than 4.7%.

TTF’s Victorian Tourism Business Count & Employment Atlas shows the vital role tourism plays in generating economic activity and jobs across the state.

TTF has also released its tourism priorities document, Victorian Tourism: Backing Our Strengths – An Agenda for the Victorian Government, which details the key projects and investments required to ensure Victoria’s tourism industry continues to grow.

The TTF Victorian Tourism Business Count & Employment Atlas (the Atlas) breaks down direct tourism employment by state electoral district, clearly demonstrating the importance of tourism to every piece of Victoria. The Atlas also includes a count of tourism businesses by industry, while individual profiles show jobs and tourism-related businesses by electorate.

TTF Chief Executive Margy Osmond said tourism accounts for at least 3.6% of employment in every single electoral district across Victoria, stating “visitors are encouraged to ‘love every piece of Victoria’ and the Atlas shows why the Victorian government should love the tourism industry.

“Tourists spend more than $53 million a day across Victoria and the Atlas shows that expenditure supports 70,000 tourism businesses and more than 124,000 direct tourism jobs, while tourism also supports a further 79,000 indirect jobs in Victoria.

“These figures demonstrate the importance of the visitor economy to every piece of Victoria and mean that tourism must be high on the agenda of all political parties as we head towards the state election on 29th November.

“Of the 10 seats most dependent on tourism for direct employment, four are held by margins of less than 4.7% and with just one seat separating the major parties heading into the poll, every vote is vital.

“Direct tourism jobs account for at least 6.0% of employment in all of those ten electoratesi, meaning politicians who ignore the tourism vote do so at their peril.

“Of those ten electorates, four are in the inner city, two are outer metropolitan and four in are regional areas, providing another indication of the importance of tourism’s contribution to the economy across Victoria.”

Osmond added that tourism investment should also be a priority for the Victorian Government, stating “tourism generates $23.9 billion a year in expenditure across the state and contributed $19.6 billion to Victoria’s Gross State Product in GDP in 2012-13 – a 5.7% share of the Victorian economy.

“In addition to its current contribution, tourism is also an economic development strategy for Victoria that can help to create more jobs and business opportunities across the state.

“Few, if any, other industries have the geographic breadth of tourism, which generates economic activity in every piece of Victoria.

“As such, it deserves greater support from government for tourism marketing and investment in critical tourism infrastructure.”

TTF’s election priorities document, Victorian Tourism: Backing Our Strengths – An Agenda for the Victorian Government, includes an eight-point plan focussing on three key areas:

GROW DEMAND FOR TRAVEL TO VICTORIA
1. Increase tourism marketing funding by at least 10%
2. Substantially increase investment in business events
3. Confirm and increase the forward funding envelope for major events

BOOST INVESTMENT IN TOURISM INFRASTRUCTURE
4. Commit to an expansion of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre
5. Invest in strategic nature-based tourism infrastructure
6. Work with the private sector to develop new tourism products in and around national parks

ENHANCE THE VISITOR TRANSPORT EXPERIENCE
7. Improve land transport links to Melbourne Airport
8. Redesign the visitor myki product to make it cost-effective and easy to use

Osmond concluded “as a sector that already supports more than 200,000 jobs across Victoria and one that has been identified as a super-growth industry for Australia, we are encouraging all parties to make tourism a priority ahead of the Victorian election.”

TTF’s Victorian Tourism Business Count & Employment Atlas is being sent to every MP and candidate for the upcoming Victorian election – with each candidate will also receive an individual electorate profile, detailing the jobs and business count in their district. Counts are being combined for the upper house regions, with all MPs and candidates to receive their region profile too, along with the Atlas and policy priorities document.

8th October 2014 - NEW AUSTRALIAN TOURISM FIGURES HIGHLIGHT MISSED OPPORTUNITY

26th August 2014 - MELBOURNE TO OFFER A PACKED PROGRAM OF SUMMER EVENTS