Tasmania budget a dissappointment for tourim

24 May 2013 2039 | World Travel News

The Tasmanian Budget has taken yet another swipe at the struggling tourism industry and puts in jeopardy the hard work and commitment of the State’s tourism industry.

“ATEC is very concerned by the short-sighted budget handed down today which fails to recognise the significance of the tourism industry and the need to invest in its growth as a large contributor to the State’s overall economy,” ATEC Managing Director, Felicia Mariani said.

“This budget compounds the year-on-year decrease in Tourism Tasmania’s overall budget which has dropped by $18 million over the past 6 years – a 45% decrease - from a high of just over $40m in 2006/7 to around $22m this year.

“This decline comes at a time when other State Governments have realised the value of investing in marketing their tourism product internationally as a crucial part of their economic base – Tasmanian tourism is being left high and dry by this lack of commitment.”

Ms Mariani said the tourism industry in Tasmania had done a great job of engaging with the State’s new advertising campaign, but without continued support, the campaign will fail to reach its full potential.

“There has been a great deal of positive feedback about the new campaign and its connection, particularly to the domestic market, but this will fall short without the proper resources to leverage the significant potential presented by this innovative and engaging campaign.

“Tourism is a significant contributor to the Tasmanian economy and makes up around 10% of employment across the state – investment in tourism is an investment in the future of Tasmania.

“The recent Northern Territory Budget recognised the significance of tourism to its economy and invested significantly in both domestic and international marketing in order to arrest their recent decline in visitation. ATEC welcomes this kind of commitment to the industry.

“We also welcome the Tasmanian Opposition’s commitment to invest an additional $16 million in tourism marketing should they form the next Government.

“This is the kind of focus that needs to be projected onto Tasmania’s tourism industry as a crucial driver for the State’s economic future. Tasmania is truly ‘flavour of the month’ for consumers both here in Australia and overseas. Appropriate resources are required for this position to be maximised and to shift this interest to actual conversion.”