OUTBACK TOURISM

Mr RAU (Enfield) (14:39): My question is to the Minister for Tourism. How will the state promote South Australia as the gateway to the Outback in the future?

The Hon. J.D. LOMAX-SMITH (Adelaide—Minister for Education and Children's Services, Minister for Tourism, Minister for the City of Adelaide) (14:39): Can I thank the member for Enfield for his important question. I must say that whenever I go to the Outback I always start by driving through his electorate! The Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive is truly an iconic South Australian event, which showcases South Australia as the gateway to the Outback and the Outback experience. Staging the Outback Cattle Drive is a massive logistical undertaking, perhaps the biggest event staged in remote Australia besides activities undertaken by the Australian Defence Force.

On the back of this mammoth effort, the cattle drive has forged a stellar reputation around the world as an amazing absolutely unique tourism experience in our state. The last event was a sell-out success, with 15 per cent of the participants coming from our important international markets, including New Zealand, the UK and the USA, as well as Ireland, France and Switzerland.

In addition to having this three-week amazing Outback experience, significant media coverage has been generated by this event, amounting to $8 million a year, with media coming and taking films and videos and taking back articles for newspapers, magazines and illustrations. One of the really significant outcomes of the event has been a documentary called The Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive, which has been screened on the Discovery Channel and which, during its premiere, went to 2.2 million viewers in key tourism markets. This program is still being shown around the world, and if anyone would like to see it I can arrange a copy, because it is really quite an exciting video. The media representatives who join the drive certainly take the experience back to the world.

Overall, there are 1,200 nights on the cattle drive experience, and one experiences first-hand the life of a drover on horseback before retiring to an open campfire for bush tales and gourmet dining. Many of the people are shocked by the quality of the accommodation and, in particular, the up-market luxury tent experience.

This event has been a really important marketing tool for South Australia, so I was very pleased to be in attendance while an important announcement was made today by Martin Ferguson, the federal shadow minister for tourism, and Mark Butler, the candidate for Port Adelaide. It was announced that a Rudd Labor government would help to boost international tourism in South Australia if elected into government, with an injection of half a million dollars in funding, to ensure the continued success of this highly popular Great Outback Cattle Drive.

I am delighted that federal Labor has acknowledged the merits for South Australia to own such an event and to promote regional South Australia, because it brings activity, employment and an experience of the Outback that otherwise we would struggle to promote around the world. So, I thank the member for his question.