Algal Bloom

Ms PRATT (Frome) (14:46): My question is to the Minister for Tourism. What, if any, additional funding for coastal tourism marketing has been allocated since the discovery of the algal bloom, and if none, why?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON (Ramsay—Minister for Tourism, Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (14:47): We announced a $28 million package in conjunction with the commonwealth that talked about public campaigning, and of course that is a key part of that package: talking to people about certainty, building confidence about what we do know about the algal bloom, when it is safe to go and what the conditions are. It has always been a key part of our package; we were very clear on that from the very beginning.

Can I just take the time to thank the shadow minister for attending last night the transport and tourism forum. It was a great opportunity for us to come together to have a discussion about tourism in South Australia, and many members of parliament attended. Last night I spoke about the opportunities that we have with tourism, the events that we are focused on and those international aviation links, but I also talked about the algal bloom as a challenge for us. We talk about the environment and we talk about the future and the restoration, but we are very dedicated to understanding the economic impacts of it.

We have shown time and time again, when we have had these natural disasters, the role that tourism plays in the recovery. I have a strong belief—and we have detailed some of the work that is happening today—that this will be a role that we play again. I have been up to Yorke Peninsula three times already. Obviously we are very excited about them leading off with their destination management zone, but what it did give me was an opportunity to sit with operators to understand the impact of the bloom and to talk about those opportunities when we have stood up in the past and will stand up again in the future.