State Regional Visitor Strategy

The Hon. D.G.E. HOOD (15:20): My question is to the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment. Could the minister please explain and update members on the release of South Australia's Regional Visitor Strategy and the opportunity for growth in the regional visitor economy?

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) (15:20): I thank the honourable member for his longstanding interest in regional tourism. On Sunday, the state government launched the Regional Visitor Strategy, which outlines opportunities to grow South Australia's regional visitor economy by $1 billion and create another 1,000 new jobs. The strategy outlines the potential to grow regional visitor expenditure in our 11 tourism regions from $2.6 billion to $3.6 billion. It will drive South Australia's 11 tourism regions to begin to work together to contribute to the state's target of $8 billion in visitor expenditure by 2020.

The strategy outlines new opportunities and challenges for tourism and provides a blueprint for what needs to be done to drive the state forward. Currently, South Australia's regional tourism generates some 40 per cent of the state's total $6.6 billion visitor expenditure and accounts for over 13,000 regional jobs. However, our regions are all different, so it's not a one-size-fits-all approach but an aligned effort.

Given that I have been accused many times in this place of waxing lyrical about the previous government's achievements, I should paint them in some context here and note that the groundwork for this very positive strategy—the first of its type in the state's history—did, I suspect, get prompted by the previous government's complete ignorance and abandonment of South Australia's regions and the failure to deliver an effective regional structure. In 2015-16, realising that work needed to be done, the regional chairs undertook a review of regional tourism structures.

Throughout that early work, they recognised that there were considerable resources available within the various tiers of government and industry which can be better mobilised by developing a clear set of goals and priorities covering all regions. This is a collaborative approach which I and the Marshall government very much support, and it is a priority in our approach to government.

The Regional Tourism Chairs Forum, along with the SATC, established a steering committee to drive the development of the strategy, which focuses on regional South Australia as a whole, fosters cross-regional collaboration and identifies top-level priorities and projects to meet our 2020 target. The implementation will be led by the Regional Visitor Strategy steering committee and has the potential to grow the regional visitor expenditure from $2.6 billion to $3.6 billion.

The strategy which has emerged is the outcome of intensive individual meetings with all 11 tourism regions during 2017. The strategy is a collaboration, as I said earlier, between many stakeholders, including the Local Government Association of South Australia, Regional Development Australia, the South Australian Tourism Industry Council and the SATC. Just as important as the plan itself, if not more, will be its implementation. I am very pleased that throughout June, July and August, I will be involved in a series of industry events throughout the 11 regions in South Australia.

A major focus of these workshops will be the key measures needed to implement the Regional Visitor Strategy, to implement it well and to maximise its ability to enhance the visitor experience in South Australia and boost industry jobs so that we can realise our visitor expenditure goals. I would like to thank the SA Tourism Industry Council for all its work in putting that specific workshop program together, and I congratulate the steering committee, particularly its chair, Mrs Helen Edwards, key players who contributed to the strategy and the SATC.

The new state government is acting swiftly on tourism's current challenges and will work with the regions to deliver stronger outcomes for the community. We recognise that our regions need to attract more visitors who stay longer and spend more in South Australia, creating new jobs. I am very eager to get moving on the Regional Visitor Strategy—a very positive step towards realising the great potential of South Australia's wonderful regions.