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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2023-09-28 Daily Xml
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World Tourism Day

The Hon. J.S. LEE (Deputy Leader of the Opposition) (16:12): I move:

That this council—

1. Notes that Wednesday 27 September is World Tourism Day;

2. Recognises that the United Nations World Tourism Organization has set this year's theme to be 'Tourism and Green Investments';

3. Supports the sector's strategy to increase South Australia's visitor economy to an annual $12.8 billion by 2030 and generate an additional 16,000 jobs; and

4. Recognises the economic and social benefits that tourism operators deliver in South Australia, particularly in our regions and the positive flow-on impacts that tourism has on key industries such as agriculture, wine, retail, education, real estate and transport.

The stars were supposed to align yesterday: it was 27 September, World Tourism Day. This has been postponed until today, but it is still within a week, so today it is a great honour to acknowledge that Wednesday 27 September was World Tourism Day.

Tourism is a global industry that involves people travelling to different destinations for leisure, for visiting family members, for study purposes and for business or conferences. Most of us, if not all of us, in our lifetime would be a tourist in one form or another, whether it is touring in our own backyards or exploring destinations overseas. Tourism plays a most important role in the country's economy around the world, generating revenue, creating jobs and promoting cultural exchanges.

Tourists often seek diverse experiences, including visiting natural wonders, historical sites and vibrant cities. On the job statistics alone, the tourism sector supports the livelihoods of millions of individuals and their families around the world. Statista research published a report in August this year stating that global employment in the travel and tourism sector totalled 295 million in 2022. This figure is expected to grow to 320 million in 2023. In Australia, some 60,000 people are employed in tourism jobs. That was reported in the September quarter of 2022.

The South Australian Tourism Commission's website states that tourism employs 40,400 South Australians. In addition, the Australian Hotels Association commissioned a report about the economic contribution of the hotel industry in South Australia in 2016. The report prepared by the South Australian Centre for Economic Studies recorded some 26,250 people being employed in the hotel industry across metropolitan and country regions.

World Tourism Day is held every year on 27 September by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), which is the leading international organisation in the field of tourism and promotes tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability.

This will be the 43rd iteration of World Tourism Day, and this year's theme is tourism and green investment, underscoring the increasing importance of environmentally responsible tourism practices. This year's theme marks the need to invest in people, the planet and prosperity, which has been identified as a key priority for the sector and a call to action to the international community, governments, multilateral financial institutions, development partners and private sector investors to unite around a new tourism investment strategy.

In Australia, the travel and tourism industry is the largest service export industry and accounts for approximately 10 per cent of total export industries and is a key economic driver, contributing over $A50 billion to GDP in recent years. As shadow minister for tourism and hospitality, I am grateful for the opportunity to work with key stakeholders and operators from across the tourism, travel and hospitality industry.

The constant question for the tourism industry has been whether South Australia can stay competitive over other states and overseas countries. How do we deal with labour shortages, rising inflation, industrial relations issues, taxation, infrastructure issues, security and cross-border regulation, visa issues and uncertain economic conditions? These are some of the challenges the tourism industry has been confronted with.

The industry has shown tremendous resilience and capability to handle unprecedented challenges and disruptions during COVID and applied innovative approaches to manoeuvre themselves out of stormy weather and recalibrate the direction of tourism investment. On this note, I want to place my special thanks on the record and give a big shout-out to industry champions, business leaders, operators, employees and personnel in the tourism and hospitality sector in South Australia.

I am committed to working with the industry, and I am encouraged by the industry-led tourist sector vision and strategy to develop the South Australian Visitor Economy Sector Plan 2030. I am proud to say that it was launched by the former Premier, the Hon. Steven Marshall, in August 2019 under the Liberal government. The plan sets a bold ambition to grow our visitor economy to an annual $12.8 billion by 2030, generating 52,000 jobs. I am pleased that the Labor government has continued to support this plan.

I would also like to acknowledge the incredible hard work, commitment, passion and resilience of our tourism industry to collectively build a strong South Australian tourism brand and for making enormous contributions to generate jobs, social benefits and prosperity for our cities, regions, the economy and our community.

World Tourism Day is a significant day to celebrate, to raise worldwide sustainability issues and foster greater understanding of the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic value. This year's theme highlights how ecotourism has become both a reason for travelling and also a way in which to promote the green transformation of the tourism industry. Nature-based tourism accounts for 20 to 40 per cent of the global tourism industry and positions South Australia uniquely as one of the premier destinations for international and domestic visitors due to our distinct flora, fauna and natural assets, most of which are spread out across regional South Australia.

It is also important to recognise that tourism contributes to environmental conservation and the preservation of cultural heritage as it encourages the protection of natural resources and historical landmarks. Sustainable tourism practices are increasingly emphasised to balance economic benefits with environmental and social responsibility.

It is a great honour to work closely with the Leader of the Opposition, the Hon. David Speirs, member for Black, to advocate for nature-based tourism policies in South Australia. The member for Black is a committed conservationist from his primary school days. The Hon. David Speirs was an exceptional Minister for Environment under the Marshall Liberal government, and he worked hard to reinvigorate the environment portfolio with reforms and initiatives.

I would like to take this opportunity to outline some of his achievements. The Leader of the Opposition has been recognised for being one of the most reformist environment ministers in Australia when it comes to creating opportunities for nature-based tourism activities by connecting people to nature. He extensively expanded South Australia's mountain biking network and initiated the state's first epic loop trail, in the Mount Remarkable National Park. This will lead to a huge lift in mountain biking tourism in South Australia, transforming tourism opportunities in the Upper Spencer Gulf and Southern Flinders Ranges communities.

Mountain biking in South Australia was also enhanced by improved trails in the Glenthorne National Park and in our reservoir precincts. Sadly, other significant mountain biking projects at Hindmarsh Valley National Park on the Fleurieu Peninsula and at Fox Creek in the northern Adelaide Hills were axed by the Labor government upon coming to office. This is very disappointing, and the Liberal Party is calling on the Labor government to reconsider these projects.

The former Liberal government, under the leadership of the Hon. David Speirs as environment minister, pioneered the opening of South Australia's reservoirs, something that was long said to be impossible to achieve. Not surprisingly, he is fondly known as the minister for reservoirs for this achievement. Nine reservoirs across the state were opened for a range of recreational opportunities, including Hope Valley, South Para, Mount Bold, Happy Valley and Myponga.

In terms of nature-based tourism uplift, the opening of Myponga Reservoir was particularly powerful in activating a township. The member for Black has been regularly quoted as saying the project turned Myponga township from a 'try through to a drive to' destination. He also joked it is now time to 'stay longa in Myponga'.

That project has seen a range of activity-based and tourism businesses open and grow, from the beautiful Valley of Yore cafe to the Reservoir General store to Myponga Kayak Hire and a range of Airbnb and other accommodation options across the western Fleurieu. The opening of the reservoirs also incentivises visitors to visit other nearby tourist destinations.

Another fantastic initiative for our community under the former Liberal government worth mentioning today is the Wild South Coast Way. It was developed as essentially a walk within a walk, creating a high-quality multiday walk within the existing Heysen Trail between Cape Jervis and Victor Harbor along the southern coast of the Fleurieu Peninsula. This high-quality enhancement of the Heysen Trail included upgrades of its campgrounds, toilets and interpretive signage and the development of the Goondooloo Ridge lookout at Deep Creek National Park. This walk has enabled a range of tourism providers to leverage their own projects, such as guided walking tours, accommodation and cultural experiences.

The Hon. David Speirs was also responsible for establishing Green Adelaide, a new body charged with the bold greening of metropolitan Adelaide. The Green Adelaide initiative provided funding to increase the green spaces in the CBD. The greening project improves the perception of Adelaide as a destination committed to environmental sustainability. Green walls and roofs are an effective and alternative way to improve the visual amenity of the city, which improves wellbeing and encourages people to spend more time in an area which helps stimulate our economy. They are also a way to reducing heat impacts where there is little space for street trees and parks.

The Green Adelaide initiative was part of an effort to push for Adelaide to become an internationally known National Park City and promote Adelaide to international tourists.

Today, it is important for us to recognise the economic and social benefits that tourism operators deliver in South Australia, particularly in our regions, and the positive flow-on impacts that tourism has on key industries such as agriculture, wine, retail, education, real estate and transport.

Regional tourism is critical to the state's visitor economy. It generates 13,000 direct and 6,000 indirect tourism regional jobs. Tourism in regional and rural areas can rejuvenate local economies and communities because it is an easy access sector for micro and small enterprises and for the self-employed, who make up a significant part of the tourism sector and community level entrepreneurship in general.

One of the focuses for World Tourism Day this year calls for the sector to invest in education and skills development in all areas to promote added value jobs and resilience, digitisation and innovation programs to generate more opportunities for women and youth. Investments in innovation, entrepreneurship and digitisation, and its cross-sectorial impact, have a multiplier potential to strengthen strategic large global and regional projects and to also stimulate tourism recovery and safeguard jobs, which in turn creates conditions needed for future growth.

Today, we celebrate and acknowledge the success and aspirations of our amazing tourism industry and recognise the hardworking and innovative individuals who commit their lives to the tourism and hospitality sectors. I would like to take this opportunity to thank them once again for working hard in the sector and for their resilience.

I take this opportunity to call for greater government investment from the state and federal governments to consider the next steps on how we can rethink, rebuild and reimagine how we invest in our people, our planet and our prosperity as we work towards a tourism industry of sustainable growth and economic development. On that note, happy World Tourism Day, everyone. I commend the motion.

The Hon. B.R. HOOD (16:26): I rise to support the motion and to recognise and celebrate that yesterday, Wednesday 27 September, was World Tourism Day. It should not just be another day on the calendar. It should be a reminder to us, a call to action, and an opportunity to reflect on the vast potential and challenges of our tourism sector, particularly in our regions. It will not surprise you that I am going to focus on the regions in my speech.

As a lifelong regional bloke and someone who enjoys nothing more than getting out into our regions, I wholeheartedly commend regional—

The Hon. R.B. Martin: Shooting ducks.

The Hon. B.R. HOOD: I did not hear that contribution from—

The PRESIDENT: Interjections are out of order, so you do not need to hear them. Just play on.

The Hon. B.R. HOOD: I don't know; it could have been of value. I highly doubt it, but still.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order! Just go on.

The Hon. B.R. HOOD: I wholeheartedly commend regional tourism's contribution to our economy and the opportunities to take advantage of South Australia's diverse attractions, activities, natural landscapes, hospitality, wineries and a chance to escape the doldrums of city life. The data shows that regional South Australia is a powerhouse of our tourism industry, whether looking at the total number of stays or overnight trips, visitor nights, or expenditure, regional South Australia contributes significantly more to the economy than the metropolitan market.

That is until we come to the year ending March 2023 and—from results released only yesterday—June 2023, there was a reversal in overnight trip figures, with Adelaide taking the mantle. However, for the year ending June 2023, both visitor nights and number of overnight trips to regional South Australia were double those in Adelaide, while the share of the daytrip expenditure in the regions was almost 60 per cent higher than that spent in the big city.

The Hon. I.K. Hunter interjecting:

The Hon. B.R. HOOD: Maybe. While the regions are still punching above their weight for most of the recent year ending June 2023, major events set in Adelaide drew expenditure away from the country and into the CBD. This consequently saw a 70 per cent increase in overnight expenditure year on year in Adelaide, whereas expenditure in regional South Australia only grew by 30 per cent. I think we need to talk about the need for critical hero infrastructure in our regions. We need to ensure that we have the things that people want to see in our regions so that they stay a night, and stay another night.

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. B.R. HOOD: They could get a train.

The PRESIDENT: Interjections are out of order. Stop badgering the honourable member.

The Hon. B.R. HOOD: This is not helping my Facebook reels, I can tell you, all this interjecting. I do note with great interest, however, that today's brand new advertising campaign from SATC, with a television advertisement that focuses on our regions, is great. I welcome the ad and I hope it draws more tourists and expenditure back to our regions, although I did note that there was not a lot of the Limestone Coast in that ad. I would have liked to have seen that beautiful Robe Obelisk, the Blue Lake and the Kilsby Sinkhole in the South-East. Do yourself a favour and get to the Kilsby Sinkhole in the South-East; it is amazing.

Having said that, though, it is disheartening that a motion highlighting regional tourism significance, proposed by the member for Mount Gambier a few weeks ago in the other place, found resonance with only a handful of members from the government. There were only two, in fact: the member for Newland and the member for Adelaide. By contrast, six of our side of the parliamentary benches recognised that it was a very important motion to contribute to. The silence from the tourism minister on that motion was not just surprising, it was reflecting of the priorities and the gaps in our tourism strategy.

Yet, amidst these challenges, let's hope that they change their tack. Thankfully we have seen a lift in the regional contribution per tourism dollar spent in the state, with regional SA now accounting for 48¢ in the dollar. This suggests that a more significant investment is required in our regions as their contribution to the state economy grows. A key priority in the South Australian Regional Visitor Strategy 2025 is to improve regional nature trails, highlighted as an area of high visitor demand.

Just think about linking up the Great South West Walk, going past Port Mac, all the way up our beautiful rugged coastlines in Canunda. I would love to walk it and I think everyone else would too. This aligns well with the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, which has set this year's theme of World Tourism Day 2023: Tourism and Green Investments. With regional tourism's primary attractions being our state's natural landscapes, investing in nature-based tourism is one of sustainability and it adheres to the theme of green investments.

I have proudly been a strong advocate for the South-East to capitalise on our amazing natural attractions, none so much as Mount Gambier's Crater Lakes area. It has so much potential for eco and adventure tourism. Can you imagine kayaking on the Blue Lake—it would be absolutely amazing. Our former Minister for Environment and Water, the Leader of the Opposition, David Speirs, opened up reservoirs around South Australia, with kayaking on Happy Valley. Of course, we have Glenthorne as well, but if we could kayak on the Blue Lake I think it would be up there with the Great Barrier Reef and Uluru.

World-class running trails and mountain bike precincts are in the Crater Lakes area and zip-lines from Centenary Tower into the Valley Lake would be absolutely amazing, and of course celebrating our ancient Indigenous history in Mount Gambier. The City of Mount Gambier and RecFish SA have a fantastic project they are trying to get off the ground: stocking Murray cod and trout in the Valley Lake. I am looking forward to taking my kids down there and dropping a line in as well. It will be fantastic.

We go from the natural landscapes and water activities in Eyre Peninsula to the Clare and Barossa Valley's vast food and wine experiences—not forgetting the amazing Coonawarra. Of course, in the South-East there is Mount Gambier's Blue Lake, Little Blue, and the world heritage Naracoorte Caves. I tell you what, with all that is going on with that, plus the seven other regions in our state, our state does not fall short of regional tourism opportunities.

By better utilising our existing regional tourism bodies, we can capitalise on the untapped potential in our country's areas as we strive to achieve the sector's goal of generating $12.8 billion annually over the next six years. When working towards the 2030 strategy, better engagement and co-development with the regions will be crucial to ensuring the right mix of attractions to maximise economic benefit and ensure sustainability in regional tourism.

In supporting this motion, I underscore the importance of bolstering regional tourism. My unwavering focus, and I know the unwavering focus of the Hon. Jing Lee and of course the opposition, will remain on holding this government to account in our regional heartlands. Every region, every community, every individual in South Australia deserves the benefit of the promise of tourism.

As we reflect on World Tourism Day, I urge the chamber to recognise the immense value of our regions and to champion their cause. Let this be our clarion call, our commitment to the people of South Australia and our pledge to make regional tourism the cornerstone of our strategy. Let's not mark World Tourism Day: let's make every day a celebration of the tourism potential of our regions.

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. J.E. Hanson.

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