Simon Crean (Hotham, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Hansard source

The brand Australia Unlimited is a very exciting concept. It comes from two issues that have been the counterpoints that I have struck in all the trade negotiations that I have been having—that is, the more you go to countries and understand the sorts of issues and opportunities within those countries the more you realise the diversity that Australia has to offer in being able to respond positively to those proposals and opportunities, but on the other hand there is a great lack of understanding within those countries of the diversity that Australia has to offer.

We promote ourselves for tourism purposes. It is about time we promoted ourselves other than as a tourist destination, because whilst Australia is a great place to have a holiday it is also a great place to do business and to make investments. We know it because of everything we do. With their strength and creativity our scientists and entrepreneurs do more than just punch above their weight; everything they do has a quality outcome. But we cannot just sit back and hope that people will come to understand this; we have to be more effective at marketing. That is in essence what Brand Australia is.

We tested the concept that is out there, which is called Australia Unlimited. It was market tested involving 15,000 people in research groups, including 14 overseas countries as well as Australia. Due to the results of that research, together with a panel of leading businesspeople that I established to help us assess the outcomes of the research and the creative concepts that were coming forward, the Australia Unlimited concept won. We launched it successfully at the Sydney Opera House earlier last month and then internationally at the Shanghai expo.

Shanghai expo has really been exceeding all expectations as well. The Australian pavilion has now passed, I think, its two millionth visitor. Recently it had its highest intake: 51,000 people went through on one particular Saturday. This was before the school holidays. When you think of the fact that there are expected to be something upward of 80 million people going through the expo and that the Australian pavilion is one of the most visited, this is a huge opportunity for us in what is the fastest growing market in the world. There are plenty of other market opportunities for us, but the branding and promotion of Australia under Australia Unlimited will give us a much greater edge in promoting the diversity of our potential for goods and services and investment.

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