Margaret May (McPherson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Minister for Small Business and Tourism. Would the minister update the House on the performance of the tourism industry in 2005?

Fran Bailey (McEwen, Liberal Party, Minister for Small Business and Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for McPherson for her question and for her very strong support of the tourism industry. I am absolutely delighted to advise the House that the tourism figures that have been released today show that the number of international visitors coming to Australia is at an all-time high. Never before have so many international visitors come to Australia. In fact, 5½ million international visitors came to Australia in 2005. That is a 5.4 per cent increase on the previous year. I can further advise that key emerging markets such as China and India are performing very well indeed. These good results demonstrate that the very strong investment that this government is making into the tourism industry is really producing dividends. More than half a million Australians work directly in this industry, with more than 200,000 of them working in our regional areas. It is only this government that values and understands this important $73 billion industry.