Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Many Gold Coast residents and Queenslanders will remember that great day in November last year when we heard that the Gold Coast will host the 2018 Commonwealth Games. The Commonwealth Games offers a fantastic opportunity for the Gold Coast to revitalise both its tourism and construction industries. Both industries in recent years have experienced a downturn, for a variety of reasons, and the Gold Coast unemployment rate is still higher than the national average; therefore, the announcement of the games comes at a time when it is essential that steps are taken to create more jobs on the Gold Coast and create more local wealth for employees and small businesses alike.

With this in mind, we need to have an approach for the whole of the Gold Coast not just the northern Gold Coast, to ensure that the benefits created by the games and the period of time before and after the event are spread evenly. Although the northern end of the Gold Coast has a number of the facilities required to effectively host many of the individual events, it does not mean that the southern Gold Coast, where my electorate is based, should be excluded from hosting some of them.

Information currently available indicates that the road racing event is to be held in Elanora and Currumbin Valley, with the Rugby Sevens competition to be held at Skilled Park stadium in Robina. However, other events, like the triathlon, can easily be held amongst much of the beautiful scenery—including some of our many beaches—that is abundant on the southern Gold Coast. The risk that is taken by centralising many events, including many important facilities such as the athletes' village on the northern end of the Gold Coast, is that the southern economy will not reap the benefits.

Small businesses are struggling due to lower expenditure from locals, and tourists and many hospitality operators on the southern Gold Coast are still suffering from low tourist numbers. When major events are being held it provides these businesses with the opportunity to get more customers through the door, due to their proximity to the events. To highlight an example, the Cooly Rocks On festival, the successor to the Wintersun festival, delivers a much-needed injection to the southern Gold Coast economy, with accommodation being booked out and many small businesses in the Coolangatta area attracting many more customers than usual. This means more jobs and more wealth in the local community.

Although the games are still nearly six years away, we should be taking advantage of this opportunity right now to promote the whole of the Gold Coast. It is such a great location to live and holiday. Other benefits from hosting events on the southern Gold Coast would come from the construction of improved infrastructure that would be required for the transportation of visitors and facilitation of events. Much of the facilities and infrastructure required to host major sporting events that will be part of the games program is currently located on the northern end of the Gold Coast, with the exception of Skilled Park in Robina. However, there is no reason that, in the six-year period between now and the games, existing infrastructure cannot be improved. That will allow for more events to be held down on the southern end of the Gold Coast. In the long run, the benefits would mean that southern Gold Coast residents would have better infrastructure at their disposal and could potentially host more major events in the years ahead, generating more local wealth.

The Commonwealth Games present the Gold Coast with a once-in-a-generation opportunity, and we need to ensure that all is being done to take advantage of not only the event but also the consequential benefits. It is important that we spread the benefits. We do not want a disproportionate amount of money and resources being spent on the northern end of the Gold Coast while the southern end of the Gold Coast is forgotten. I urge the new Commonwealth Games Board to do what it can to ensure that the southern Gold Coast plays an equal role in the delivery of the games so that all Gold Coast residents can enjoy and benefit from, what I know, will be a fantastic milestone in the Gold Coast's history.