Justine Elliot (Richmond, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to mention some major successes at the recent New South Wales Tourism Awards held last week in Sydney. I would especially like to congratulate these tourism achievements from my electorate of Richmond, and more specifically from around Byron Bay, which won a number of the awards. Firstly there is Bluesfest, which won in the Major Festivals and Events category. The Cape Byron State Conservation Area won the award in the Tourist Attractions category, and the Arakwal Dolphin Dreaming Cape Byron State Conservation Area won the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Tourism category. Also, Flash Camp won the Specialised Tourism Services award. Congratulations to all of them. Bluesfest director Peter Noble noted that the competition was fierce, and he rightly paid tribute to all the Bluesfest team for this award. Delta Kay, education officer for the Byron Coast National Parks and Wildlife Service, said she believes Dolphin Dreaming did so well because of the large focus on customer satisfaction for locals and tourists alike. Dolphin Dreaming uses story, song and dance to share the culture of the local Arakwal people.

I congratulate all the winners and note that tourism is a vital contributor to and driver of our local economy on the New South Wales North Coast. I acknowledge the hard work and commitment of all the local tourist successes that have so rightly been recognised in the 2015 New South Wales Tourism Awards. Congratulations to all those involved—it is a major achievement for our area, especially Bluesfest, which continues to attract so many international awards. To all the winners, congratulations for your hard work and commitment.