Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. In response to the Prime Minister's decision to rip away JobKeeper, the operator of Gold Coast tourism business Duffy Down Under says, 'What is the point of bringing everyone safely across the desert just to drop us off a cliff?' He's right, isn't he? Why leave people behind when the crisis isn't over yet?

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'll ask the minister for tourism to add further to my answer. What the tourism industry needs is tourists. That's what they need. We want to see the demand come back into the tourism sector. At no other time in the tourism industry's history have they seen a package of support of some $1.2 billion. Never before has there been such a significant package of support provided to the tourism and travel sector and the aviation sector that is going to see Australians getting into the air and then getting on the ground—because a dollar spent in the air is worth $10 on the ground for those tourism and travel industries. So, whether they're up in North Queensland or in other parts of the country that have been so devastated by the withdrawal of international tourists because of the close of those international borders—so necessary to protect Australians' health and wellbeing through this COVID-19 pandemic—on top of the JobKeeper support, on top of the cash flow assistance, on top of all the other measures that we put in place to get Australians through this COVID-19 pandemic—in particular the travel and tourism and aviation industry—further support has been provided. I will ask the minister to add further to the answer.

Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thanks, PM. I was at the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary with our three wonderful members from the Gold Coast on Friday, and can I tell the House that the reception of our package there, on the Gold Coast, was huge—absolutely huge. One of the other things that I can report is that, following the announcement, the bookings that we have already seen with our major airlines have been quite extraordinary. In fact, they haven't seen booking levels like it since before the COVID-19 pandemic. What the tourism industry said to the government was that, more than anything else, they want tourists, and what our $1.2 billion package was all about was making sure that we're putting confidence into the aviation sector, confidence into the tourism sector, so that people will get moving again. And they have voted with their feet. They're booking airline tickets like they haven't been booked in the last 12 months, and our discount tickets haven't even started. Forty-six thousand—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will pause. Member for Lalor, I couldn't have been more clear last time.

The member for Lalor then left the chamber.

Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And, while you've got some spare time, book a ticket! Take a trip! Do your patriotic duty! There are 46,000 tickets available each week. Everyone, do your patriotic duty! (Time expired)