Claire Chandler (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment. Will the minister outline to the Senate how the government is getting on with the job of delivering its plan to back Australian tourism and jobs, and how this creates opportunities for Australians?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Chandler for her question, and I congratulate her on her first question. All senators, I'm sure, are looking forward to an outstanding first speech later this afternoon. We wish her well for that. I thank her for her first question, particularly as it focuses on the tourism sector—an industry so important to Senator Chandler's home state of Tasmania, as it is right across Australia.

Last Wednesday the National Visitor Survey was released. It showed that Australians took some 109 million overnight trips and spent a record $75 billion over the last year, up some 14 per cent on the previous year. Australians are, in increasing numbers, choosing to holiday at home. The number of overnight trips to the state of Tasmania, I'm pleased to say, increased by some 12 per cent over that time horizon as well, as part of the booming tourism industry we're seeing in Tasmania.

Importantly, international tourism is also growing strongly, with international spending hitting some $44.3 billion. These are tourists, domestic and international, coming and spending up in accommodation providers, in restaurants and in attractions right across our regional towns and cities, and, in doing so, creating and underpinning vast amounts of employment. Indeed, around one in 13 Australian jobs relates to our tourism industry. That's testimony to the fact that so many hardworking tourism operators show initiative, drive and entrepreneurship across regional Australia.

I'm delighted to say that these figures show that we have now met and surpassed the Tourism 2020 target that our government has been striving towards. We've done so ahead of time. I acknowledge the hard work and effort of the tourism industry right around Australia and the state, territory and regional tourism partners who work collaboratively with Tourism Australia, and I thank all of those partners for their efforts in getting us to the point where our tourism industry is supporting and underpinning so many jobs and so many small businesses right around Australia.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Senator Chandler, a supplementary question.

Claire Chandler (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister, what is the coalition doing to ensure a strong tourism sector into the future?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In addition to our ongoing record support for Tourism Australia and their marketing efforts, we are also continuing to fund major investment in tourism infrastructure. In the budget this year we announced a $50 million tourism icons package that's going to deliver benefits to regions such as the Freycinet in Tasmania. I'm delighted that Senator Duniam, as the Assistant Minister for Regional Tourism, will be playing a key role in the delivery of those regional tourism icons.

We'll also see investment as a government in the Shipwreck Coast, Kakadu National Park and the Jabiru township. We have continued our commitment to making sure that a tourism component is a dedicated element of the Building Better Regions Fund to provide targeted support in small tourism grants right around regional Australia. We also, in our election campaign, committed $40 million to fund, establish and grow Indigenous tourism as part of our government's commitment to making sure that visitors to Australia get an authentic Indigenous tourism experience as part of— (Time expired)

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Chandler, a final supplementary question.

Claire Chandler (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Are there particular regional benefits being realised thanks to the coalition's tourism policies? If so, what are they?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Regional tourism is such a core part of our tourism success. Forty-three cents in every tourism dollar that's spent is spent in Australia's regions. Across each and every state and territory, we see Australians and international visitors touring around and, in large amounts, spending those dollars in those regional towns and communities.

Critically, a big part of that is that older Australians and older visitors—over-65s—account for 16 per cent of all overnight travel, with 16.9 million trips in the year ending in March 2019. These Australians, as well as Australians who are receiving tax cuts from the coalition government, will have more money that they can invest and spend in regional tourism when travelling around our country, supporting and underpinning those jobs. they will have far more than they would have had if those opposite had come along with their tax slugs on retirees and on people's savings, which would have hurt our economy and suppressed our tourism industry, which is instead growing strongly, thanks to Liberal-National policies.