Tourism’s poll high five

THE state’s peak tourism industry body has unveiled a wish list of its top five priorities for the next federal election.

Tourism Industry Council Tasmania released its plan to keep Tasmanian tourism ahead of the pack yesterday with re-imagining the Hobart waterfront and fast-tracking infrastructure investments at Freycinet high on the agenda.

Keeping Bass Strait passenger transport affordable, investing in Launceston’s potential for events and making Cradle Mountain the premier national park in the country were also priority areas, the council said.

Chief executive Luke Martin said he expected tourism to again feature as a priority area in the upcoming election, expected to be held next year.

He said they wanted all par- ties and candidates to be aware what the industry’s priorities are across the state.

“Over recent federal elections we’ve had a number of major tourism announcements made — some expected, some not so expected — and we felt it was important we made our industry priorities known,” he said.

“The Australian Government has an important role in the Tasmanian tourism indus- try by making Strait passenger transport affordable, while investing in infrastructure such as the Three Capes Track and extending the Hobart Airport runway to foster growth across our visitor economy.”

He said each of the five projects were critically important to the future of local and regional tourism and all required Federal Government support.

“They are all high-profile public infrastructure projects that instil confidence in the private sector to continue to invest and create opportunities,” Mr Martin said.

The council hopes the commitment to relocate the CSIRO laboratories to Macquarie Point to repurpose Hobart’s waterfront parklands can be progressed.

They would also like to see the current bipartisan commitment of a $30 million Australian Government contribution to the Cradle Mountain master plan honoured.

EMRS research on attitudes to industries found 56 per cent of Tasmanians named tourism as the greatest potential to contribute the state’s economic development over the next five years.

Mr Martin said he would be providing the list of projects to all current senators and MPs, along with briefing senior representatives in Canberra.