‘Hanson hurts Qld tourism’

TOURISM bosses are gunning for Pauline Hanson, warning her “extreme rightwing views” risk making Queensland and Australia the target for an international visitor boycott.

They fear she could have a similar impact to the “Trump slump” in the US, when international visitor numbers to America dropped sharply in what was seen as a backlash against the policies of President Donald Trump.

Queensland tourism chiefs have spoken out after the latest scandal surrounding One Nation when Queensland leader Steve Dickson and Senator Hanson’s chief-of-staff James Ashby were caught out in an Al Jazeera sting discussing the potential for millions of dollars in funding from the US’s powerful National Rifle Association.

Senator Hanson was also busted parroting conspiracy theories about the Port Arthur massacre in 1996.

Queensland Tourism Industry Council chief executive Daniel Gschwind said One Nation risked driving international tourists away.

“The controversy around One Nation and the perception that these extreme-right views are held more widely in Australia are a real threat to our tourism industry,” he said.

“We saw the international impact on visitors when One Nation first made a splash.

“It’s important that we send a clear message internationally – these views are not held by the majority of Australians or Queenslanders.”

Tourism Minister Kate Jones said the “Trump slump” was a genuine threat to Australia’s tourism industry, “particularly when one of our major parties is doing deals with One Nation”.

“The only way to avoid these extremist views from having an impact is for the LNP to promise Queenslanders they won’t preference One Nation at the coming federal election,”she said.