TIDE TURNING ON GARDEN ISLAND

CARNIVAL Australia CEO Ann Sherry has set her sights on being able to host the nautical ballet and media spectacle of all three Cunard Queens in Sydney Harbour at once by 2017, a sight only possible through expanded access to Garden Island, she says. Such an auspicious target would be a crowning achievement on Sherry’s shining legacy to the Australian cruise industry, if it can be pulled off. It is no secret within the industry that the Navy has for many years had its heels firmly dug in on civilian use of the military base which is a stone’s throw east from the Overseas Passenger Terminal at Circular Quay. Sherry said only recently the Navy has shown a reduced level of inertia toward a greater number of cruise ships utilising its port. “Other than a war of attrition, I don’t think it’s a war. I think they’re just comfortable doing what they’ve always done there and I guess they see us as the new kids on the block. Every facility that is owned by navy or army that civilians have tried to share has been hard work and that’s just a cultural issue I think,” she said. But the ever-growing volume of rhetoric coming from tourism industry bodies, levels of government and cruise lines themselves is leading to signs of a more negotiable approach from the Navy, who have occupied Garden Island for more than two centuries. The growing capacity of cruise ships visiting Sydney and their inability to fit within the 49-metre clearance underneath the Sydney Harbour Bridge is taking its toll on the Navy and Garden Island, as calls grow louder for greater access for the benefit of the state and national economies. Sherry said many productive conversations have taken place. “I think the view now is that we’re more compatible, we’re both interested in security, we’ve both got very strict security requirements so we’re not incompatible on that,” she said. “We’ve worked out which part of it we’d get in and out of without disrupting them. The last chief of navy who has just been promoted, he and I had some very positive conversations together and he said to me that it now needs a Cabinet decision.” A recent letter by NSW Premier Mike Baird calling for action on the matter from Canberra

Every facility that is owned by navy or army that civilians have tried to share has been hard work and that’s just a cultural issue think’ I

has slammed the matter firmly back on the table, with both NSW Treasurer Andrew Constance and Federal Trade & Investment Minister Andrew Robb championing its cause, and the latter prepared to fight for it through the governmental channels in Canberra. Upon the removal of the hammerhead crane, Sherry said Garden Island is capable of accommodating two cruise ships at one time by itself, freeing up the OPT for a third and White Bay for smaller vessels. Cunard, for its part, is very keen to perform such a spectacle in Sydney Harbour. The line remembers the traffic-stopper that eventuated when two Queens crossed either side of Fort Denison in 2007, and is keen to do its part in giving Sydney another maritime moment to cherish, should the facilities be available.