June 25, 2012
Queensland Premier Campbell Newman has announced a doubling of funding for Regional Tourism Organisations at the inaugural DestinationQ Forum held today in Cairns.
The Premier said the funding increase from $3.11 million to $7 million per year would be funded through a “redirection of resources”.
“With the Commission of Audit highlighting the dire state of the Queensland Government’s finances, we must get bang for our buck and ensure the tourism dollars are spent where they are needed most,” Mr Newman said.
“The grant pool for Regional Tourism Organisations had not increased since 2001 despite the fact that they are the ones with on the ground knowledge of what works and how best to attract tourists to their local areas.
“As a first step, we will shift resources and boost funding to Regional Tourism Organisations from $3.11 million to $7 million annually.”
Mr Newman told more than 300 delegates at the forum that the State Government was determined to get Queensland’s tourism industry back on track.
“DestinationQ is the first forum of its kind in more than 25 years in Queensland and it’s great to see more than 300 delegates in attendance,” Mr Newman said.
The State Government has a target to double overnight visitor expenditure by 2020, which will mean an extra $15 billion flowing into the Queensland economy.
