More direct flights to Perth and international tourist advertising are part of a $185 million plan announced by Mark McGowan to help the state reopen to the world.
More direct flights to Perth and international tourist advertising are part of a $185 million plan announced by Premier Mark McGowan to help the state reopen to the world.
The Reconnect WA package, which coincides with the planned easing of interstate and international border restrictions early next year, supports four key areas over a period of 18 months; including international education, airlines, tourism and sourcing skilled labour.
The package includes $65 million for re-establishing pre-COVID flight routes to Perth from key markets, as well as securing new direct routes from Germany, India, China and Vietnam.
Unveiling the funding at this afternoon's WA State of the State event, hosted by the Committee for Economic Development Australia, Mr McGowan confirmed a further $10 million will be allocated to supporting more intrastate flights to parts of regional WA.
A total of $65 million will be spent on targeted advertising campaigns to attract international students, tourists and skilled workers in critical sectors, including health and education, hospitality and agriculture.
Additionally, the state government will offer incentives for overseas visitors, including the expansion of the Stay and Play campaign, which offers hotel stay discounts and vouchers for tours and experiences.
The state government will also spend $15 million targetting the business events market and $9 million on securing tourist-attracting events, essential to filling city hotels, bars and restaurants.
Western Australians have been awaiting confirmation of a reopening date since the release of the COVID transition plan in November, which promised the release of a transition date in early to mid December, when the state reached a double dose vaccination rate of 80 per cent.
The date was based on a double dose vaccination rate of 90 per cent, higher than the threshold of every other state, with the transition expected to begin between late January and early February.
Today, Mr McGowan said the state government intended to confirm a reopening date after next week’s national cabinet meeting, despite the uncertainty surrounding the new Omicron variant.
Western Australia has had among the harshest border controls of anywhere in the world, but Mr McGowan dismissed claims the state should have reopened sooner and said the state's approach would become something it could capitalise on.
“There are some that claim that WA has waited too long to reconnect, to re-engage,” he said.
“There’s a noisy minority who believe that it should have been done earlier, regardless of the loss of life or the harm it would impose on other businesses and industries.
“But the virtue of our careful and cautious approach means WA now has a new brand of safety, stability and strength.
“... We will use that brand to market ourselves to the world.”
The Premier reflected on the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and how the state’s approach had been vindicated on economic, social and health grounds; with just one community death, a $5.6 billion surplus and an unemployment rate of 3.9 per cent.
"Our success in managing COVID is a reputation to leverage for future success And we will promote it – to every market, to every industry, every country we can," he said.
Business Events Perth chair Bradley Woods said the funding would act as a direct boost for the state’s tourism industry, generating significant economic returns and supporting Perth’s CBD hotels.
“With business event delegates spending up to five times more than their leisure counterparts and almost two thirds of delegates choosing to attend a conference in order to extend their trip to take a holiday, the business events sector has a vital role to play in the ongoing recovery of Western Australia’s overall tourism industry," he said.
“The recovery of WA’s visitor economy will have a flow on effect to a broader range of businesses; while visiting WA, delegates will stay at local hotels, dine at local restaurants, book local tours and shop at local retail outlets.”
Property Council WA executive director Sandra Brewer said the package was welcome news, with a recent survey of 800 Victorian and New South Wales residents, conducted by the Property Council, revealing 10 per cent of respondents were consider moving to WA.
“The availability of skills and labour has been a critical concern for the property industry for most of 2021, with a lack of workers causing significant price escalations," she said.
"The problem has become more acute in the past 2 to 3 months, and increasingly we are hearing cases of projects being at risk or placed on hold.
“Now is the time for Western Australia to be bold and assertive about growing migration to ensure we attract the skills and people to continue WA on a positive economic path.
“The one thing needed to accommodate a growing population is housing supply. But, housing delivery can't happen instantaneously.
"We need a workforce to deliver it, investors to support it, and an efficient planning system to grow sustainably.
"We are eager to work with the government on the policy measures needed to achieve this goal."
The news comes as the state’s vaccination rate for those over 12 reached 87.1 per cent for first dose vaccination, and with 76.2 per cent now fully vaccinated.
More than 156,000 Western Australians have received their first dose since the state’s border transition plan was announced.
