Page 3211 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 18 November 1992
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Madam Speaker, the Tourism Commission is now working much more closely with the National Gallery of Australia, to the benefit of both the gallery and the industry. Members will join me in offering our congratulations and thanks to Betty Churcher at the National Gallery for the brilliant exhibitions she and her staff have mounted during the last 12 months. I have no doubt that the current exhibition entitled "Rembrandt to Renoir" will be a roaring success, just as the recently completed Rubens exhibition was.
I would like now to turn to the convention and conference market. Members may not be aware that this is an extremely important long-term market segment in the ACT. The commission, in recognising the importance of this market, has increased the funding of the Canberra Visitors and Convention Bureau by 50 per cent for the current financial year. The Convention Bureau is enjoying remarkable success in attracting a wide range of major national and international conventions for the city right through to 1997. Although this is very long-term work, it augurs very well for the future of the ACT's dynamic industry. Elizabeth Boydell and her staff at the Convention Bureau are making a major contribution to the city and its region with the work they are doing. They are now recognised as amongst the most efficient conventions bureaus in Australia.
Members do not need me to draw to their attention the opening of Casino Canberra last week. I saw that most of the members here really enjoyed it, as I did. Clearly, the casino will make a major contribution to the tourism industry as well as to the tax base of the Territory. Dr Heinz Resmann and his staff are to be congratulated for the professional way they have brought the casino concept into startling reality over the past few months. I think we all agree that the opening was really a startling night.
Madam Speaker, in August this year the Chief Minister presided at a function for the domestic and international industry at Darling Harbour in Sydney, where she announced that Australia's domestic airlines have dropped the penalty they formerly applied to international visitors staying overnight in Canberra. This penalty was a major impediment to the development of Canberra's international visitor market share. We are already seeing many more international visitors enjoying the delights of our city since the penalty was dropped. It will be another year before the full effect of this major step forward is felt in our city.
The ACT Tourism Commission is the only commission in Australia which identifies and markets multicultural tourism as an important element of its marketing strategy. I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Vic Rebikoff on the excellent job he does in this area. Vic is well known. I think he has been on all our doorsteps, driving us mad; but he really works very hard in this field. It is very good that a lot of people who possibly would not normally come to Canberra get that opportunity to come. The Tourism Commission, under Mr Lawrance, who I see is in the gallery today, is a very efficient and well-run department. We have Mr Lawrance to thank for that, I am sure.
Canberra is well placed to take advantage of the fact that it is home to Australia's diplomatic community and is the most multicultural city in Australia. The work done to ensure that this market segment makes a significant contribution to the industry has not been properly recognised previously. Visitors brought to
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