Page 449 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 21 February 2018
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government to the public service. These new jobs are the result of our government’s policies, local businesses and community organisations, all in spite of federal Liberal government actions.
This government is focused on diversifying our job market. Not only does this protect our economy from the federal government; growing sectors like education, tourism and hospitality increase the livability of our city. Put simply, more jobs mean better services. The extra 10,000 jobs created over the past year come from a wide range of industries, both public and private, including education, tourism, health, retail, IT and media, defence capabilities, space and aeronautical industries—that is a new one for me—as well as the energy sector.
2017 saw an annual increase of 24 per cent in private sector job vacancies, well above the national average of 17.2 per cent. This indicates continued growth in employment in the private sector. Our government’s job creation policies therefore have had a significant positive impact and will continue to do so as they are implemented.
These polices include $14.7 million over four years to implement the territory’s business development plan to create more jobs, and $5.3 million for partnerships to support Canberra’s job market. This $5.3 million includes $3 million to support and promote Canberra’s tertiary education sector and $1 million to boost the number of female tradies and upskill mature workers. On top of this, the newly established City Renewal Authority will further drive growth in the economy by supporting development in Canberra’s CBD.
The new research and teaching hospital at the University of Canberra will increase the number of jobs available in the health sector, as well as servicing the broader Canberra community. All of these initiatives represent growth across a broad range of industries that offer employment opportunities for a huge cross-section of the Canberra community.
Tourism is a promising growth market for the Canberra economy, and 2017 saw some huge developments. Two international airlines, Singapore and Qatar, will be starting daily flights out of Canberra early this year, with Qatar’s first flight already having arrived just last week. Tiger Airways also started low-cost domestic flights out of Canberra last year. These flights have increased, and will continue to increase, the number of tourists travelling to Canberra, especially international tourists.
In the 2016-17 financial year, international visitor expenditure increased by 27 per cent and domestic visitor expenditure increased by 14 per cent. Currently, 16,000 Canberrans work in the tourism industry. This area can continue to grow, as visitors come to see not only our fantastic established events, festivals and cultural institutions but new initiatives as well. The 2017-18 budget delivers $7.5 million over four years to support a wide range of Canberra events like Enlighten and Canberra Day.
Improvements to Stromlo Forest Park and the arboretum will also ensure that other major events can be held in these areas. On top of this there is $4.1 million over four years to grow visitation through business events and a new events fund. The upgrades
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