Push for decision on Cairns Global Tourism Hub
As potential proponents drop out of the race to build the Cairns Global Tourism Hub, the deputy opposition leader is calling on decision-makers to make a judgment on who will take the lead on the proposed billion-dollar foreshore development.
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AS POTENTIAL proponents drop out of the race to build the Cairns Global Tourism Hub, the Opposition tourism spokesman is calling on decision-makers to make a judgment on who will take the lead on the proposed billion-dollar foreshore development.
Attending an eco-tourism summit in Cairns on Sunday, David Crisafulli speculated the Star Entertainment Group would win the race for the GTH and partner with existing casino licence-holder, the Reef Casino Trust.
“This whole second casino Global Tourism Hub has been a con job all the way through, everyone has known it,” he said.
Twelve companies were revealed as contenders to build the GTH in August 2018 before being whittled down to three in March this year.
To date $3 million has been spent attracting international proponents without an announcement of the winning operator, Mr Crisafulli said.
“They have known for a long time there is no Global Tourism Hub with another operator and they have racked up millions globetrotting and sipping champagne,” he said.
A State Government spokesman defending the spend said the hub is expected to attract tens of thousands of extra tourists a year when fully operational.
“Government is working with the private sector to deliver new tourism infrastructure that will create jobs in Far North Queensland. That’s exactly why we’re talking to some of the largest entertainment companies in the world about setting up shop in Cairns,” he said.
Mr Crisafulli urged the State Government to come clean on a project shrouded in secrecy since its inception in 2017.
“While the cruel game continues about this faux … second casino we will never see anything. It’s so blindingly obvious what they are setting up for. Stop the political games and make a decision,” he said.
“Be honest with people, explain what you are trying to achieve, what it is going to look like, what it’s going to mean for the city and then people can have an honest debate.”
Originally published as Push for decision on Cairns Global Tourism Hub
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