Concerns Govt may change tourism voucher scheme

Concerns are mounting among Top End tourism operators that the NT Government is planning to make “detrimental” changes to the next round of voucher incentives.

• EXCLUSIVE: Popular tourism vouchers to return in October
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CONCERNS are mounting among Top End tourism operators that the NT Government is planning to make “detrimental” changes to how the next round of incentive vouchers can be used.

The vouchers will make a return in the coming wet season, with the first round to be released in October.

Industry members say the scheme’s record breaking success in the previous format demands that no change should be made.

However the NT government has indicated that changes are in the wind.

Tourism Minister Natasha Fyles said the government is “working on the details of the next round of tourism vouchers and working closely with industry on what they want.”

“The Territory Government is bringing back the popular tourism vouchers … we will update Territorians when the package is finalised,” Ms Fyles said. The comments have been seen as a clear indication that the scheme will under go change.

“This is a major concern,” one industry member told the NT News.

“If there was going to be no change then the government would not have any voucher scheme details to be working on right now.

“There would be no package to be finalised by the government.

“It would be simply a matter of implementing what has already happened in the past.

“It is beyond me that they would be thinking of changes when it has already worked so well.”

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Another operator told the NT News they feared the government was going to target the incentive more towards the bigger operators.

“Us small flies are going to suffer if that’s the case,” he said.

“Why change something that isn’t broken. It is the smaller operators who need the most help.

“We’ve had to put our life savings and everything we’ve got into keeping afloat in some very tough years and we have barely made enough this season to get us through the coming quiet season.

“Any change right now would be detrimental I fear.”

The $5m allocated by the NT government to the vouchers’ return would give much needed support to the struggling tourism industry.

Figures up to May this year revealed round three of the tourism vouchers scheme generated more than $9.47m in gross sales with Territorians redeeming 24,500 vouchers.

More than 33,000 people were waitlisted in the final round of the February voucher scheme after they were all snapped up within 3.44 minutes.