Holiday subsidy scheme leaves regional NSW behind

Tourist operators say federal government scheme to subsidise airfares to blue chip tourist destinations leaves NSW behind.

Taronga Western Plains Zoo director Steve Hinks has joined the chorus of calls for the support to extend to the bush. Picture: Supplied

NSW tourist operators are furious the Morrison government’s $1.2bn airfare windfall has gone almost entirely to destinations in other states, with many outraged that such a large number of Queensland holiday centres were thrown a lifeline.

Business owners in regions ­denied access to the package questioned why a state that had regularly closed its borders to tourists during the pandemic was being ­rewarded. Dubbo Mayor Ben Shields criticised the program for offering half-priced airfares to just one destination in NSW — ­Merimbula on the south coast — while five destinations in Queensland were picked.

“It’s incredible that we’re going to back Queensland up when it was Queensland that brought tourism down,” he said. “Why does NSW have to be punished with all the extra things we’re doing with quarantine when Queensland is refusing to pay for quarantine and they’re getting extra tax dollars for tourism?”

Mr Shields said Dubbo, five hours’ drive from Sydney, had been hit hard by drought and the pandemic.

“My airport here has lost well over $5m because of COVID,” he said. “We’re down to 17 per cent of passengers based on a usual year. Without collecting those landing fees we are suffering big time. To be ignored by the federal government is very disappointing.”

Peter Judd, who runs Trike ­Adventures in Dubbo offering three-wheeled-motorbike tours, said he used to do five rides a night over summer but had done just one on average this year.

Tourism operator Peter Judd who runs Trike Adventures in Dubbo, which runs tours on three-wheeled motorbikes, said his business had dropped significantly during the pandemic. Picture: Supplied

He criticised the scheme for mostly supporting coastal cities, and accused the government of forgetting about communities like his. “It’s not just Queensland, and not just the coast, it’s this ridiculous focus on promoting the surf and sand — we live out here too you know,” he said.

Steve Hinks, director of ­Taronga Western Plains Zoo at Dubbo, also called for the support package to be extended. “Seeing this support package extended to the state’s No 1 family holiday destination would be a welcome support to getting the region back on its feet,” he said.

Jye Segboer, who owns CH Boutique Hotel and is president of the Tamworth Business Chamber, said missing out was a smack in the face for the town.

“It’s a big disappointment when Tamworth has had its major event cancelled,” he said. “The country music festival brings in over $150m to our small economy, and for a lot of businesses it’s 40-50 per cent of their profit from just one month. To miss out on something that is meant to stimulate tourism is ­pretty upsetting.”

Wagga Wagga Mayor Greg Conkey said the city’s aviation sector was desperate for assistance, with the local airport projected to have suffered a $4m loss this financial year. “I totally agree with the concept to rejuvenate the aviation industry as well as the tourism ­industry,” he said. “But it’s disappointing … that we’re being overlooked.”

In coastal holiday towns that have benefited from an increase in domestic travel there was concern about cheap tickets to rival destinations. Ballina Shire Council Mayor David Wright said the north coast, and especially Byron Bay, had enjoyed a bumper Christmas but the scheme could see tourists head elsewhere.

“We don’t know what’s going to happen when this is operating, especially during winter when these fares are available,” he said.

Mike Davey, who owns Jetty Dive Centre in Coffs Harbour, said of the half-priced airfare package: “I’m hoping it won’t steer people away from us.

“We are going to be in a position where we are losing out as we’re not a destination identified by the government. But hopefully there will be enough people going around.”