Tourism plan under fire

By Dion Teasdale
THE Victorian Liberal Party has come under fire from Yarra Valley tourism operators and the region’s peak tourism body.
Destination Yarra Valley Dandenong Ranges and Warburton Highway Tourism have joined Victorian Minister for Tourism, John Pandazopoulos, in criticising the Opposition’s plans for the local tourism industry.
The criticism came after the Liberal tourism spokesman Nicholas Kotsiras launched the tourism policy paper the Opposition will take to this November’s state elections.
Among its recommendations, the policy proposes the implementation of a marketing campaign targeting what the Liberal Party calls ‘second and third level regions and attractions’ that it considers are ‘not household names’.
Included on a list of eight regions and attractions are Healesville, Marysville, and the Dandenong Ranges.
The Opposition proposes to spend about $1.1 million promoting the regions within Victoria, interstate and overseas over the next five years.
However, Mr Pandazopoulos said the proposal was grossly under-funded and misguided.
“This is a half-baked policy that does not understand tourism and does not have the support of the tourism industry,” he said.
“The Bracks Government will spend $11 million over the next four years promoting regional tourism within Victoria alone.”
Mr Pandazopoulos said the Opposition’s proposal incorrectly labelled the Yarra Valley and the Dandenong Ranges as second and third tier regions.
“This is insulting and offensive to a region that has worked damned hard to deliver tourism to an international standard,” he said.
Destination Yarra Valley Dandenong Ranges chief executive Andrea Roberts said the Opposition policy document could set off alarm bells for the industry.
“The dollars (in the Opposition policy) don’t match up to the emphasis current marketing campaigns place on this region. I can’t understand how the spending they are proposing would equate to a significant difference,” she said.
Ms Roberts said she always welcomes funding to build greater awareness of the region, but questioned the research behind the policy document.
“The Dandenong Ranges rates very highly across Victoria in terms of recognition and the Yarra Valley is definitely a level one region.
“Research shows that people in Victoria know these places,” she said.
Warburton Highway Tourism president Baden Berry said he was underwhelmed by the funding included in the policy document.
“The amount of money is not a lot. It will give each region less than $20,000 in the next financial year and that might not even be enough for a brochure,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Kotsiras defended his policy document.
“Tourism Victoria has been good at campaigning for major attractions, but is not paying enough attention to second and third-tier attractions,” he said.
“Everybody knows the Great Ocean Road, the penguins at Phillip Island and the Healesville Sanctuary, but when I speak to people in the street, they do not know about places like Marysville.” Mr Kotsiras said the tourism industry would not be exposed to budget cuts under a Liberal Government.