POLICY WATCH: RECOVERY & REOPENING PRIORITIES FROM TICT CEO LUKE MARTIN
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ince the shut-down first began in March, the TICT Board has been talking about our industry priorities for the recovery and rebuild of our visitor economy. We’ve been very clear with the State and Federal Government about what must be done to secure businesses through the shut-down, but also some practical ideas to kick-start visitor demand when the time is right, and ultimately lay the foundations for our next era of tourism growth. Some of these ideas are likely to feature in the ‘T30’ – Rebuild Plan we’re working on with the Tasmanian Government.
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TAKE YOUR CAR ON BASS STRAIT FOR FREE The big-ticket item that has already got a lot of media attention, particularly in the north-west, is our proposal for the Bass Strait Passenger Vehicle Equalisation Scheme (BSPVES) to be increased, at least temporarily, to make the cost of taking your vehicle across Bass Strait $0. The BSPVES is the unsung hero of the Tasmanian tourism industry. Introduced by John Howard in 1996, with the expressed intent of making the cost of taking your vehicle across Bass Strait roughly the equivalent to the cost of driving the same distance on the national highway network, the BSPVES has underpinned the success of the Spirit of Tasmania service for 25-years.
We’ve been very clear with the State and Federal Government about what must be done to secure businesses through the shutdown, but also some practical ideas to kick-start visitor demand when the time is right, and ultimately lay the foundations for our next era of tourism growth.
