The Federal Government will inject $250 million into regional Australia to encourage more Aussies to travel and experience a home-grown holiday and in the process boost local jobs and economies.
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The package includes a $50 million Regional Tourism Recovery initiative to assist help businesses in regions heavily reliant on international tourism as well as $200 million for an additional round of the Building Better Regions Fund.
Deputy prime minister and minister for infrastructure, transport and regional development Michael McCormack said it was about delivering targeted support for regional tourism.
He said half of the $200 million would be dedicated to tourism-related infrastructure.
Federal tourism minister Simon Birmingham said tourism regions had been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic and package would help them to bounce back by attracting more Australians and then overseas visitors when our international borders re-open.
"Tourism is such an important job creator and driver of many regional economies. We want to make sure that our tourism regions are in the best possible shape on the other side of the COVID-19 pandemic," he said.
"This targeted new fund will support internationally dependent tourism regions to adapt their offerings, experiences and marketing to appeal to domestic visitors in the short-term and be in the strongest possible position to welcome back international tourists down the track.
"Increasingly we are targeting sectors hardest hit, with this regional support sitting alongside our $50 million business events program to get meetings, conventions and conferences up and running again, which is so crucial to the visitor economies of our capital and larger cities."
Assistant minister for regional tourism Jonno Duniam said the industry was the lifeblood of many towns and regional communities and it was important to help them get back on their feet.
He said the funding will assist in saving thousands of businesses and jobs in the first and worst hit regional tourism areas across the country.
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