ACT Labor has welcomed the announcement today that Canberra will be directly connected to the Sunshine Coast and Far North Queensland from 23 October.
As borders across the country reopen, a re-elected ACT Labor Government will invest up to $3 million over four years in tourism marketing partnerships to attract more direct domestic flights to Canberra.
Our local tourism industry has been hit hard by COVID-19.
With borders reopening to ACT residents, it’s important that the ACT Government supports local jobs in our tourism industry.
The fund will be used to partner with Canberra Airport, Tourism Australia and other destinations to attract more direct flights to and from COVID-safe destinations, including bringing low-cost airlines to our market.
A re-elected Labor Government will support cooperative destination marketing activities with matched funding - attracting visitors to Canberra and supporting local businesses.
Short-term partners will include Tasmania, with the aim to quickly establish more links as borders reopen.
In the medium term, the fund will be used to target the re-establishment of direct flights between Canberra and New Zealand if a travel bubble is created with Australia.
With international visitation halted for the foreseeable future, we must be innovative in opening up direct aviation links with COVID-safe destinations in Australia.
More direct flights to COVID-safe destinations will also allow Canberrans to holiday and visit family and friends.
Our city is facing a significant economic challenge, and creating jobs will be Labor’s number one priority.
This announcement is part of our plan to grow our employment base to 250,000 local jobs by 2025.