Kate Jones, Tourism Minister of Queensland explains that young people should be made aware of the benefits of working in tourism sector as the State looks positively to the $25 billion industry to offer huge job opportunities in the future.
Yesterday Ms Jones declared that she would accelerate the redevelopment process of the two North Queensland resort worth more than $150 million in a proposal to speed up the revival of the Whitsundays region following Cyclone Debbie.
However, she also highlighted that the sector needs to draw in more school leavers to make sure it could meet demand.
“If we get this tourism piece right there is so much potential for growth and jobs nothing like we have seen in the past,” Ms Jones told the Queensland Media Club yesterday during an address on the state of the industry.
“The position that Queensland has being on the doorstep of Asia gives us a unique advantage and our job as an industry and my job as a minister is to make sure that we are looking at every single opportunity that we have to grow that.
“We need to be talking to our students — and we are doing this with our young tourism leaders — our young people today to say that this is an industry where you will have a diverse career, a long career and a sustainable career in an industry that wasn’t traditionally seen like that.”
The Courier-Mail yesterday revealed the $100 million redevelopment of Hayman Island had been given prescribed project status, enabling the Coordinator-General to intervene and hasten the approvals process.
Ms Jones announced the $65 million refurbishment of Daydream Island would also be deemed a prescribed project.
