PRESENTED by the Victoria Tourism Industry Council (VTIC), in association with Tourism Victoria.

Where: The Pier Precinct, 10 Western Beach Foreshore, Geelong

When: 14-15 July, 2014

Why: Showcases a diverse program of local, national and international speakers with a focus on building profitable and sustainable businesses and a resilient tourism industry.

What: Guests will be exposed to industry experts and peers, information on the latest trends and practical workshops to enhance skills relevant to growing a business in the sector.

Attendees: Over 330 tourism industry professionals.

Speakers:

Dianne Smith, Chief Executive, VTIC on the need for industry and governments of all levels to work together to drive sector growth.

The Hon. Dr Denis Napthine MP, Premier of Victoria on the importance of tourism to the state’s prosperity.

The Hon. Louise Asher MP, Minister for Tourism and Major Events on the strategy to drive growth in the sector. 

Anna Pollock (Conscious Travel UK): consultant, strategist, international speaker, change agent and a recipient of The Visionary of the Year Award from the Canadian tourism industry.

John O’Sullivan (Managing Director, Tourism Australia): former executive with Fox Sports, Events Queensland, Football Federation Australia and member of the Sydney 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Organising Committee.

Dr Jason Fox: motivation strategy and design expert who shows forward thinking leaders how to influence work culture, drive progress and build for the future.

Michael Gudinski, Chairman, The Mushroom Group of Companies: rock guru, music mogul, mushroom man and widely recognised as one of the most important figures in the history of the Australian music industry.

Full program and schedule http://victourismconference.com.au/programs/

The Victoria Tourism Industry Council (VTIC) is the peak body for Victoria’s tourism and events industry, providing one united industry voice.

Tourism and events are growth industries for Victoria and contribute $19.6 billion to the state economy each year and employ more than 200,000 people.

www.vtic.com.au

ends

Resource industry employer group AMMA (Australian Mines and Metals Association) statement by Scott Barklamb - Executive Director Policy & Public Affairs:

AUSTRALIA’S resource industry congratulates the governments of Australia and Japan for the signing of the Japan Australia Economic Partnership Agreement (Free Trade Agreement).

In Canberra today, Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Prime Minister Shinzō Abe have created significant long-term bilateral economic opportunities for decades to come.

This historic agreement strengthens ties with one of Australia’s most valuable trade partners and is a significant milestone for our national resource industry, which currently contributes about 80% of total export goods to Japan.

Japanese demand for coal, iron ore and natural gas has been a strong driver of Australia’s export revenue and economic prosperity, with $36.2bn worth of trade in these commodities in the 2012-13 financial year alone.

Today’s Free Trade Agreement is perfectly timed with Australia emerging as a global powerhouse of LNG production and bullish economic growth likely to see Japanese energy demand increase exponentially.

It is vital that after a record decade of resource project investment that Australia positions itself to be a primary supplier of energy to the major economic powers of the Asia Pacific region.

We have the natural resources, the expertise, skills and technology.

To see new opportunities presented by this FTA come to market, we must capitalise on our competitive advantages while addressing those areas in which our nation has fallen behind.

This includes building a stable and globally competitive taxation system, having the courage to deliver meaningful, long-term workplace relations reform, and maximising the productive output of Australian industries and services.

www.amma.org.au

ends

BOTH major parties should be concentrating on generating jobs for Victorians in the lead up to the November election following today’s disappointing unemployment figures, according to Victoria's most influential employers’ group.

With another 15,000 Victorians looking for work as unemployment jumps from 6.2 per cent to 6.5 per cent (seasonally adjusted), both parties should be looking for initiatives to encourage employment.

The chief executive of the Victorian Employers' Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VECCI) Mark Stone said that lifting the threshold at which a business starts paying payroll tax to $850,000 would bring payroll relief to 40,000 Victorian businesses.

"It would generate jobs almost instantly,” said Mr Stone.

"Employers across the state have told me that payroll tax is a major disincentive to employing more staff.

"It must be lifted from the current threshold of $550,000 to $850,000.

“These figures show that youth unemployment is a major concern, especially with a 20 per cent drop in apprenticeships in the past 12 months."

Mr Stone said the figures highlight the need to progress job-creating infrastructure projects throughout Victoria, such as East West Link Stages 1 and 2 and regional projects such as Ballarat Railway Station and Geelong’s Yarra Street Pier redevelopment.

These projects will create significant direct and indirect employment, benefit metropolitan and regional business and have an apprenticeship and traineeship element which will boost youth employment.

Mr Stone has spoken to leaders of both major parties in recent days about these issues, urging them to adopt VECCI’s recommendations.

"Victoria has a solid economic base but our potential will not be realised without policies that drive greater investment and business activity,” said Mr Stone.

www.vecci.org.au  

ENDS

Queensland Resources Council Chief Executive Michael Roche has warned a meeting of gas industry professionals that their industry is under as much threat as their coal counterparts from activists trying to shut down the state’s resources sector.

Addressing a Queensland Petroleum Exploration Association (QUPEX) lunch in Brisbane today, Mr Roche said the campaign being waged against the coal industry had its roots in the perceived success of the anti-coal-seam gas movement.

‘The activists’ 2012 campaign manual – Stopping the Australian Coal Export Boom – praises what it describes as Lock the Gate’s ‘phenomenal community backlash’ against coal-seam gas,’ Mr Roche said.

‘The document goes on to credit Lock the Gate with creating ‘unprecedented political opportunities for coal activists around the country.’

‘As we know the scare campaigns against the coal and gas industries are continuing and supported by other strategies including litigation to ‘disrupt and delay’ key projects, changing the economic narrative via bogus economic reports and denying all reputable forecasts with claims that fossil fuel demand is declining,’ Mr Roche said.

‘The campaign is sophisticated, well-funded and aimed directly at the heart of the Queensland economy.

‘The people running these campaigns are promoting ideology over reality without regard to the 400,000 Queenslanders whose livelihoods rely on their resources sector.’

Following on the release of an anti-coal activist checklist in March, the QRC has published an anti-gas scorecard that compares the progress of their campaign against strategies revealed in Stopping the Australian Coal Export Boom.

www.qrc.org.au