Interview on ABC Hobart, Breakfast with Ryk Goddard 

Subjects: Tourism, TAS, Freycinet National Park, Adani

EO&E…………………………………………………………

RYK GODDARD:

What do you think about tourism infrastructure? It’s been pretty stretched particularly Bruny and Freycinet, Simon Birmingham as Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment. Good morning.

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

Good morning, good to be with you.

RYK GODDARD:

Nice to be with you too Senator, some money for tourism icons and it’s going to Freycinet?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

That’s right, the Liberal National Government committing $7.2 million towards a project for the Freycinet Peninsula master plan, which will include a new visitor gateway, including new transit experiences, new road access, car parking as well as support for Indigenous experiences at the Freycinet, new lookout at Wineglass Bay, facilities as well as the foreshore walkway. So all of it designed to ensure that the visitor experience at this incredible and beautiful part of Tasmania remains a positive high quality experience, to keep the tourists coming back into the future.

RYK GODDARD:

This is part of a wider strategy that you’re operating but it can help you feel a bit cynical but the announcements just at this time, we’ve been crying out for this infrastructure in Tasmania for so long Senator.

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

Well as a Government we’ve of course invested previously in terms of the $30 million for the Cradle Mountain cableway, we’ve announced over recent times support for the light installation at the Huon, the upgrade of the Hobart International Airport to become an international airport, to provide border services so that international flights can come in and this is part of our plan to keep Australia’s economy strong in the future, and Tasmania’s economy strong. We announced in the budget a couple of weeks ago infrastructure funding specifically targeted for tourism icons, that’s what’s providing the support for the Freycinet here and it really is about ensuring that we keep growing our economy, keep growing Tasmania’s economy of which tourism is such an important part, because that’s what has allowed us to bring our budget back to surplus, to deliver tax cuts for Australians and small business to keep growing jobs.

RYK GODDARD:

Is this a budget item or is this a promise?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

This is a budget item, as I say the funding for tourism icons was in the budget a couple of weeks ago, and we’re now announcing the projects that that funding is being committed to, now of course as to whether or not the Labor Party will match those projects, that’s a matter for them, but people can be confident if Scott Morrison and the Liberal-National Government is re-elected then we will deliver on this, it’s in our budget fully funded part of our surplus budget, and it’s about continuing to ensure that we see the jobs growth that comes from record visitation to Tasmania.

RYK GODDARD:

Yes it’s 7.24 am. Senator, with tourism it’s been a boom here. One of the side on effects is that by people taking properties off the rental markets use them for Airbnb we’re starting to experience levels of homelessness in Tasmania that we haven’t seen before. Is this something that you have clear ideas about how to address over time?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

We’ve seen different states adopt different approaches when it comes to Airbnb, and how it’s regulated and I do think that it’s time now probably for the states and territories to sit down and look, as to whether we can have a common national approach as to when a rental property is reasonable in terms of its being utilised for Airbnb, versus when it starts to run into strife as to the way in which it’s being used, that might not be what local government local planning laws had is intended, New South Wales have made some quite sweeping changes in that regard, and certainly I would be encouraging at a future Tourism Ministers Meeting, and to get the states and territories to share their experiences, talk about the best practice approaches there it’s not something that the federal Government can or does regulate, but it is something where we can get the lived experiences of the states together to make sure they apply the best practice laws.

RYK GODDARD:

A couple of questions from the SMS, Andrew Wilkie’s consistently called for Federal Government to waive the Commonwealth State Housing debt like it did for South Australia and as a South Australian Senator presumably you had some involvement in that. Can you clear the debt for Tasmania so to free up funds for the Government to address the housing issues here?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

Look I can’t say that I had some involvement in that for South Australia, I’m not I’m not entirely sure on the details of what was or wasn’t done in that regard. The best way in terms of continuing to support housing growth is to support economic strength, and that’s our focus to make sure we’ve got the revenues as a Government from business growing tax revenue growing, and that is how we can ensure that we have investment opportunities right across schools, hospitals, housing as well it’s from growing revenues from a stronger economy rather than increasing taxes, That’s allowed us to grow funding for public hospitals and public schools by more than 60% over our time in office.

RYK GODDARD:

7.26 am, Senator Simon Birmingham announcing $7.2 million for the Freycinet tourism infrastructure development today. And also answering some of your questions. If you want to send them in 0438 922 936 give us a ring 1300 222 936, this questions goes looks further afield into the TPP the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and asks you how 16 000 unemployed Tasmanians will benefit from the trade agreements the Government signed particularly in the way it allows foreign workers to come in without labor market testing?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

Worker access under these agreements is incredibly limited and in fact as we’ve struck agreements with China, Japan, Korea we’ve actually seen a reduction, in the number of people under what were known as the 457 visas coming to Australia, compared with what it did prior to those agreements back when Bill Shorten was the Workplace Relations Minister, so this is something that is peddled sometimes by the union as a scare campaign, the reality is properly managing the way those visas are issued ensures that we have fewer numbers in areas where they’re needed, compared with the blowout that occurred before, but agreements like the TPP and other trade agreements, have fuelled an export boom for our country, your listeners may not know that we have a record trade surplus in Australia now, that last year 2018 was the first year since 1973 when Australia’s exports outnumbered our imports in value every single month last year, I think many listeners would probably still think that we import too much of the country or the like, but what our Government has managed to do through these trade deals and through supporting Australian businesses to grow, is get us to the point where we have a record trade surplus, we routinely now export more than we import and that is a core part of what’s driven our economic strength.

RYK GODDARD:

Senator I almost don’t want to ask this question because it’s such a sort of furphy really but the Labor Government announced that they would invest in a Tasmanian AFL team if the AFL would come on board. The Coalition said they’re a rich organisation they don’t need support from us, you got $15 million into the Adelaide Football Club.

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

Well sort of, what we’ve got $15 million there for is something that is proposed to involve a rebuild of the Adelaide Aquatic Centre, new recreational facilities in the northern parts of Adelaide, so in that sense yes it would also be a home to the Adelaide Football Club, altogether it’s more than a $60 million proposal but, we’re funding what essentially a community recreational activities, the Adelaide Football Club and the AFL are throwing in tens of millions of dollars towards what would be the headquarters and base for the Adelaide Crows, so I think again it’s a demonstration that the AFL has tens of millions of dollars they can spend, and I would absolutely urge them and to encourage them to put tens of million dollars on the table to support a Tassie football team, and then if there’s recreational sporting or community infrastructure that needs assistance, well we have a range of grant programs that we can look at to support that as we do right around the country.

RYK GODDARD:

Last question for you, before headlines Senator Simon Birmingham its 7.29 am ABC Radio Hobart. You’re in charge of Trade and Tourism what is your policy in terms of our Trade our exports, our farming growth, our GM free status in Tasmania in relation to climate change and your plans to minimise the negative impacts of that?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

So we have as a country I think a proud history that we made commitments under Kyoto 1, we met and exceeded them 2020 we will be demonstrated to have met and exceeded our commitments under Kyoto 2, our Government has made commitments under the Paris Agreement which is essentially the next third step, of reducing emissions by between 26 and 28 per cent, we’ve outlined a climate solutions package worth more than $3 billion towards meeting that, that includes for example support for the factories of the nation project in Tasmania, the interconnector where we know already even without upgrades such as pump hydro facility, that there is surplus hydro energy at times in Tasmania that can’t get to the mainland and it’s clean power, power without use of any fossil fuels and so we are absolutely investing there, to upgrade the Snowy Hydro and those sorts of things are critical to make sure we do meet those emissions targets.

RYK GODDARD:

How does that commitment set within the approval of Adani Coal Mine?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

Well the Adani coal mine is something that will largely fuel export markets and will largely see coal from Australia that more efficiently produces energy, than coal from other countries usually does, which means it’s produced with lower emissions, than coal from other countries exporting to those countries, now we still project that there will be a transition in terms of energy production globally over a period of time, but if it’s not Australian coal going into markets like India or elsewhere, it will be coal from India or elsewhere which when burned has a higher emissions profile than that Australian coal does.

RYK GODDARD:

Minister, good to talk to you this morning Senator.

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

My pleasure. Thank you.