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Katie Woolf spoke with Top End Tourism GM Glen Hingley · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: Hello, Katie woll Van three point sixty online at Mixed
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  Speaker 1: one O four nine dot com.
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  Speaker 2: You Well, if you've been wondering how things are going
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  Speaker 2: tourism wise with these discussions earlier in the week around
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  Speaker 2: Kakadoo and also the discussions about park fees, joining us
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  Speaker 2: on the line to talk a little bit more about it.
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  Speaker 2: Tourism Top End General Manager Glenn Hinley, Good morning to you, Glenn.
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  Speaker 1: Get Katie, good morning, Good morning listeners.
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  Speaker 2: Good to have you on the show. Glenn. Obviously there
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  Speaker 2: was that discussion earlier in the week and reports on
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  Speaker 2: four Corners that well, the discussions between traditional owners and
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  Speaker 2: the managers of Kakadoo have broken down yet again. What
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  Speaker 2: kind of impact does this have for our tourism operators?
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  Speaker 1: Well, personally that I think what was being discussed in
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  Speaker 1: the context of that when those interviews were taking place,
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  Speaker 1: it was they were asked a question of if things
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  Speaker 1: don't improve, what are you prepared to do? And as
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  Speaker 1: a last resort that was putting forward that there'd be
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  Speaker 1: some challenges around access around the parks. We're confident it
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  Speaker 1: won't come to that. We're confident that we can work
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  Speaker 1: through this. That said, we still need to see an increase.
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  Speaker 1: You know, parts Australia are doing have done the right thing.
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  Speaker 1: They listened, they made changes at the head of the organization.
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  Speaker 1: They've got some great people in there with some really
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  Speaker 1: good intent now and yet they need time. They need
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  Speaker 1: to get out and spend time with traditional owners and
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  Speaker 1: understand these concerns. And they're not recent concerns. These have
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  Speaker 1: been manifesting for years. The accruing mistrust has been happening
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  Speaker 1: with traditional owners and with the tourism industry. And I've
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  Speaker 1: got to say, when it comes to tourism industry, so
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  Speaker 1: many of my members are tourism businesses owned by traditional
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  Speaker 1: owners as well. So I don't want to speak for
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  Speaker 1: traditional owners, but only for the tourist industry. And I
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  Speaker 1: think the indications are right. We're confident that it can
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  Speaker 1: be and we're committed to making it work. We can't
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  Speaker 1: fail to work.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, I agree with you. I think that we've reached
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  Speaker 2: a point where it's really you know, it has come
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  Speaker 2: to a head, you'd have to say, over the last
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  Speaker 2: year or so, and everybody does seem as though they
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  Speaker 2: actually want to make it work.
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  Speaker 1: Yes, they want to make it work. And I think
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  Speaker 1: there's a couple of things missing, and then the intent
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  Speaker 1: shown by camera is yes to place and a leading
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  Speaker 1: a senior role in Darwen. That person is actually went
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  Speaker 1: to day in high school. This person understands down understands
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  Speaker 1: what the needs and challenges. But from an industry, the
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  Speaker 1: park needs better resourcing. It's more than just placing a
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  Speaker 1: couple of key people here. That we're talking about a
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  Speaker 1: place a third the size of Tasmania needs to be
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  Speaker 1: taken care of. And it's not just about the tourism aspects.
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  Speaker 1: It's invasive weeds and feral animals as we saw on
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  Speaker 1: Monday night. These are real big concerns not only to
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  Speaker 1: the residents of Kakadu but to all territories, and we
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  Speaker 1: need to be making sure that the park is properly
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  Speaker 1: funded in an operational sense, not just in new I'll
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  Speaker 1: look at this new developments and new master plans.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, Glenn, we just caught up so with Minister Selena
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  Speaker 2: Rubo and spoke a little bit more about those park fees.
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  Speaker 2: We were certainly of the understanding that the fees to
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  Speaker 2: be implemented and introduced for those parks that are managed
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  Speaker 2: by the Northern Territory government. We thought that we would
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  Speaker 2: have a better idea of what those fees would be
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  Speaker 2: by now, but it sounds well from what the ministers
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  Speaker 2: seed that it's taking a little longer than anticipated because
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  Speaker 2: they are now sitting down with tourism operators and people
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  Speaker 2: like yourself to try and get through this without it
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  Speaker 2: heavily impacting the industry.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I was grateful at Minister could give me some
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  Speaker 1: time last Friday and we did sit down and talk
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  Speaker 1: about what genuine consultation with the tourism industry moving forward.
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  Speaker 1: It looked forward, looked like tourism represents a broad range
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  Speaker 1: of businesses including tours, accommodation, cabin campground, car rentals and
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  Speaker 1: all businesses you see along the road leading in and
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  Speaker 1: out of our great national parks, and when we talk
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  Speaker 1: about park fees, it could have an enormous impact if
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  Speaker 1: not done right. So whilst the intent there is to
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  Speaker 1: move towards consultation, there hasn't been any of that yet.
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  Speaker 1: We're looking forward to it. We've spoken with the senior
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  Speaker 1: people from Parks and Wildlife and most recently with the
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  Speaker 1: Minister on Friday, and she certainly was of the view
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  Speaker 1: that it was important and that we're looking forward to it.
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  Speaker 2: Well, they've got to make sure that they're consulting with
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  Speaker 2: you guys. I mean, you're going to be heavily hit.
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  Speaker 2: The industry is going to be heavily hit if it
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  Speaker 2: isn't rolled out in a way which is manageable, Katie.
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  Speaker 1: Last night we had a meeting that with seventy of
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  Speaker 1: our members here here last night down at RFTS in fact,
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  Speaker 1: and it was a big topic concern from our members
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  Speaker 1: impact and that's not just for those businesses that are
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  Speaker 1: in and around the parks. It's those businesses in the
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  Speaker 1: CBD of Darwin that know that people are coming here
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  Speaker 1: for a great parks and one of the things, if
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  Speaker 1: done poorly, we can't afford for this to appear like
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  Speaker 1: a tax on tourism. We know that already that locals
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  Speaker 1: won't be wearing any of the cost or park access.
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  Speaker 1: That this will be front and center on the shoulders
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  Speaker 1: of tourism industry. So it's really really essential that tourism
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  Speaker 1: industry has consulted because ultimately it's tourism industry that are
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  Speaker 1: going to have to be the ones mom and dad
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  Speaker 1: businesses having to collect the fees or work in and
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  Speaker 1: around the fees and we can't afford a place where
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  Speaker 1: the way that the fees are delivered, if it's outside
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  Speaker 1: the tourism industry, impact the number of arrivals. Well, we've
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  Speaker 1: got the recovery of this top end tourism sector to
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  Speaker 1: get it back to what it was in twenty nineteen,
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  Speaker 1: a two point two billion dollar industry. We've got to
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  Speaker 1: move to be able to get that back, and getting
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  Speaker 1: park seas right is key to that.
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  Speaker 2: Oh one hundred percent. I mean, Glenn like, at the
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  Speaker 2: end of the day, it's been a very tough, to
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  Speaker 2: say the least twelve months for tourism here in the
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  Speaker 2: Northern Territory. If this isn't rolled out, you know, in
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  Speaker 2: the right way, what kind of impact could it have
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  Speaker 2: on some of those operators.
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  Speaker 1: Well, a lot of my members are extremely concerned, and
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  Speaker 1: they're probably more there because that's the unknown. To answer
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  Speaker 1: your question, they're also concerned. I'm also concerned about their
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  Speaker 1: well being. They've been through some really hard times this
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  Speaker 1: last robment. There's so many businesses and people across the
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  Speaker 1: territory in the top end. I've been but we've got
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  Speaker 1: businesses that have been working in their owner operators working
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  Speaker 1: their businesses seven days a week since March last year
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  Speaker 1: and haven't any time off. And then when they read
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  Speaker 1: about this in the paper and there's no information coming
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  Speaker 1: out that gives them concerns as to what it is
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  Speaker 1: that's been discussed because we don't know that yet. Tourism
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  Speaker 1: has been doing tough. I know that we like to
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  Speaker 1: talk about the success of oourchis and we're grateful to
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  Speaker 1: the support of territories. But in a recent survey we've
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  Speaker 1: sentiment survey we've just completed with our members, our industry
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  Speaker 1: was fifty nine percent down for the October November December
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  Speaker 1: period period over twenty nineteen. And yes, whilst there was
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  Speaker 1: a dramatic uptick in Territorius travel, we're still almost sixty
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  Speaker 1: percent down on the same time last year from our
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  Speaker 1: interstate and of course no international visitors, so things like this,
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  Speaker 1: things like and we know that those visitors were coming
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  Speaker 1: here for our great parks and so we've got to
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  Speaker 1: get it right. Katie and I think what the tourism
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  Speaker 1: industry has. We have some of Australia's leading tourism commercial
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  Speaker 1: minds to sit now with parks officials and be able
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  Speaker 1: to say you've got a problem that you're underfunded. Let's
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  Speaker 1: work with you on a way that not only can
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  Speaker 1: you achieve your budget targets, but possibly you can exceed that.
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  Speaker 1: We can make for better visitor experience, invasive weed control,
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  Speaker 1: feral animals, and also doing it really importantly in close
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  Speaker 1: collaboration with our traditional owners, traditional owners who live on
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  Speaker 1: these lands. They're there lands that are jointly managed with
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  Speaker 1: Parks NT and we've got to make sure that in
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  Speaker 1: this tourism is also hearing the voice thank you, and
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  Speaker 1: not just listening but acting in the best interest to
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  Speaker 1: those people. We operate on their lands at their invitation.
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  Speaker 2: Glenn, I'm so sorry We're going to have to cut
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  Speaker 2: it short. I'm going to have to leave it there,
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  Speaker 2: but mate, I've got so much that I'd still like
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  Speaker 2: to discuss with you. Let's catch up again in the
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  Speaker 2: very near future.
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  Speaker 1: Hey, absolutely, Katie, thank you, thank you.
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  Speaker 2: Glenn Hinley there our general manager of tourism top End,
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  Speaker 2: and I tell you what, you can hear that man's
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  Speaker 2: passion every time he speaks for the operators of tourism
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  Speaker 2: here in the Northern Territory, and my heart goes out
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  Speaker 2: to all of you. You you know, you business operators
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  Speaker 2: who are doing it really bloody tough at the moment,
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  Speaker 2: and this is what I think the government really needs
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  Speaker 2: to hear right now. With some of these decisions that
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  Speaker 2: they make, you've got to understand the impact that it
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  Speaker 2: has on everyday territorians and the way in which they're
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  Speaker 2: trying to run their businesses.