Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Katie Woolf spoke with Federal Tourism Minister Dan Tehan regarding the cheap 800,000 airline tickets and Darwin is on the destination list!

Transcript

Katie Woolf spoke with Federal Tourism Minister Dan Tehan regarding the cheap 800,000 airline tickets and Darwin is on the destination list! · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: You're listening to mix ONEOW four point nine's three sixty. Now,
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  Speaker 1: the federal government has thrown the tourism sector a massive lifeline,
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  Speaker 1: set to have nearly eight hundred thousand airline tickets as
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  Speaker 1: part of a one point two billion dollar package aim
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  Speaker 1: getting more Australians to spend big on domestic holidays. Now
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  Speaker 1: joining me on the line is the Federal Minister for Trade,
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  Speaker 1: Tourism and Investment, Dan Tee.
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  Speaker 2: And good morning, Katie.
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  Speaker 3: Wonderful to be with you.
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  Speaker 2: Minister. What's the aim of today's announcement.
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  Speaker 3: The aim is to get people traveling again, in particular
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  Speaker 3: traveling interstate again. We want Australians traveling, we want them
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  Speaker 3: spending money when they do travel, and we want them
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  Speaker 3: supporting the six hundred thousand jobs that are in our
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  Speaker 3: tourism industry. So this package is about discount airfares and
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  Speaker 3: then with your money you save on your discount airfair,
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  Speaker 3: make sure you spend that in your pubs, your clubs
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  Speaker 3: on that wonderful tourism experience that you'll remember for the
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  Speaker 3: rest of your life.
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  Speaker 1: Now, can you talk us through the thirteen locations firstly
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  Speaker 1: that are included in this package.
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  Speaker 3: So the locations that we've chosen are those that have
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  Speaker 3: been impacted by the loss of international tourism and we've
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  Speaker 3: worked with the airlines to identify where those routes have
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  Speaker 3: struggled because they haven't had the demand that's needed. And
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  Speaker 3: this is about supporting those places. So, for instance, when
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  Speaker 3: it comes to the Northern Territory, Darwin, the as Rock
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  Speaker 3: and Alice Springs will all be part of the incentive
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  Speaker 3: to get people traveling again.
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  Speaker 1: So obviously, as you've said, they're airs Rock and Alice
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  Speaker 1: Springs are included on that list. Our understanding is that
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  Speaker 1: Darwin isn't at this stage.
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  Speaker 2: Is that correct?
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  Speaker 3: No, Darwin is one of the locations that we we've
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  Speaker 3: also identified and so it will be a beneficiary as well.
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  Speaker 3: So the Northern Territory is very well covered by this package,
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  Speaker 3: all right, So.
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  Speaker 1: We will actually be able to get those half priced
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  Speaker 1: flights to Darwa.
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  Speaker 3: There will be half price flights that will be available
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  Speaker 3: to go to Elie Springs, as Rock and to Darwen.
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  Speaker 3: This is all about making sure that Australians travel right
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  Speaker 3: across Australia. This is the Federal government making sure that
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  Speaker 3: we're supporting those areas which are heavily reliant on international tourists,
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  Speaker 3: and as I've said, it's all about encouraging Australians to
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  Speaker 3: book that holiday and not only book that holiday, but
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  Speaker 3: spend big when you do well.
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  Speaker 1: So Minister, that's some good news because we didn't think
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  Speaker 1: that Darwin was included on that list of destinations that
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  Speaker 1: other Aussies could actually travel too to take advantage of
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  Speaker 1: these flights.
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  Speaker 3: Yes, no, Darwin is included as one of those destinations.
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  Speaker 3: So the Northern Territory has been very well covered by
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  Speaker 3: this announcement.
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  Speaker 2: All right.
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  Speaker 1: Obviously there's going to be a lot of people wondering
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  Speaker 1: whether our airlines are just going to jack up the
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  Speaker 1: prices so that, you know, so that we're still going
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  Speaker 1: to struggle to get our hands on fair price tickets.
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  Speaker 1: That's always a big issue for us here in the territory.
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  Speaker 1: Has there been any agreement from those airlines not to
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  Speaker 1: jack up the prices.
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  Speaker 3: Yes, the airlines have been very cooperative and what we've
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  Speaker 3: done is we've taken a benchmark from the prices that
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  Speaker 3: they were charging in February and the discount will be
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  Speaker 3: based on those prices. So we've got a benchmark that
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  Speaker 3: we will use to be able to ensure that the
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  Speaker 3: airlines do the right thing. But I've just come back
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  Speaker 3: from an announcement with that CEO of Quantas and the
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  Speaker 3: CEO of virgin and can I tell you they are
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  Speaker 3: both incredibly excited by this announcement. They want to see
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  Speaker 3: bums on seats, they want to see people on planes,
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  Speaker 3: they want to see people traveling. And I can tell
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  Speaker 3: you they're already offering discount flights to many locations and
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  Speaker 3: this has just wet their appetite to do more.
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  Speaker 1: Minister, at the moment, we don't have, you know, a
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  Speaker 1: huge number of flights sort of going to some locations
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  Speaker 1: from Darwin or even from Alice Springs from Ularu. Are
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  Speaker 1: those airlines committed to increasing the number of flights as well?
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  Speaker 3: That's the idea. The idea is to additional use this
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  Speaker 3: to put additional capacity on route, so we get more
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  Speaker 3: bums on seats and more flights.
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  Speaker 1: Now, when are these flights going to be able to
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  Speaker 1: be purchased?
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  Speaker 3: So the idea is that this is to help the
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  Speaker 3: tourism sector post job keeper. So as of April you
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  Speaker 3: will be able to get these discount flights.
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  Speaker 1: I tell you what I reckon there's going to be
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  Speaker 1: plenty of people who are pretty happy to hear this.
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  Speaker 1: And I know that there's been a lot of tourism
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  Speaker 1: businesses up here in the Top End and indeed in
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  Speaker 1: Central Australia.
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  Speaker 2: Who've been doing it tough. Is this enough? Is this
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  Speaker 2: going to be enough to keep them going?
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  Speaker 3: We want to make sure that we're there supporting the industry.
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  Speaker 3: We're also providing additional assistance once again to our travel agents.
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  Speaker 3: There's also additional systems for our zoos and aquariums, and
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  Speaker 3: there is we've got a package out for business events
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  Speaker 3: which we will also be making sure that that is
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  Speaker 3: fully expended. So we are supporting the industry. We want
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  Speaker 3: to be there to make sure they're there once we
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  Speaker 3: can open, in particular our international borders and get the
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  Speaker 3: international tourists back. We think this is a really good
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  Speaker 3: package and if I could just once again give a
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  Speaker 3: call out to everyone who's listening today, book a holiday,
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  Speaker 3: get the discount, and then make sure you spend big
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  Speaker 3: when you take your holiday, because you'll be supporting six
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  Speaker 3: hundred thousand jobs when you do so.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I tell you what, That's what we're all going
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  Speaker 1: to be hoping for. We're hoping that people come to
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  Speaker 1: the territory with deep pockets. Can I just just to
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  Speaker 1: go back to this, because I know, I'm just looking
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  Speaker 1: at those destinations there in front of me, the Gold
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  Speaker 1: Coast cans with Sunday Region, Sunshine Coast, the Lasseter Region
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  Speaker 1: that includes obviously Alice Springs and u LaRue. Darwin wasn't
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  Speaker 1: on that list that has come through to us. But
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  Speaker 1: by the sounds of it, what you're saying is that
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  Speaker 1: people will be able to travel to Darwin.
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  Speaker 3: There is and if you go on to the Department
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  Speaker 3: of Transite Transport website, you will see that Darwin is listed.
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  Speaker 3: So it says where the TANS program, which is the
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  Speaker 3: Travel Assistance Program will reduce the cost of flying to
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  Speaker 3: the following initial regions Adelaide, Broom, Darwin, Great Ocean Road, Hobart, etc.
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  Speaker 3: So it's there on the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional
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  Speaker 3: Development and Communications website. What we gave initially was a
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  Speaker 3: list of the destinations as examples. Yeah, but quite clearly
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  Speaker 3: Darwin is part of them. So you've done well in
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  Speaker 3: the NT. Yeah.
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  Speaker 1: Look like I said, I think that's going to be
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  Speaker 1: good to hear for a lot of our operators. We
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  Speaker 1: do know, as you've said that there are sort of
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  Speaker 1: eight eight hundred thousand tickets available. Some in the industry, though,
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  Speaker 1: are still struggling and are wondering, you know why the
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  Speaker 1: federal government's not going down the path of keeping job
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  Speaker 1: Keeper in place for those tourism and certainly for the
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  Speaker 1: airline industry.
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  Speaker 2: Minister, it has I mean, has it been.
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  Speaker 1: Totally ruled out that there's no possibility that job Keeper
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  Speaker 1: is going to be extended for those industries.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, job Keeper will end that at the end of
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  Speaker 3: the month. And this is all about helping and supporting
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  Speaker 3: the tourism industry, in the aviation industry post job Keeper,
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  Speaker 3: and that's why we're calling on all Australians to make
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  Speaker 3: sure you've been through a pandemic take that holiday now,
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  Speaker 3: make sure you take the holiday and spend big, because
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  Speaker 3: that's how you'll help the six hundred thousand jobs in
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  Speaker 3: our tourism industry.
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  Speaker 2: Minister.
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  Speaker 1: The only other concern that plenty of people will have
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  Speaker 1: no doubt today is wondering are they going to book
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  Speaker 1: a flight and then find out that you know, Queensland
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  Speaker 1: shut off their borders, or that somebody's going to close
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  Speaker 1: their borders one of the governments and make it more
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  Speaker 1: difficult for them to actually take these cheaper airfares.
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  Speaker 2: Is that a worry for you as a tourism minister?
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  Speaker 3: It is and what I did yesterday would speak to
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  Speaker 3: all our state and territory tourism ministers and I asked
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  Speaker 3: them to make sure that they use border closures as
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  Speaker 3: a last resort. It's tapping the confidence out of people's
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  Speaker 3: want and will to travel. And what we need is
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  Speaker 3: our contact tracing and our testing used as a first
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  Speaker 3: response and give people the confidence to travel again. And
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  Speaker 3: if they do that, I've got no doubt there is
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  Speaker 3: pent up dem People want a holiday and if we
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  Speaker 3: can give them some assurances that borders won't be snap sharp,
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  Speaker 3: I think people will travel and spend when they do travel.
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  Speaker 1: Minister, is there any kind of caveats on the number
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  Speaker 1: of flights that can travel into certain locations or the
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  Speaker 1: number of flights obviously that eight hundred thousand, but is
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  Speaker 1: there an expectation that a certain number will be in
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  Speaker 1: certain states or anything like that.
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  Speaker 3: So we're working with the airlines on that. The idea
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  Speaker 3: is to build more demand and more capacity on these
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  Speaker 3: routes and so this very much is not setting stone.
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  Speaker 3: If they think we need extra support to get an
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  Speaker 3: extra flight going to a certain destination, then that's what
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  Speaker 3: we'll use it. And it'll be partly driven by the
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  Speaker 3: demand of people wanting to take a holiday. So this
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  Speaker 3: is very flexible in the approach that we're taking. We've
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  Speaker 3: got initial destinations, but if we see demand pick up
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  Speaker 3: strongly in some of those destinations, we'll then look whether
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  Speaker 3: there's other destinations that need support. We want to make
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  Speaker 3: sure we're doing everything we can, as I've said, to
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  Speaker 3: get bums on seats, get people traveling, and get them
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  Speaker 3: spending when they do travel.
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  Speaker 1: Well, I'll tell you what, Minister, there's going to be
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  Speaker 1: plenty of happy people this morning because we were certainly
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  Speaker 1: of the understanding or we had thought that Darwin hadn't
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  Speaker 1: been included on this list. Very happy for those in
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  Speaker 1: Central Australia. But by the sounds of it, Darwin is
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  Speaker 1: now part of that list. That it's going to be
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  Speaker 1: music to the years of plenty of our tour operators.
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  Speaker 3: Great, that's excellent, Glad to bring you great news this morning,
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  Speaker 3: because this is all about great news not only for
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  Speaker 3: those destinations, but also for the tourism industry, the six
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  Speaker 3: hundred and sixty thousand jobs, and for Australians get out there,
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  Speaker 3: get traveling and start spending well.
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  Speaker 1: Federal Tourism Minister Dan Tian, we really appreciate your time
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  Speaker 1: this morning.
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  Speaker 2: Thanks so much for having a chat with us.
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  Speaker 3: Been a pleasure.
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  Speaker 2: Thank you.
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  Speaker 1: You're listening to Mix one oh four point nine's three
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  Speaker 1: sixty eight nine four one one oho four nine if
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  Speaker 1: you'd like to call through today