❓ A parliamentary question regarding the perceived discrepancy between media reports of poor trade for Fremantle businesses and a report indicating a great return on investment from the Perth 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships. The Minister defends the event's success, citing economic benefits and international exposure.
AnsweredQoN 222Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
PERTH 2011
ISAF SAILING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
222. Mr J.M. FRANCIS to the Minister for Tourism:
I will just quickly wish my good little mate Rex a very happy
fifth birthday today. He is at home watching. My question is to the —
Several members interjected.
Mr J.M. FRANCIS :
That is a bit ''ruff''. My question is to the —
The
SPEAKER : Member for Jandakot, although some of us in this place may
appreciate the sentiment of your opening remarks, I would prefer to hear just a
question from you. I am going to give you the opportunity now.
Mr J.M. FRANCIS : I
know from media coverage in December that some Fremantle businesses were less
than happy with the amount of trade during the recent sailing championships.
However, a recent report told of the event providing a great return on
investment, so how does the minister reconcile that difference in perceived
outcomes of that event?
ISAF SAILING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
222. Mr J.M. FRANCIS to the Minister for Tourism:
I will just quickly wish my good little mate Rex a very happy
fifth birthday today. He is at home watching. My question is to the —
Several members interjected.
Mr J.M. FRANCIS :
That is a bit ''ruff''. My question is to the —
The
SPEAKER : Member for Jandakot, although some of us in this place may
appreciate the sentiment of your opening remarks, I would prefer to hear just a
question from you. I am going to give you the opportunity now.
Mr J.M. FRANCIS : I
know from media coverage in December that some Fremantle businesses were less
than happy with the amount of trade during the recent sailing championships.
However, a recent report told of the event providing a great return on
investment, so how does the minister reconcile that difference in perceived
outcomes of that event?
AnswerView source ↗
Some comments were made during the Perth 2011 ISAF Sailing
World Championships, or more particularly towards the end of the ISAF event, by
the opposition—largely by the member for Perth, who seems to be against
everything, and chiming in behind him was the shadow spokesperson for tourism—about
the dreadful event. It was quite funny, of course, because we did not approve
the event; the former government from the other side approved the event —
Mr C.J. Barnett : A
minor detail!
Dr K.D. HAMES : Yes—with
a great deal of support.
Mr M. McGowan : You
ran it.
Dr K.D. HAMES :
Indeed, we did run it, and that is why it was run extremely well. The
opposition was calling for an inquiry at the time, and we said, ''Well,
good call, but we already do a study post-events to see the outcome of those
events.'' That study has just been concluded and released. In fact, the
event was an enormous success. I will go through the areas in which it was a
success. About $8 million was invested by the state government, which was
matched, coincidentally, by a Labor government, the federal government, which
put in a similar amount of money. Obviously, it was very confident in the way
we run events and also very confident about the potential outcomes. So both
state and federal governments put in an amount in the order of $8 million. The
estimated economic return to Western Australia was just under $39 million.
I well recall the current Leader of the Opposition canning
the foreshore rally—I am pretty sure they were the Leader of the
Opposition's comments—because it did not provide a big enough
return on the investment being made by the state government. This one certainly
does. It was a very popular event, I might add.
Mr M. McGowan interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES :
That is the reason I have moved away from that particular focus when doing
events. But this event was enormously successful in providing that great return
on investment. In terms of the number of people who attended, there were
estimated to be 9 300 visitors all up, who stayed for an average of 21 days.
That is 197 000 visitor nights. On top of that, there were more than 455 hours
of television coverage to 105 countries throughout the world. It was a
magnificent event. Not only that; it provided significant support for some of
the less advantaged countries around the world, because there were special sailing
programs to provide that assistance —
An opposition member: Foreign aid.
Dr K.D. HAMES :
Yes; foreign aid, if you want. Western Australia provided foreign aid to
countries around the world that did not have sailing programs.
Some areas of concern were expressed by some of the local
operators, so that was included in the study. In fact, it was a mixed result,
because we found that 26 per cent reported a positive impact from the event and
27 per cent a negative impact. The negative ones were largely because the
people of Western Australia who were the normal customers of some of those
shops expected large crowds to be there, so they stayed away from their normal
haunts. It is true that that component, the village, did not go as well as was
predicted by the operators. Nevertheless, every other aspect was achieved.
What is really important is that this was not there just to
be entertainment for the people of Western Australia; this was an international
competitive event, and we were lucky enough to have been awarded that event
here in Western Australia, and the operators did a fantastic job in running it.
I want to congratulate those involved, and they are people who are far more
famous than any members on the other side will ever be in this state. John Longley,
Ian Campbell and Peter Gilmour did a magnificent job. At the end of the day,
when the event has gone, some benefits still remain for Western Australia. It
is not only from the international coverage of the event. The operators of that
event have left about $1 million worth of physical assets for sailing groups
throughout the state, particularly for youth groups, including 23 rigid
inflatable boats, six Laser class boats, six RS:X boards, and 250 waterproof
hand-held radios. They were all left behind for the benefit of the local
community and local clubs. It was a magnificent event, and it was a great
return on the taxpayers' dollars in Western Australia.
World Championships, or more particularly towards the end of the ISAF event, by
the opposition—largely by the member for Perth, who seems to be against
everything, and chiming in behind him was the shadow spokesperson for tourism—about
the dreadful event. It was quite funny, of course, because we did not approve
the event; the former government from the other side approved the event —
Mr C.J. Barnett : A
minor detail!
Dr K.D. HAMES : Yes—with
a great deal of support.
Mr M. McGowan : You
ran it.
Dr K.D. HAMES :
Indeed, we did run it, and that is why it was run extremely well. The
opposition was calling for an inquiry at the time, and we said, ''Well,
good call, but we already do a study post-events to see the outcome of those
events.'' That study has just been concluded and released. In fact, the
event was an enormous success. I will go through the areas in which it was a
success. About $8 million was invested by the state government, which was
matched, coincidentally, by a Labor government, the federal government, which
put in a similar amount of money. Obviously, it was very confident in the way
we run events and also very confident about the potential outcomes. So both
state and federal governments put in an amount in the order of $8 million. The
estimated economic return to Western Australia was just under $39 million.
I well recall the current Leader of the Opposition canning
the foreshore rally—I am pretty sure they were the Leader of the
Opposition's comments—because it did not provide a big enough
return on the investment being made by the state government. This one certainly
does. It was a very popular event, I might add.
Mr M. McGowan interjected.
Dr K.D. HAMES :
That is the reason I have moved away from that particular focus when doing
events. But this event was enormously successful in providing that great return
on investment. In terms of the number of people who attended, there were
estimated to be 9 300 visitors all up, who stayed for an average of 21 days.
That is 197 000 visitor nights. On top of that, there were more than 455 hours
of television coverage to 105 countries throughout the world. It was a
magnificent event. Not only that; it provided significant support for some of
the less advantaged countries around the world, because there were special sailing
programs to provide that assistance —
An opposition member: Foreign aid.
Dr K.D. HAMES :
Yes; foreign aid, if you want. Western Australia provided foreign aid to
countries around the world that did not have sailing programs.
Some areas of concern were expressed by some of the local
operators, so that was included in the study. In fact, it was a mixed result,
because we found that 26 per cent reported a positive impact from the event and
27 per cent a negative impact. The negative ones were largely because the
people of Western Australia who were the normal customers of some of those
shops expected large crowds to be there, so they stayed away from their normal
haunts. It is true that that component, the village, did not go as well as was
predicted by the operators. Nevertheless, every other aspect was achieved.
What is really important is that this was not there just to
be entertainment for the people of Western Australia; this was an international
competitive event, and we were lucky enough to have been awarded that event
here in Western Australia, and the operators did a fantastic job in running it.
I want to congratulate those involved, and they are people who are far more
famous than any members on the other side will ever be in this state. John Longley,
Ian Campbell and Peter Gilmour did a magnificent job. At the end of the day,
when the event has gone, some benefits still remain for Western Australia. It
is not only from the international coverage of the event. The operators of that
event have left about $1 million worth of physical assets for sailing groups
throughout the state, particularly for youth groups, including 23 rigid
inflatable boats, six Laser class boats, six RS:X boards, and 250 waterproof
hand-held radios. They were all left behind for the benefit of the local
community and local clubs. It was a magnificent event, and it was a great
return on the taxpayers' dollars in Western Australia.
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