A NZ$70 million investment package to help boost New Zealand’s major events and tourism sectors has been warmly welcomed by the nation’s hotel and tourism industry bodies.
Announced on Monday by New Zealand’s Tourism Minister, Louise Upston, the additional funding is expected to help rebuild tourism demand and restore confidence across the visitor economy.
“This is exactly the kind of strategic support HCA has long championed,” said Hotel Council Aotearoa (HCA) Strategic Director, James Doolan.
“Events are powerful economic drivers that stimulate visitation, fill hotel rooms and energise local communities. Involvement in event attraction and destination marketing is an entirely legitimate and justified use of public funds.”
Doolan says the sector has been calling for this kind of support for some time.
“It’s encouraging to see the Government now stepping forward with meaningful additional investment,” he said.
“It’s a strong signal that events are being recognised for their true value, not just to tourism businesses but to public finances as well.
“Tourism is the only export sector where central government collects GST – more than $1.7 billion last year alone. Smart investment in event attraction and destination marketing delivers positive returns for taxpayer and ratepayers.”
Tourism Industry Aotearoa (TIA) Chief Executive, Rebecca Ingram, said the benefits of this funding extend well beyond events and the tourism industry, “leaving a legacy of infrastructure improvements, community pride and international profile”.
“We only have to look at the last two weekends, with the Springboks and All Blacks games delivering sold out stadiums in Wellington and Auckland, with the cities humming,” Ingram said.
“This level of investment puts us back in the game, supporting events of an even greater scale and providing reasons for both domestic and international visitors to travel around New Zealand.”
In thanking the Minister, HCA has also called on Mayor Wayne Brown and Auckland Council to “match this momentum in a meaningful way”.
“Auckland, as New Zealand’s primary international gateway, must normalise council investment in event attraction rather than blindly insisting that businesses carry the full burden,” Doolan said.
“The city’s major events pipeline has been allowed to wither and it’s time to reverse that trend. HCA stands ready to work with the Mayor and councillors to restore Auckland’s event funding to pre-Covid levels and beyond.”