Destination NSW Chairman, John Conde AO, said “I congratulate the Premier, Barry O’Farrell, the Minister for Tourism and Major Events, George Souris, and the NSW Government for their in-principle acceptance of the recommendations of the Visitor Economy Taskforce.”

“This is a significant step and Destination NSW accepts the responsibility for implementing the critical strategies and programs needed to strengthen the visitor economy in NSW. The objective is to double overnight visitation by 2020.”

“The Premier, Minister and the NSW Government are to be commended for their determination to drive change and strengthen the tourism and major events sector, which will provide significant benefits for NSW.”

“The first priority of the Destination NSW Board and our CEO, Sandra Chipchase, will be to consult with industry and to develop a comprehensive timetable for implementing the key recommendations.”

The Visitor Economy Taskforce highlighted seven key strategic imperatives for developing the NSW visitor economy. The key areas include growing physical capacity, renewing and revitalising regional destinations, improving the visitor experience, increasing visitor expenditure, making NSW more competitive and implementing a whole- of-government approach to driving the visitor economy.

Destination NSW CEO, Sandra Chipchase, said “As a member of the Visitor Economy Taskforce, I look forward to working with the DNSW Board to implement the blueprint from the VET Report. We will continue to work with industry to drive sustainable change to maintain and strengthen NSW’s leadership position as the premier state for tourism and major events.”

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