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Speaker 1: Joining me on the line because we know that we're

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Speaker 1: heading into the King's Birthday weekend.

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Speaker 2: It's going to be an awesome long weekend.

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Speaker 1: It always is, and there is plenty of top end

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Speaker 1: residents making the trek to Central Australia for the.

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Speaker 2: Tats Fink Desert Race.

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Speaker 1: It is, as you know, an off road multi terrain

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Speaker 1: two day race for bikes, cars, buggies. It goes through

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Speaker 1: the desert. It is amazing to see. Daniel Rochford, the

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Speaker 1: CEO of Tourism Central Australia, joins us on the line

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Speaker 1: to tell us a bit more.

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Speaker 3: Hi Daniel, good morning, Katie, Good morning to you listeners.

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Speaker 2: You guys must be partly jumped up.

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Speaker 3: Absolutely, mate, it's going to be a great weekend. It's cool,

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Speaker 3: Chris morning's here in our springs, so everyone's rugged up,

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Speaker 3: and we've got the opening tonight of the Street Carnival,

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Speaker 3: which is the sort of opening part of the Pink

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Speaker 3: Desert Race. So yeah, really excited.

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Speaker 1: There is nothing quite like Fink Weekend, really, is there. Yeah.

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Speaker 3: Well, actually this year is a little bit too diferent too,

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Speaker 3: because we've got another event too that's running parallel. We've

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Speaker 3: got a folk Festival, which for those long term territorians

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Speaker 3: will know that Alice Springs used to have the National

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Speaker 3: Folk Festival and that and there's been a bit of

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Speaker 3: a reguard action locally to get another folk festival started

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Speaker 3: and that's also happening this weekend too, so two different

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Speaker 3: crowds and two different but everyone having an awesome time.

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Speaker 1: So how many people are and Alice Springs at the

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Speaker 1: moment is it absolutely bustling.

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Speaker 3: I flew in yesterday from Adelaide and it was just

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Speaker 3: so great to see the flight attendant saying, we this

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Speaker 3: flight is at capacity, so make sure all your trolley

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Speaker 3: bags are so approp really so, you know, we you know,

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Speaker 3: was looking at the Todd Mall today. You know there's

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Speaker 3: quite a lot of people in the streets of information

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Speaker 3: centers buzzing and yeah, it's really great to see.

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Speaker 1: It is It would be amazing and you know a

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Speaker 1: bit of a reminder I think of what makes Alice

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Speaker 1: Springs wonderful and what makes Central Australia such a great

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Speaker 1: place when you see tourists and visitors from right around

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Speaker 1: Australia and everywhere else there for two wonderful events.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, absolutely, and it's great to see. And you know,

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Speaker 3: the feedback that we've been getting from our visitors is

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Speaker 3: that once they've traveled here, you know, they've obviously been

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Speaker 3: a bit cautious with the national media that's been talking

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Speaker 3: about our crime issues. But the feedback I've been getting

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Speaker 3: is that once they've traveled here, they've just had the

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Speaker 3: best experience possible. And you know, we're encouraging all of

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Speaker 3: them to tell the world that get on social media

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Speaker 3: and let your family and friends know how great your

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Speaker 3: time was had here. And you know, I'm sure we'll

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Speaker 3: see a lot more of those comments next week.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, that is good. That's really good to hear.

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Speaker 1: So, Daniel, have things come down quite a bit when

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Speaker 1: it comes to crime as a result of the different

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Speaker 1: actions that have been taken, Yeah, there's.

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Speaker 3: No doubt, Katie. And you know, we do see a

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Speaker 3: natural decline of crime during winter months. You know, we

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Speaker 3: call it comfortable cold here and you know, at the

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Speaker 3: end of the day, but you know, there's still incidents

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Speaker 3: and we can't not recognize that. But you know, compared

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Speaker 3: to the severity of our summer months, it's nothing in comparison.

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Speaker 3: So look, you know, hopefully the measures that the government

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Speaker 3: have been putting in place, are kicking in and you know,

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Speaker 3: there's no doubt I'm seeing an increased police presence in

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Speaker 3: the town and you know that is what we've been

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Speaker 3: calling for for a long time.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, absolutely, hey, Daniel, are the majority of visitors from

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Speaker 1: the Northern Territory into state or overseas for Fink and

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Speaker 1: also for the folk festival, all.

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Speaker 3: Of the above. Yeah, we've certainly seen, you know, having

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Speaker 3: a look at people coming in on that flight yesterday

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Speaker 3: there was three quarters of a seven three seven were

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Speaker 3: full of people coming to Think and they all had

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Speaker 3: their pink hoodies on and their pink caps on. You know,

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Speaker 3: they are long term people who come to Think every

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Speaker 3: year and you know they're from all over the country,

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Speaker 3: a lot of people from the territory. Of course, remember

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Speaker 3: until June thirty, we've still got twenty five percent off

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Speaker 3: all territory experiences at the Alice Springs Information Center at

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Speaker 3: the moment, so there's even you can get a little

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Speaker 3: bit more off. Cost of travel to Alice Springs and

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Speaker 3: Central Australia were thanks to the government. So you know,

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Speaker 3: we're encouraging people to while they're here, to get amongst

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Speaker 3: it and get out there.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, why not, you know, why not get to Central

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Speaker 1: Australia if you're able to do so. I've got a

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Speaker 1: lot of friends actually that are traveling there this weekend

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Speaker 1: for the Fink, which is great to see. And here, Daniel,

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Speaker 1: I don't even think I've spoken to you really too

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Speaker 1: much since the ending of those Bonds of Flights. How

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Speaker 1: has that been since, you know, since we sort of

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Speaker 1: learned of the woes of Bonza.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, we're certainly gutted, Katie. You know, we put our

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Speaker 3: hearts and soul into advocating for the Bonds of Flights,

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Speaker 3: and you know, there was a very different circumstance to

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Speaker 3: what you guys have based up in Darwin. You know,

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Speaker 3: the community really embraced bondser Here there was not one

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Speaker 3: flight that was ever canceled in and out of Alice

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Speaker 3: Springs and we were seeing load factors of near ninety

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Speaker 3: percent across each flight. And you know, you know, you

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Speaker 3: and I have talked long and loud about the costs

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Speaker 3: of airfares in and out of Outle Springs and we've

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Speaker 3: we've got a ray of something light thanks to bonds

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Speaker 3: are but you know, it's certainly an impact not only

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Speaker 3: for Alice Springs, but right across regional and or rebout Australia.

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Speaker 3: And you know, I think one of the things I

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Speaker 3: take out of this is to is to basically say,

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Speaker 3: Bonds approved that there is a market willing to travel

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Speaker 3: to and from the Northern Territory for less and you know,

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Speaker 3: Bonds approved that. And you know, I guess that's the

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Speaker 3: thing that we've been now saying to government is you

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Speaker 3: know that that shows that through the Territory Aviation Attraction scheme,

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Speaker 3: we should be encouraging new aviation partners that put affordable

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Speaker 3: affairs in place and get people traveling. Because what we

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Speaker 3: saw was with Bonds was people you know, going for

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Speaker 3: that extra trip away. It was more a livability piece

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Speaker 3: than it was a tourism piece for us.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, I agree with you, and you know, in terms

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Speaker 1: of that connectivity for regional Australia, it just made such

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Speaker 1: a big difference for people. I was, you know, look,

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Speaker 1: I understand these things are commercial decisions and that there's

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Speaker 1: a lot of factors at play, but it was it

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Speaker 1: was disappointing I think for regional Australia.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, exactly right. And I think I think regional and

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Speaker 3: remote Australia has been hurting as a result of pricing

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Speaker 3: strategies of current carriers, and you know, there's no doubt

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Speaker 3: that bonds that provide that ray of light for many

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Speaker 3: communities in Alice Springs was is just one of them,

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Speaker 3: and we embraced it with great gusto. And look, you know,

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Speaker 3: we'll see, you know, in the in the light of

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Speaker 3: day what their issues were. But you know, it sounds

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Speaker 3: like it wasn't so much the economic sustainability of the

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Speaker 3: airline here locally, but the parent company being the major issue.

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Speaker 3: And you know that's unfortunate for all of regional and

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Speaker 3: remote Australia.

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Speaker 2: It truly is.

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Speaker 1: Well. Daniel Rochford, great to speak with you this morning.

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Speaker 1: I hope you have an awesome weekend. I've no doubt

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Speaker 1: it is going to be busy, busy. What's the highlight

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Speaker 1: for you when it comes to think?

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Speaker 3: I think going out to the start finish line and

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Speaker 3: just the buzz of the whole being is just amazing.

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Speaker 3: And you know that starts off tonight with the street party.

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Speaker 3: So I think my message to all the folk from

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Speaker 3: the top ends who are coming down in the next

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Speaker 3: day or two rug up a rist clear and yeah,

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Speaker 3: make sure you pack a puffa jacket.

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Speaker 1: Oh. I remember well the year I went to Think

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Speaker 1: it was absolutely freezing. I had a puffer jacket on

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Speaker 1: and my husband Will it was my boyfriend at the time,

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Speaker 1: was telling me I looked like Mitchell and Man because

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Speaker 1: I literally had the biggest puffa jacket on.

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Speaker 2: That you've ever seen, Daniel, because it was that cold.

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Speaker 3: I think there will be a lot of beautiful clear

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Speaker 3: nights and hopefully some fires going into marshmallows being tasted.

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Speaker 3: It's awesome marve weekend and it's really great to see

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Speaker 3: so many people around it.

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Speaker 2: Truly is. I'm really glad to hear it.

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Speaker 1: I hope it all goes off without a hitch, as

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Speaker 1: well as that folk festival as well. Good to speak

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Speaker 1: with you this morning, Daniel Rochford, CEO of Tourism Central Australia.

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Speaker 2: Thanks Katy, thank you,