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Speaker 1: He's been very elusive over the last couple of days.

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Speaker 1: But the CEO of Tourism Central Australia, Daniel Rochford, we've

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Speaker 1: finally got him on the line.

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Speaker 2: Good morning to you, Daniel.

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Speaker 3: Good morning Katie, and good morning to your listeners. I

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Speaker 3: don't know, maybe we need to resurrect the old telegraph

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Speaker 3: line between Allison and Well.

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Speaker 2: We've got you today, so we're very pleased with that. Daniel.

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Speaker 1: Hey, before I get into some of the more positive

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Speaker 1: announcements that have been made over the last few days,

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Speaker 1: how are things going in Central Australia at the moment

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Speaker 1: when it comes to those issues of crime, we know

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Speaker 1: that they've been bubbling along for quite.

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Speaker 2: Some time now.

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Speaker 1: Yeah.

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Speaker 3: Absolutely, I'm still plaguing our community as it is right

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Speaker 3: across Regional Australia. Look on a positive there, Katie, is

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Speaker 3: the support that our council is having at the moment.

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Speaker 3: Mayor Matt Patterson's putting together a regeneration strategy from his council,

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Speaker 3: which is great. It's local solutions to locals and Tourism

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Speaker 3: Central Australia fully support council in that endeavor, and you know,

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Speaker 3: we've got an opportunity with the upcoming federal election that

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Speaker 3: you know, these solutions need funding support and we need

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Speaker 3: the labor and Liberal parties to be backing our local solutions.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, absolutely, and I think that it's one of those

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Speaker 1: things some people listening will be thinking, well, hang on,

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Speaker 1: it is a Northern Territory government issue. But if there

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Speaker 1: are different initiatives, different ways that we can approach this,

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Speaker 1: then it would be a good thing because you know,

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Speaker 1: nobody wants to see the issues that we're seeing. Even

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Speaker 1: over the last few days. You know, yesterday we'll send

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Speaker 1: a pressure release that two people were assaulted down the

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Speaker 1: Todd Mall.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, literally outside our information center. So look, it's the

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Speaker 3: the issue is ever present. But I'm a big believer

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Speaker 3: of local solutions for local problems and it's our community.

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Speaker 3: We have the responsibility to takenabull by the horn and

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Speaker 3: government needs to be there to facilitate it. And kutos

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Speaker 3: to Mayor Paw and his counsels. He's really taking charge,

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Speaker 3: taking on the mayoralty last year. And you know, this

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Speaker 3: strategy from what I understand of it, and I've got

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Speaker 3: a big meeting about it today as well. You know,

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Speaker 3: I think is certainly the first time I've seen a

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Speaker 3: really good local, bottom up approach to dealing with the

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Speaker 3: issue and we need our government, our political parties to

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Speaker 3: back him.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, good on him that the council is doing that.

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Speaker 1: So big meeting today is there.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, look to TCA and council regular catch up, but

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Speaker 3: we're catching up on the regeneration strategy that the Mayor

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Speaker 3: and Council is putting up. And as getting a bit

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Speaker 3: of a briefing, I think from what I understand, there

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Speaker 3: is going to go on a bit of ann offentive

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Speaker 3: to try and get the funds of the needing and

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Speaker 3: we need to throw significant resources at this, Katie. And

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Speaker 3: you know we certainly support the council and that endeavor.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, we might even try and get Matt Patterson on

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Speaker 1: at some point. I totally agree with you. You know,

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Speaker 1: you and I have spoken on so many occasions about

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Speaker 1: the wonderful place that Alice Springs is, the wonderful place

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Speaker 1: at Central Australia is. But this issue of crime has

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Speaker 1: got to get sorted so that you guys are able

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Speaker 1: to thrive.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, exactly right. And look, you know I do advocate

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Speaker 3: to the government on a regular basis at all levels,

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Speaker 3: but you know, in this instant government needs to just

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Speaker 3: get out of the way and facilitate and back the

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Speaker 3: local solutions and local issues. This is our community. We

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Speaker 3: need to take charge. But we need our government, both

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Speaker 3: territory and federal to back our local options with funding.

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Speaker 1: Well, Daniel, let's talk about some funding that has been

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Speaker 1: provided and that is this International Restart Support Fund. So

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Speaker 1: it's going to be providing grants of up to fifteen

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Speaker 1: thousand dollars available to support Northern Territory tourism businesses return

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Speaker 1: to the international market. How important is this funding and

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Speaker 1: really trying to get those international tourist back to the

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Speaker 1: Red Center.

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Speaker 3: Oh huge, Codie. We as you know, I think the

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Speaker 3: statistics seventy percent of all the international visitors that come

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Speaker 3: to Orthern Territory come to the Red Center. So this

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Speaker 3: is so critical for our region down the south of

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Speaker 3: Territory we're seeing you know, it's been oblique two years.

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Speaker 3: As you know, you and I have talked about the

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Speaker 3: signs and you know, to have this support which is

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Speaker 3: for every three dollars for every one dollar invested by

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Speaker 3: a business, it's the government's putting three is a real

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Speaker 3: leg up for industry to get them back into some

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Speaker 3: degree of normality and some degree of pre COVID activity.

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Speaker 3: So we need to be as active and shouting from

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Speaker 3: the rooftops as the northern territories open and we're open

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Speaker 3: and we're getting back to business.

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Speaker 2: Mat How are those jurious numbers looking at the moment?

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Speaker 3: Look, the numbers looking pretty awesome. In fact, you know,

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Speaker 3: we're seeing a huge spike in bookings in our information

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Speaker 3: center for the upcoming season. We've got a number of

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Speaker 3: national campaigns in play today. I just received information on

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Speaker 3: one of those campaigns that are returning a ten to

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Speaker 3: one return on investment. Also, every one dollar we've invested,

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Speaker 3: we've seen ten dollars worth of booking, so you know,

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Speaker 3: that's great news for the industry coming up. And you know,

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Speaker 3: all reports from my operators is bookings are looking very nice.

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Speaker 2: So how are the operators feeling right now?

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Speaker 3: Oh, there's a little bit of you know, this is

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Speaker 3: an interesting time and you know, we're closely working with

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Speaker 3: our operators. You know, everyone's rated the piggybank over the

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Speaker 3: last two years, so there's not a lot of cash

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Speaker 3: reserves in most businesses. But at the moment, everyone's onboarding

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Speaker 3: staff and you know, expenses are starting to mount up,

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Speaker 3: and with tourism you don't often get paid by trade

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Speaker 3: partners for a couple of weeks, even up to a

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Speaker 3: month after the actual visit of travels. So you know,

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Speaker 3: this is a little a little bit of an issue

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Speaker 3: window at the moment that we're worried about. But I suspect,

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Speaker 3: you know, with the morale and the confidence that's come back,

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Speaker 3: there are some still niggli issues. You know. For instance,

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Speaker 3: we are losing a lot of Victorian school groups at

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Speaker 3: the moment because of the seven day manatary quarantine rules

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Speaker 3: that we still have here in the Northern Territory. So

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Speaker 3: we are seeing a lot of Victorian schools in particular

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Speaker 3: cancel and that's still that's still causing some concern.

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Speaker 2: Hang on, what do you mean the seven day quarantine rules.

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Speaker 1: I thought everybody was free to travel to the territory

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Speaker 1: as they see fit right now.

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Speaker 3: So if you do get so if you do come

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Speaker 3: down with COVID while you're traveling, you do need to

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Speaker 3: self isolate for seven.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, right, So that's having an impact.

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Speaker 3: Absolutely. School groups are very you know, obviously you know

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Speaker 3: you've got children. You know, if your child was away

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Speaker 3: on a school camp and got thick. You know, you'd

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Speaker 3: be beside yourself.

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Speaker 2: So it wouldn't send them, would you.

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Speaker 1: You'd be so worried they're going to get stuck somewhere.

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Speaker 3: And that's you know, we have a number of operators

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Speaker 3: here in Central Australia that that is their own. All

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Speaker 3: that they do is they work with school groups and

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Speaker 3: so we're seeing some big cancelations on that front.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, right, that's a shame and that's not something that

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Speaker 1: I'd sort of thought of before. But Daniel, we know

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Speaker 1: that one of the other really big announcements that the

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Speaker 1: Northern Territory government has made is that they've taken that

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Speaker 1: final step to acquire the land allowing the National Aboriginal

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Speaker 1: Art Gallery to be built in our Springs.

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Speaker 2: So it is.

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Speaker 1: They're calling it a historic one hundred and fifty million

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Speaker 1: dollar National Aboriginal Art Gallery precinct. Mate, How has this

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Speaker 1: been received in Central Australia and particularly by the tourism industry.

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Speaker 3: Well, you know, we have a good, deep down natural

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Speaker 3: cynicism of governments here in Central Australia and you know,

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Speaker 3: this project has been here for talked about for a

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Speaker 3: long time, but I'd have to say that, you know

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Speaker 3: the government's use of the term historic is very true.

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Speaker 3: This is a great decision for our community. TCA has

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Speaker 3: been advocating at for to be built in Manzac Oval

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Speaker 3: Precinct for many years and we can only but congratulate

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Speaker 3: the government. This is, and the wider announcement, the single

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Speaker 3: largest investment in Alice Springs this century. So you know,

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Speaker 3: any situation where governments announced almost a quarter of a

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Speaker 3: billion dollars worth of investment into our community has to

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Speaker 3: be warmly welcomed. This will be a game changer for

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Speaker 3: our region and our tourism industry. And of course the

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Speaker 3: other announcement that came off the that of this was

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Speaker 3: the government announcing the establishment of a new Visitor Information

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Speaker 3: Center for Tourism Central Australia, which unto itself, is great

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Speaker 3: news for our region.

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Speaker 1: Well, that is good news. Just to go back to it.

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Speaker 1: How important is it then? You know, I know that

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Speaker 1: you said the Council is working at that grassroots level.

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Speaker 1: You guys are working with them as well, Daniel. How

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Speaker 1: important is it when you talk about these investments into tourism,

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Speaker 1: when you talk about tourism really trying to get moving again.

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Speaker 1: In central Australia that we get it right and get

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Speaker 1: this crime issue soughted.

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Speaker 3: Oh, there's a no doubt how to paticati. We need

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Speaker 3: to and also for the kids. You know, we you

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Speaker 3: know we're letting people down. People are falling through the cracks.

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Speaker 3: You know, these are deep seated issues and you know

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Speaker 3: we need to take the bill by the horn and

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Speaker 3: you know we need our governments to support local programs

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Speaker 3: and local solutions. You know there needs to be some

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Speaker 3: short term investment in greater police presence, but you know

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Speaker 3: that's symptomatic. You know, we need to get down into

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Speaker 3: the cause issues and we're letting a lot of people

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Speaker 3: fall through the cracks here right across regional Australia and

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Speaker 3: you know we need our government to stand up here.

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Speaker 1: Daniel Rochford, it's always good to speak with you. We

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Speaker 1: really appreciate your time this morning. Better late than never,

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Speaker 1: we finally got you on this week. Good stuff mate,

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Speaker 1: Thank you,