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Speaker 1: We know that the Quantus CEO, Alan Joyce was in

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Speaker 1: Darwin last week and the Northern Territory News reporting that

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Speaker 1: he had said that top end flights had returned to

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Speaker 1: pre COVID levels, but Alice Springs was lagging because of crime. Now,

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Speaker 1: the company's board met here last week and mister Joyce

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Speaker 1: said that high profile coverage of crime that had breaked

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Speaker 1: the town earlier this year had landed a direct hit

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Speaker 1: on visitor numbers. Now it is quite the opposite. I

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Speaker 1: think you'd have to say to what the Tourism minister

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Speaker 1: said in budget estimates. If you missed that interaction between

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Speaker 1: Nicole Madison and Robin Lamley, take a listen to some

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Speaker 1: of this audio with thanks to nine News Darwin.

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Speaker 2: The majority of where we're hearing that those pressures are

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Speaker 2: coming from interest rate rises, trying to pay the bills.

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Speaker 1: You're minimizing something that is really quite concerning and bad,

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Speaker 1: the correlation between crime and the slump and tourism chances.

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Speaker 2: Second, everything I can to this jobs and grow the

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Speaker 2: economy in Alice Springs and.

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Speaker 1: Is what you did when you're a police minister and

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Speaker 1: you're doing it now. So there you go. That is

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Speaker 1: that was what it unfolded in budget estimates, but we

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Speaker 1: know as well that there had been really those words

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Speaker 1: from the CEO that tourism operators need to step up. Now,

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Speaker 1: I think that the thing is those tourism operators have

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Speaker 1: been doing a really tough job and you know, when

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Speaker 1: you're taking a bus load of tourists out to visit

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Speaker 1: beautiful attractions around Alice Springs and you're coming back into

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Speaker 1: town and you're having situations where rocks are being thrown

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Speaker 1: at the vehicle, it can be really difficult for them

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Speaker 1: to obviously be able to continue to operate and continue

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Speaker 1: to do their jobs. And what was really needed at

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Speaker 1: the time was for the Northern Territory government to step

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Speaker 1: up try to make some inroads in that space, so

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Speaker 1: it didn't have the impact that it has had. But

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Speaker 1: joining me on the line to talk a little bit

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Speaker 1: more about the situation about those comments is Tourism Central

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Speaker 1: Australia Sea E. Daniel Rochford. Good morning to you, Daniel.

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Speaker 2: Good morning Katie, and good morning to your listeners.

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Speaker 1: Daniel, what did you make of the comments from the

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Speaker 1: QUANTUS CEO, Alan Joyce.

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Speaker 2: Well, suddenly crime has had an impact and you know

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Speaker 2: there is also the Minister is correct. You know, there

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Speaker 2: are other headwinds that are creating our issues. But I

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Speaker 2: guess the central message that we've been saying for some

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Speaker 2: time is that, you know, we're just not on our

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Speaker 2: level playing field against other destinations around the country. You know,

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Speaker 2: we are seeing where when it comes to air pricing

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Speaker 2: and fair structures, you know, we have a monopoly situation

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Speaker 2: here in our springs where the Corners Group does have

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Speaker 2: almost one hundred percent of the coverage, and when you

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Speaker 2: compare the air fares that we have coming in and

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Speaker 2: out of this town versus other destinations, we're just finding

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Speaker 2: it so hard to compete. And that's the challenge. What

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Speaker 2: we are calling for here is the importance of two things. One,

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Speaker 2: we need want us to step up as a good

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Speaker 2: corporate citizen to help us. You know, we are begging

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Speaker 2: for their support to provide that opportunity for us to

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Speaker 2: rebound here in this destination. And I think certainly the

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Speaker 2: second thing that we're calling for is the Northern Territory

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Speaker 2: government does need to be doing more when it comes

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Speaker 2: to aviation attraction. We do need to encourage more competition

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Speaker 2: coming in and out of places like Alice Springs.

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Speaker 1: Well, and this is something that you and I have

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Speaker 1: spoken about before, Daniel. You know, the fact is it

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Speaker 1: is so expensive to travel to Alice Springs, you know,

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Speaker 1: even these school holidays. My husband and I looked at

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Speaker 1: whether we take the kids for a trip to Alice

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Speaker 1: and it's really expensive even from within the Northern territory.

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Speaker 2: Well. As an example, so if you wanted to take

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Speaker 2: if you wanted to fly from Darwin to Alice Springs

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Speaker 2: next April, it's going to cost you four hundred and

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Speaker 2: thirty dollars to fly in and Brayer E one ninety

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Speaker 2: for two hours to our springs. But if you choose

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Speaker 2: to go to cans which is a much longer flight,

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Speaker 2: only three hundred and fifty dollars.

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Speaker 1: This is the thing, you know, like and this is

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Speaker 1: where you spot on when you say, you know they've

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Speaker 1: got the monopoly. Quantas has got the monopoly. We need

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Speaker 1: more competition and we need to do more to make

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Speaker 1: air travel more affordable for territories.

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Speaker 2: Yeah. Absolutely, And look there's a clear reason why the

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Speaker 2: difference in those prices. One route you've got competition, the

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Speaker 2: other one you don't. And that's the simple problem. And

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Speaker 2: all we're asking for is the Corners Group to be

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Speaker 2: good corporate citizens to help our destination. We are on

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Speaker 2: and have been on our knees and we need that support.

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Speaker 2: And for an organization like Contus, our national airline, the

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Speaker 2: airline that has nt in its name, we need their

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Speaker 2: support now more than ever.

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Speaker 1: Daniel, what do you make of the comments said he

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Speaker 1: had reportedly made, saying that the local tourist organizations really

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Speaker 1: need to get behind this and do some really hard

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Speaker 1: yards to get tourists to go back to Alice Springs.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, look, I find it perplexing, and you know that

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Speaker 2: it's our fault for not filling his plane. So but look,

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Speaker 2: I'll take that or take that as a comment. I

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Speaker 2: can assure your listeners that Tourism Northern Territory and the

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Speaker 2: Northern Territory government and Tourism Central Australia have rolled up

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Speaker 2: their sleeves. We are doing all we can to market

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Speaker 2: this destination, but we need some help. We need we

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Speaker 2: need our national carrier to be supporting us, not making

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Speaker 2: it harder.

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Speaker 1: Daniel, can you talk me through some of the numbers

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Speaker 1: when it comes to, you know, to the number of

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Speaker 1: flights that we are seeing into Central Australia at the

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Speaker 1: moment comparatively to what we had seen pre COVID.

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Speaker 2: Well, mister Joyce's comment is saying that we seventy percent

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Speaker 2: of pre COVID, which is a fairly accurate. I think

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Speaker 2: that's an accurate position. So we are far from recovered.

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Speaker 2: In fact, I was reporting recently but a couple months

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Speaker 2: ago we were actually had less flights coming in and

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Speaker 2: out of our springs than what we did actually in

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Speaker 2: the middle of COVID. So you know, things have gone

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Speaker 2: backwards and we really need now more than ever to

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Speaker 2: work together and to be able to try and push

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Speaker 2: forward because we do need to rebound. We have small

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Speaker 2: and medium sized businesses doing it so tough at the

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Speaker 2: moment and we need to be working together with our government,

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Speaker 2: with our airlines to try and make that opportunity to

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Speaker 2: take to the next level.

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Speaker 1: Daniel, you and I have spoken before as well about

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Speaker 1: the need for that competition, and the Minister for Tourism

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Speaker 1: and Hospitality, Nicole Madison, has issued us a statement this

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Speaker 1: morning saying that Territorians deserve access to regular and affordable

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Speaker 1: flights and this has an impact on tourism. She says

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Speaker 1: we'll keep lobbying Quantas and other airlines about the importance

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Speaker 1: of accessible flights for Territorians, particularly in Central Australia, and

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Speaker 1: we are working with all domestic aviation carriers to lift

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Speaker 1: capacity and bring increased competition to the Northern Territory. Daniel,

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Speaker 1: have you had any update from the Northern Territory government

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Speaker 1: as to you know whether any of these other airlines

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Speaker 1: are interested in traveling to Central Australia at this point.

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Speaker 2: About two months ago, Katie Tourism Central Australia. We're very

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Speaker 2: vocal towards our government about the need to roll up

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Speaker 2: the sleep on the importance of aviation attraction. In all

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Speaker 2: fairness to the government, I am seeing evidence of that, yep.

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Speaker 2: And look, that's for the government to talk more about

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Speaker 2: into the future and you never know what will come

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Speaker 2: with from these discussions. But all we can ask for

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Speaker 2: is the government to roll up the sleeve and to

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Speaker 2: be as proactive as they possibly can. And I am,

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Speaker 2: in all fairness seeing examples of that. So that's a

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Speaker 2: pleasing trend and I'm hopeful that something will come from that.

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Speaker 1: I really hope. So you know, I think that that

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Speaker 1: certainly tourism needs a shot in the arm, particularly for

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Speaker 1: you guys in Central Australia after what has been such

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Speaker 1: a tough start to the year. Daniel, how are things

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Speaker 1: going at the moment? You know, when you look at

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Speaker 1: some of those tourist numbers, I know that if you're

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Speaker 1: just off the back of some of those wonderful events,

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Speaker 1: but from all accounts it has not been as busy

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Speaker 1: as what you've seen in previous years.

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Speaker 2: Well, I'm talking to you from the middle of the

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Speaker 2: todd Mare and I can see the sum total of

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Speaker 2: for tourists.

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Speaker 1: Wow.

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Speaker 2: So you know it has been challenging. You know, we

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Speaker 2: are seeing we are starting to see especially our great

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Speaker 2: name ads come back, which is good. But yeah, it's

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Speaker 2: certainly not going to be our record beating year. But

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Speaker 2: you know we're keeping a brave face. You know, this

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Speaker 2: is a great destination. We have so much to offer

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Speaker 2: our visitors and you know, I'm sure we'll kick back.

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Speaker 1: Daniel, how do you reckon we turn that you know

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Speaker 1: that safety issue around as well, because let's be frank,

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Speaker 1: at the beginning of the year it wasn't overly safe

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Speaker 1: for people to travel to different parts of the Northern

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Speaker 1: Territory based on the crime issues that we were seeing.

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Speaker 1: Things have calmed down a lot and it seems as though,

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Speaker 1: you know, we're able to travel freely again. But how

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Speaker 1: do we turn that around and make sure that tourists

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Speaker 1: are aware.

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Speaker 2: The big point that I get across to every visitor

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Speaker 2: that I talk to is it's really important for them

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Speaker 2: to share their experience. What we're seeing on on major

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Speaker 2: travel sites are people who's traveling to Oler Springs who

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Speaker 2: have an amazing experience. What we need them is to

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Speaker 2: be telling the world. You know, as well as I do.

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Speaker 2: The best full of advertising is word of mouth, and

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Speaker 2: the more we can do that the better. But we

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Speaker 2: also need to back that with good marketing. We also

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Speaker 2: need to look at some of those inhibiting drivers like

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Speaker 2: aviation access and air fanes to be able to drive

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Speaker 2: that visitation going forward. Well.

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Speaker 1: Daniel Rochford, the CEO of Tourism Central Australia, always appreciate

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Speaker 1: your time, mate, Thank you very much for having a

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Speaker 1: chat with us today.

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Speaker 2: No problem, Katie, thank you, thank you,