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Speaker 1: Well, as we know the issues of crime in Alice

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Speaker 1: Springs well across the Northern Territory have been having an

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Speaker 1: impact on locals for some time, but the impact on tourism,

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Speaker 1: particularly in Central Australia in recent years has been devastating.

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Speaker 1: Now our listeners have come to know the CEO of

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Speaker 1: Tourism Central Australia, Daniel Rochford. Well, we certainly love his honesty,

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Speaker 1: but he's ever optimistic outlook. But the events of recent

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Speaker 1: weeks have no doubt had an impact. And Daniel joins

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Speaker 1: me on the line right now. Good morning to you, Daniel.

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Speaker 2: Good morning Katie, Good morning to you listeners. Daniel.

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Speaker 1: How are things going from a tourism perspective in Alice

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Speaker 1: Springs right now?

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Speaker 2: Look, we're trying to keep a brave face, Katie, but

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Speaker 2: you know, obviously the challenges that are before us are

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Speaker 2: a mens and you know we've we stood COVID. This

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Speaker 2: as the many of my operators are telling me, is

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Speaker 2: even worse.

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Speaker 1: Than COVID, Worse than COVID right now in Alice.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, Look, I have literally seen profit and last statements,

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Speaker 2: So my members are actually showing that their position at

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Speaker 2: the moment is actually worse than what they were in COVID.

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Speaker 2: So you know, that's the enormity of the challenge that's

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Speaker 2: before us. We've got to keep a brave face. Look,

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Speaker 2: the message I send out to your listeners today is now,

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Speaker 2: more than ever, do we need people to come down

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Speaker 2: to Central Australia visit. You know, it's amazing the time

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Speaker 2: to visit Central Australia and you know, we really need

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Speaker 2: your help at the moment.

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Speaker 1: And this is the thing, Daniel. It is such a

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Speaker 1: beautiful place, it is such a beautiful time to visit

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Speaker 1: as well. You know, it's not too cold, it's not

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Speaker 1: too hot, it's a lovely time of the year. But

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Speaker 1: you know, the images that have come out of Central

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Speaker 1: Australia in the last couple of weeks are frightening.

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Speaker 2: They are, and we can't not sugarcoat that. You know,

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Speaker 2: it's certainly going to have an immense impact on the

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Speaker 2: tourism industry. Not only this time did we see that

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Speaker 2: world to wall national coverage, but the coverage went international

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Speaker 2: and global. You know, I've seen reports from Britain, America,

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Speaker 2: Al Jazeera. It went well wall around the globe and

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Speaker 2: all talking about the challenges that we have and airing

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Speaker 2: those challenges. So look that that will obviously have an

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Speaker 2: impact on us, and we are bracing for what could

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Speaker 2: be a difficult season ahead, and certainly my members are

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Speaker 2: telling me that they're seeing cancelations. We've already seen a

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Speaker 2: major conference fall in May, which is a significant loss

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Speaker 2: of money to our region.

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Speaker 1: How many people were you expecting as part of that conference, I'm.

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Speaker 2: Not too sure, but it was a very big conference,

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Speaker 2: and you know, we're you know, that's certainly concerning. We've

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Speaker 2: heard reports from members that a number of inbound a

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Speaker 2: couple a couple of inbound tour operators have canceled their

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Speaker 2: tours moving into the future too, so you know, they're

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Speaker 2: regular business that many of my members receive. So you

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Speaker 2: know there is going to be impacts and we're starting

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Speaker 2: to feel that. But you know, this is on top

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Speaker 2: of what has been some difficult years. You know, if

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Speaker 2: this season fails, we will have only had one good

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Speaker 2: season in the last five and no business can withstand

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Speaker 2: that barrage.

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Speaker 1: Daniel, have you seen, i mean, have you seen cancelations

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Speaker 1: to bookings and forward bookings over the last couple of weeks.

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Speaker 2: Absolutely, And we obviously we have a booking center at

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Speaker 2: the Information Center in Alice Springs, and you know, we're

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Speaker 2: getting cancelations through to that center, but you know, the

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Speaker 2: members are also reporting cancelations across the board to and

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Speaker 2: that's certainly one thing that we're just openly trying to

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Speaker 2: encourage people don't please try and keep your booking. You know,

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Speaker 2: have faked inness. You know it is an amazing destination,

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Speaker 2: but please don't cancel.

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Speaker 1: In terms of the cancelations that have been received, I mean,

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Speaker 1: are you able to sort of quantify that for us

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Speaker 1: for some of those businesses.

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Speaker 2: Look, we're just about to put a survey out today

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Speaker 2: asking our membership the quantum of the camper, so I

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Speaker 2: soon have that figure. But I'm certainly from conversations I've

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Speaker 2: been having, and what I've been hearing is we've lost

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Speaker 2: well over a million dollars whether business already just in

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Speaker 2: the last week.

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Speaker 1: In the last week. Yes, oh mate, that is devastating.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, and look, we are very much you know, I

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Speaker 2: don't want to use the word crisis, but you know,

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Speaker 2: this is an unprecedented firestorm that has headed our way.

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Speaker 2: You know, we obviously, I am supportive of the government's

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Speaker 2: efforts to get calm on the streets, because once we

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Speaker 2: can get calm on the streets and we can get

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Speaker 2: back on the front foot again, and certainly the curfew

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Speaker 2: has been that circuit breaker, and you know, cutos to

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Speaker 2: the government for making that decision. We need to see

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Speaker 2: police resourcing remain at a high level. And that's in

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Speaker 2: the issue that I have said time and time again,

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Speaker 2: we are sick of dancing this dance, Katie. What happens

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Speaker 2: is the proverbial hits. The fan leaders like me and

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Speaker 2: the mayor and many others jump up and down. Government responds,

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Speaker 2: there's boots sent on to the ground to bolster resourcing.

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Speaker 2: But slowly and quietly they get retracted back. And we're

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Speaker 2: already hearing from the police Minister and the police that

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Speaker 2: they're going to retract the palis off the bottle shops

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Speaker 2: of some bottle shops and able to bring to you

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Speaker 2: even as close as next week. So you know, we're

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Speaker 2: going to start to see that retract back. And guess what,

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Speaker 2: two weeks, two months, maybe six months, we're going to

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Speaker 2: dance this dance yet again. And every time we're on

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Speaker 2: this dance floor, the tourism industry gets put under the bus.

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Speaker 1: It's like, it's absolutely unbelievable just how big an impact

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Speaker 1: it would be having on tourism. I mean, a million

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Speaker 1: dollars in cancelations over the last week is a phenomenal figure.

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Speaker 1: In addition to there being that long term plan. And

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Speaker 1: let's make no bones about it, you and I have

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Speaker 1: spoken about this so many times, even towards the beginning

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Speaker 1: of last year. You know, we're talking about the long

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Speaker 1: term plans and the short term solutions and spoke about

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Speaker 1: it on numerous occasions. But like you said, we're still

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Speaker 1: dancing that dance. So there is no doubt that there

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Speaker 1: needs to be some really serious, serious plans put in

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Speaker 1: place this week. My understanding is that the chiefment is

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Speaker 1: is going to be back there over the coming days. Daniel,

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Speaker 1: what do you know?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I think that's certainly the case. And I'm actually

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Speaker 2: participating in at a forum that her department has put

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Speaker 2: on today where she's gathered all the key CEOs of

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Speaker 2: all the agencies and the town to come together to

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Speaker 2: get some sort of strategy in place. It's really critical,

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Speaker 2: Katie get and we're also pretty simple. We've seen through

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Speaker 2: Operation Dreena and are now Operation Greument all that if

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Speaker 2: you add extra resources into this town, the town stabilizes.

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Speaker 2: We need this not to be a two week window.

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Speaker 2: We need this to be three hundred and sixty five

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Speaker 2: days a year. We need additional resources. The evidence shows

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Speaker 2: that when additional resources are thrown at Alice Springs, the

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Speaker 2: town stabilizers. So if we don't have the resources, then

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Speaker 2: someone needs to pick up the phone to try and

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Speaker 2: gather those resources. Whether they're from South Australia and qune up.

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Speaker 2: Again to the government for making that call. But if

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Speaker 2: it's not them, it must be the federal place. You know,

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Speaker 2: we must bolster those resourcing.

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Speaker 1: Daniel, in terms of the assistance for tourism operators, I mean,

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Speaker 1: does there need to be some kind of COVID post

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Speaker 1: COVID COVID like assistance, no.

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Speaker 2: Doubt, and where we're gathering our membership later this week

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Speaker 2: to have that discussion. Look, this is well beyond having

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Speaker 2: a discount program or voucher programs. This is this is

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Speaker 2: that we are in desperate need of additional major support.

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Speaker 2: And that's one of the reasons late last week I

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Speaker 2: called for federal support because quite honestly and with all

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Speaker 2: due respect, because the government government has supported the tourism industry,

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Speaker 2: both through COVID and more recently. In fact, there's still

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Speaker 2: the twenty five percent discount program in play. But the

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Speaker 2: resourceing that we need to get forward is way beyond

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Speaker 2: the means of the Northern Territory government. That's why I

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Speaker 2: think the federal government needs to step in here. We

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Speaker 2: need an economic recovery plan for Central Australia and that's

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Speaker 2: more than just tourism, but obviously tourism plays a pretty

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Speaker 2: important role in that recovery plan.

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Speaker 1: Has the Federal Tourism Minister been to Alice Springs in

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Speaker 1: recent weeks or months?

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Speaker 2: No, No, not to my knowledge. He's certainly been up

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Speaker 2: in Darwin recently and you know I've had a very

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Speaker 2: quick discussion within there. But you know, we have a

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Speaker 2: very collegiate relationship with maryon Scrimjewish. He's always welcoming and

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Speaker 2: the tourism industry is important, you know. But the message

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Speaker 2: is very clear, we're on our knees at the moment

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Speaker 2: and we need help.

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Speaker 1: Well, look, it sounds as though the door is absolutely

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Speaker 1: opened for the Federal Tourism Minister to come for a visit,

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Speaker 1: come and have a discussion with you guys. I know

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Speaker 1: you're speaking, like you said to marianscrim Jaw, but to

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Speaker 1: really come and hear the concerns now of tourism operators

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Speaker 1: in Central Australia as you are on your knees, Yeah, and.

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Speaker 2: That message is really an important one. To hear it

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Speaker 2: from people who are earning an income through operating a business,

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Speaker 2: who don't get a wage, a fortnightly wage like me,

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Speaker 2: but to hear it from our business owners themselves, to

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Speaker 2: hear the like the mental health challenges that they're facing

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Speaker 2: as a result of not knowing whether they've got enough money.

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Speaker 2: You know, we've got major businesses, iconic businesses that are

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Speaker 2: just doing it so tough at the moment. And these

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Speaker 2: are businesses if we lose them or they're lost forever.

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Speaker 1: Well. And you know the point you made there. There's

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Speaker 1: so many good points that you made there, but the

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Speaker 1: point you made about you know, for those of us

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Speaker 1: that earn a wage every week, every fortnight, I don't

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Speaker 1: really have a true comprehension of the impact that these

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Speaker 1: kinds of you know, these kinds of incidents and the

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Speaker 1: issues of crime and the long term impact that it

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Speaker 1: has on those operators that you know that they're not

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Speaker 1: rely or they can't rely on a regular wage. They

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Speaker 1: are absolutely reliant on those tourists coming to the Northern

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Speaker 1: Territory and spending time in Central Australia.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, and that's why you know, again passionate play outs

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Speaker 2: earlier is that back as could please come and visit

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Speaker 2: them to Australia now more than ever because with that

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Speaker 2: support that those moneies go through the coppers of these

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Speaker 2: small businesses who have been doing it tough. You know,

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Speaker 2: they're just trying to you know, the backbone of our

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Speaker 2: regional economy. They're the backbone of our community. But they're

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Speaker 2: crying for help at the moment. And you know, unfortunately

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Speaker 2: Easter was you know, normally the period of time where

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Speaker 2: we launch into a good tourism season, but this year

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Speaker 2: Easter was far from We saw businesses reporting losses over

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Speaker 2: in the Easter period.

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Speaker 1: Daniel. It's really really tough to hear. I think like

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Speaker 1: for anybody listening this morning, they will be feeling for

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Speaker 1: you guys. And as you said, you know, if you're

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Speaker 1: able to get to Central Australia and go there and

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Speaker 1: see some of the amazing wonders that we have in

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Speaker 1: Central Australia, do so, Daniel Rochford, I really appreciate your

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Speaker 1: time as.

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Speaker 2: Always, Thanks Gati. Impressing, thank you.

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Speaker 1: Thanks mate,