RURAL groups have chided government’s “glacial progress” on a promise to set up a regional conferencing unit to help organisations host events and inject cash into communities outside Sydney.
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Before the March 2015 election the then-Deputy Premier Troy Grant announced plans for a $6 million conferencing unit and said a strategy would be finalised within two months.
Fast forward two years and the unit is yet to materialise.
Newly-appointed minister for tourism and major events Adam Marshall said getting the project up and running was one of his first orders of business, but Country Women’s Association state president Annette Turner said action was long overdue.
She said regional events, including the recent CWA conference at Cowra, injected millions into local economies.
“Holding regional conferences can be challenging but the benefits to local communities are fantastic,” Mrs Turner said.
“We have been making some inquiries on in relation to the rural conferencing unit for some time, although the progress of government is best described as glacial on this issue.
That is frustrating, as a unit like this could be of huge benefit not just to us, but more importantly the communities that would be benefited.”
Last July government said it would will invest $43 million to overhaul the way regional and rural areas attracted visitors - again committing to establish the conferencing unit, this time targeting the end of the 2016-17 financial year.
But during budget estimates in October, Labor tourism spokeswoman Penny Sharpe took the then-minister Stuart Ayres to task over the delay, and attacked government over the unit’s probably location in Sydney.
This week Ms Sharpe said government’s inaction “(made) a mockery of the NSW Nationals’ stated focus on regional tourism.”
“Regional NSW has so much to offer for tourists and the NSW economy, but this continued Sydney-centric approach leaves regional tourism operators without the support they need to maximise their potential,” Ms Sharpe said.
Government is currently advertising for a manager of regional conferencing in Sydney, focusing on promoting the viability and attraction of conferencing in regional NSW.
Applications close on February 17.