Caravan Industry Association of Australia is calling on all political parties to recognise the opportunities that a strong Australian caravanning and camping industry provides the economy when considering their final pleas to voters on May 21.
The industry has been adaptive through the COVID-19 crisis and stands ready to continue leading domestic tourism and automotive manufacturing as Australia recovers, and has put forward a simple four point policy platform set to generate highly leveraged returns to the Australian recovery in employment, investment and economic activity.
Launching the policy platform today, Caravan Industry Association of Australia CEO Stuart Lamont, said there is no better time for the government to be looking for strategic investments and sound policy agenda into traditional industry's which are looking to invest, develop and pivot to the new economy, off what is already a strong foundation. "Caravan and camping in Australia is too often looked at as a comfort recreational activity, as opposed to an economic powerhouse which delivers across manufacturing, retailing, tourism and affordable housing."
"Caravan and camping is enjoyed by all – rich, poor, young, old and offers social and health benefits on top of the economic return through employment and visitor expenditure. Caravanning retains a strong manufacturing base (despite broader automotive manufacturing largely moving off-shore), while also being the most popular accommodation choice in Australia for holidaying, and the most popular accommodation choice in regional Australia irrespective of the purpose of travel."
The policy platform is headlined by the following four themes:
- Strengthening Australia's Sovereign Manufacturing (scaling and adopting new technology, and the development of a RV innovation hub including consumer education and inspection facilities);
- Supercharging Australian Tourism for Recovery (maintaining a role for Tourism Australia in the domestic market, labour force solutions for hard to staff regional areas, and insurance reform for caravan parks);
- Future Proofing the Caravan and Camping Industry (land lease communities supporting affordable housing, co-investment in regional tourist accommodation, energy efficiency scheme for industry, and measurement of CO2 emissions); and
- Improving Road Safety Outcomes (industry education campaign to transition to RVSA and safer vehicles, a national caravan safety check program, and a safer driver activation).
Caravanning and camping locations are ideally spread right across Australia, many of which provide for spectacular backdrops for policy announcements through the election campaign. Caravan Industry Association of Australia will also be inviting all major political party's to outline their commitments to caravanning and camping consumers post election, and promises to distribute this in the last week of the campaign to its over 500,000 consumer database.
To obtain a copy of the policy platform – Driving Australia into the Future please email advocacy
