City of Melbourne Councillors have endorsed an urgent motion calling on the Federal Government to expand its tourism support package to include subsidised flights to Tullamarine Airport.
The Urgent Motion notes that the Federal Government's discounted flights program only provides subsidised tickets into Avalon Airport from two destinations. However, Victorians can fly to 11 interstate destinations under the program.
Lord Mayor Sally Capp said Council is calling on the Commonwealth to expand the discounted flight routes to ensure more Australians can afford to come to Melbourne.
"The Federal Government needs to deliver more discounted flights into Melbourne so our economy starts flying again," the Lord Mayor said. "Without more planes in the air, Melbourne misses out on our fair share."
"Melbourne is Australia's First Class destination for food, culture and sports. Local tourism businesses have suffered more turbulence than anywhere else in the country as a result of the pandemic.
"Expanding the scheme to add extra half-price flights to Melbourne from more cities across Australia is critical to get more Australians to visit Melbourne and help bring back the buzz to our city."
As a result of the motion, the Lord Mayor will write to the Commonwealth Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment to advocate for additional routes to Victoria to be added to the scheme.
City Activation portfolio lead, Councillor Roshena Campbell, put forward the motion at the Future Melbourne Committee meeting.
Cr Campbell said adding Melbourne's main airport in the $1.2 billion scheme would support thousands of Melburnians employed in the tourism sector at a critical time as Jobkeeper comes to an end.
"Melbourne has been disproportionately hit by the economic impacts of COVID and we want to make sure that Melbourne gets its fair share of this tourism package." Cr Campbell said.
"Every extra passenger that comes into Melbourne delivers opportunities for local businesses to get back on their feet, retain workers and create jobs at this critical time for our city."
"Tullamarine Airport is the most well-known gateway into Melbourne and we want the rest of Australia to know that Melbourne is back open for business."
In the year to March 2020, Victoria welcomed 95.5 million international and domestic overnight visitors. Tourism expenditure for these visitors was $31.3 billion, which equates to spending of approximately $85.6 million per day in the state.
COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on this sector, and action from all levels of government is essential to support businesses and keep Melburnians in jobs.
The City of Melbourne is running a FOMO advertising campaign highlighting everything the re-opened city has to offer and the experiences you don't want to miss out on.
To view the campaign go to: whatson.melbourne.vic.gov.au/FOMO
