Accor Pacific CEO, Simon McGrath, has welcomed the critical financial support from the Federal and NSW Governments, saying it “will help New South Wales tourism employees get through the latest Sydney and NSW lockdown”.
“This is crucial financial assistance for employees of the tourism sector caught up in the current lockdown,” he said.
“The July holiday period has been impacted by border restrictions and stay-at-home orders, and businesses across NSW are struggling.
“These measures from the Federal and NSW Government will keep people connected to our industry and will help struggling businesses to keep their teams on, providing support for many impacted people and their families,” McGrath said.
He said the industry was “suffering from no international tourism, educational tourism and a loss of confidence due to border certainty”.
“If the Government continues to support tourism through this critical recovery period, it will benefit our economy for many decades to come, attracting overseas investment and creating jobs,” McGrath said.
“We will continue to work with Government and fight for our sector as we go through this tough time.”
Government support for the sector has also been welcomed by peak bodies Tourism Accommodation Australia and the Accommodation Association, who in a joint statement said the Federal and NSW Government support package “provided targeted and essential support in dire times for the accommodation sector”.