Alastair Scott: Government working hard on tourism

Wairarapa MP Alastair Scott says tourism growth is buoying the New Zealand economy.

Many New Zealand families will be making the most of their summer break to travel around the country, while many businesses will be gearing up for the busy tourist season.

Holiday-makers from both home and abroad, continue to enjoy New Zealand's natural features and iconic tourist sites. We are seeing large numbers of visitors across the country and in the Hawke's Bay region.

In Hawke's Bay, tourism expenditure has grown by 7.6 per cent in the year since October 2015, and visitors have spent $571 million. Nationally, tourism expenditure is forecasted to grow by 65 per cent to $16 billion in 2022.

And this growth is buoying our country's economy.

Typically 180,000 New Zealanders are directly employed in tourism. The sector brings in $14.5b each year, and is now our greatest export earner and bigger than the dairy industry.

We recognise the need to maximise the benefits of tourism growth, while also balancing pressures on local communities and infrastructure challenges, so that we can maintain high quality visitor experiences.

The government's tourism strategy is doing just that - by better co-ordinating government efforts and spending to support growth in the sector.

In addition to the $130m we spend on tourism each year, the Government is investing a further $45m over the next four years.

This includes $12m in regional infrastructure so that communities can accommodate increased demand. And we are assisting regions to attract the right mix of visitors - across all regions and all year round.

The government's Tourism Growth Partnership makes available $8m a year exclusively to support innovative tourism projects in our regions.

The New Zealand Cycle Trail is another example. The trail has seen more than a million users in the last year and has generated around $37m in economic benefits for local communities in 2015.

The Government is working hard so that more visitors can enjoy New Zealand's unique tourism opportunities, and that all New Zealanders see the benefits of tourism growth.

• Alastair Scott is the MP for Wairarapa.