National Dialogue
Stakeholders in accessible and inclusive tourism
Wednesday 22 June 2011
Parliament House, Canberra

Joint Communique

The group with Senator McLucas

Inclusive and Accessible Tourism - an opportunity for Australia

A National Dialogue of key stakeholders in inclusive and accessible tourism was opened on Monday 20 June by Senator the Hon Jan McLucas, Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Carers at Parliament House, Canberra. The Dialogue, hosted by Nican and chaired by Annette Ellis, National Patron and former Shadow Minister for Disability and Carers, has agreed on a call to action for the tourism industry, government and the Australian community:

Tourism by people who have a disability or who are ageing is an opportunity for Australian Tourism to seize the competitive advantage in a tight market. It is also a great way to demonstrate corporate social responsibility. The time is right for action as Australia’s baby boomers retire.

Key stakeholders including researchers, tourism operators and referral providers have joined forces, with the support of the Australian Government, to build awareness about the opportunities and to address barriers to tourism by these groups.

Together, we believe that there is a growing understanding of the potential of the tourism market for people with disability, including seniors, which goes hand-in-hand with boosting visitor numbers and strengthening our place as a top draw tourism destination for people around the world.

We recognise that access to leisure and recreation, including taking a holiday, is an important part of living an ordinary life and helps realise the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with a Disability and the National Disability Strategy.

Ultimately, this will help to build a more welcoming and inclusive society, where individuals and families with a disability have choices and no longer feel shut out.

There are significant advantages to developing better tourism products, services and experiences to people with disability as well as information about opportunities, venues and services.

This is good business sense and is also consistent with rights, access and corporate social responsibility.

With the right planning this can be a real win for both people with disability and the tourism industry.

Now is the time to promote the business case for disability tourism where:

Some 88 per cent of people with disability take a holiday each year which accounts for some 8.2 million overnight trips.
The average travel group size for people with disability is 2.8 people for a domestic overnight trip and 3.4 for a day trip.
There is a myth that the inclusive tourism market does not spend because of economic circumstance.
People with disability travel on a level comparable with the general population for domestic overnight and day trips.
The total tourism expenditure attributable to people with disability is $8bn per year or 11 per cent of overall tourism expenditure.

The business case is clear and draws on landmark research from Associate Professor Simon Darcy, with the University of Technology Business School, who presented at the session.

We welcome the Government's commitment in the area of travel and tourism through the National Disability Strategy as well as work on Access to Premises and Transport Standards, access to airlines and cinema access.

More could be done including an inclusive/accessible tourism category within a mainstream tourism award; a marketing strategy; a practical information guide; a National Forum with Tourism operators and further work to refresh and promote the business case for inclusive and accessible tourism, especially with industry.

We commend these ideas to government and each of us is committed to moving from commitment to action.

We are excited by the opportunity to deepen the understanding of the importance and potential of inclusive and accessible tourism for all Australians. We will continue to work together and promote the benefits across the tourism industry, agencies of governments at all levels, tourism promoters, and the Australian community.

Issued by:

Australia For All Alliance Inc
Greatvenue
Disabled Motorists Association
Disability Information and Resource Centre
Nican
IDEAS
Travability
Leadership plus (formerly Inclusive Leisure Vic)

Media contact: Craig Wallace, Marketing Manager, Nican – 0451 199 750