Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Too many people have been left behind by the Morrison government. The arts, local government, universities, aviation and casual workers have all been left to fend for themselves through the deepest recession we've seen in more than a century. This is especially true for travel agents. Last week, I held a virtual roundtable with shadow tourism minister Senator Farrell and local travel agents. Those present were no neophytes. Indeed they were all skilled operators with more than two centuries of travel industry experience among them, but no amount of business nous could have protected them from the ravages of COVID-19. With planes grounded and borders closed for domestic and international travel and with constantly changing travel restrictions, local travel agents are now working harder than ever sending money out their door as refunds to their clients with zero money coming in. Even when travel returns, they won't be paid for their bookings for many months to come. While they were incredibly grateful for JobKeeper, the agents worry that the reduced rate of JobKeeper might see skilled staff leave. The Prime Minister talks about the need for a business led recovery. For this to happen, businesses in highly impacted industries must get the support they need to stay afloat. It's now critical for the government to work with the travel sector to devise a solution that will keep these important local businesses operating and their local staff in jobs. (Time expired)