The Rudd Government today announced further measures to Keep Cairns Working and help combat the spike in the region's unemployment as a result of the global recession.
The Government will introduce measures to encourage more airlines to stopover at Cairns Airport, provide $19.5 million to build the Cairns Institute at James Cook University and bring forward $60 million in critical job-generating economic stimulus projects.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, Employment Participation Minister Mark Arbib and the Minister for Resources and Energy and Minister for Tourism, Minister Martin Ferguson visited Cairns today, at the invitation of Leichhardt MP Jim Turnour, to announce these further measures.
The Rudd Government's response covers five key areas:
* Supporting tourism in Cairns;
* Providing tax help to small business;
* Fast-tracking the Economic Stimulus projects;
* Driving regional development; and
* Supporting local jobs.
The Rudd Government recognises that the Cairns community has been harder hit than most other regions as a result of the global economic conditions.
The Government will offer foreign airlines greater access to our major gateways for flights that first stopover in Cairns and will offer foreign airlines the chance to provide flights from Cairns to nearby countries such as New Zealand and the Pacific islands.
Cairns will also benefit from $446,000 in a new tourism marketing campaign designed to promote Cairns as a Tropical Far North food tourism destination, with 20 new tourism operators to be supported by the campaign.
The Rudd Government's economic stimulus is rolling out more than 2,100 projects across Tropical North Queensland with $460 million being injected in the local economy, as recognised by the Queensland Government in their recent plan for jobs and the economy in Cairns.
But to ensure jobs are generated as quickly as possible the Government is fast-tracking the program to deliver $60 million in immediate investment to support jobs during the next 12 months.
The Cairns social housing stimulus will be fast-tracked with work now scheduled to start on many of the 218 social homes planned for in and around Cairns from between now and March 2010.
This will be a much-needed shot in the arm for the local construction industry, providing immediate jobs and stimulating economic activity in the region.
Cairns is Australia's gateway to Papua New Guinea, the Pacific Islands and the Tropical North. In order to drive the commercial development of the region, the Government will provide a $19.5 million grant to James Cook University to build the Cairns Institute.
The Cairns Institute will be a tropical innovation hub, linking research with commercial opportunities, driving economic development and providing critical infrastructure planning research for Australia's Far North.
The Institute will include 125 research staff and will support 200 jobs during construction.
The Cape York Institute will be also be involved in discussions around co-locating in the brand new building, potentially benefiting from purpose-designed research facilities and collaborating across a number of research agendas.
To assist Cairns small business, the Rudd Government will send a specialised Australian Tax Office taskforce to work one-on-one with businesses in the region to tailor individual payment arrangements for PAYG and GST to meet the specific circumstances of businesses that need help.
The Rudd Government will also bolster regional development in the region through Regional Development Australia working with the Office of Northern Australia, to draw together Commonwealth and State Government activity and ensure a targeted approach to regional development.
The Office of Northern Australia will provide a single point of contact for other Government agencies, such as Austrade, to bring their expertise and assistance to regional planning for the future.
Among other assistance, the Rudd Government is supporting 500 new training places through the Productivity Places Program in conjunction with the Queensland Government.
These places will be brokered with local job service providers in conjunction with the Local Employment Co-ordinator to match job-seekers with skills shortages and local jobs.
The Keep Cairns Working Centrelink Jobs Expo will also have over 300 jobs on offer with 100 employers and a host of training providers participating in the Expo.
The Rudd Government's Apprentice Kickstart program has also started, providing local employers committed to taking on school leavers looking to start a trade with a commencement of $4,850 in the first year of an apprenticeship.
18 Kickstart Apprentices have been signed up in Cairns since the measure commenced on 1 December 2009.