Mr BAIRD (1:51 PM) —Recent figures made available by the Tourism Task Force show that there are over 8,000 jobs in the electorate of Cook that are reliant on the tourism industry. The Tourism Task Force estimates that there are approximately 8,000 people in the Sutherland shire whose jobs are reliant on tourism. Proportionally, this is almost eight per cent of all the jobs in my electorate and over half the number of people that are employed in manufacturing industries. These figures are an excellent illustration of how important the tourism industry has become for us at both national and local levels. The Tourism Forecasting Council expects around 10.4 million visitors per year to be coming to Australia in 10 years time—double the number we currently welcome.

Tourism employment in Cook is much higher than in other areas of Sydney. Undoubtedly, our proximity to Sydney airport and the range of tourism sector jobs that it offers contribute to our proportion being so high. There are a large number of flight attendants, pilots and people employed in the various businesses at the airport. The average level of employment in tourism across New South Wales is 6.2 per cent, and it is lower than this in much of the north and west of Sydney. The only areas in Sydney that have a higher proportion are the city centre and the eastern suburbs, where the proportion is boosted by the high number of backpackers that stay around Bondi Beach. In addition to the assistance provided by the airport, the Sutherland shire has a number of natural features that make it attractive to visitors: a range of beautiful beaches, Captain Cook's landing site, the Royal National Park, bushwalks et cetera. (Time expired)