The whole area of tourism and hospitality and recreation was one of those things that within the living memory of many people in this room Australians would not have imagined would become one of our major export earners - in fact our best export earner two years ago. Twenty-five to thirty years ago, even, the idea that Australia's hospitality and tourism industries would occupy the role they do in the Australian way of life and the Australian economy and the hopes that we have for the future of our country, would have been completely undreamt of. Indeed the idea of Australians being specialists at hospitality and recreation is something that somehow or other people twenty-five to thirty years ago didn't imagine. And therefore in the space of only one generation we have seen an enormous transformation in attitudes. We see the tremendous pride and enthusiasm of young Australians who are involved in tourism.
Tourism represents the quintessential expression of the small business ethic of Australia.
And I know that in this room there are many men and women who really represent that in a very direct and very successful fashion. The small business sector of the Australian economy is, of course, the hope of the side in reducing unemployment in the years ahead. And it is only through policies that encourage successful small businesses that I believe over time we can reduce Australia's still unacceptably high level of unemployment. And nowhere, of course, is that more important and does that have more prospects than in the tourist industry. And I want to say to you that many of the policies that my Government has brought in over the last 18 months have been designed directly to benefit the small business sector of the Australian economy.