Thursday 21 June 2007 - Estimates Committee B (Wriedt) - Part 1 - Pages 1 - 47
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
ESTIMATES COMMITTEE B
Thursday 21 June 2007
MEMBERS
Mr Dean
Mr Finch
Mrs Jamieson
Mrs Rattray-Wagner
Ms Ritchie
Mrs Smith (Chair)
IN ATTENDANCE
Hon. Paula Wriedt, Minister for Tourism, Arts and the Environment

TOURISM INDUSTRY PUBLICATION

Mr FINCH - Regarding the holiday plan, which I think it is now called, the new Tasmanian tourism industry publication, are you aware that people in the industry are feeling a bit disadvantaged by the late publication of the book this year because it will not get to the industry at the time they usually expect it?

Ms MARIANI - What we have done this year is consolidate the book. We have worked through a delivery with the industry. Where they use that book initially is at some of the very early holiday and travel shows so we are looking at having an abridged version that we will be able to use for distribution at holiday and travel centres. They are probably going to be only a few weeks away from the normal delivery date and, as I said, what that gets used for initially is to start the round of holiday and travel shows people are attending. We will have an abridged version that we will be able to take to holiday and travel shows and then the full booklet will come out in the following two weeks after that.

Mr FINCH - On 9 July is the road show presentation.

Ms MARIANI - That is right. So we are looking at an abridged version that we will take to those holiday and travel shows.

Mr FINCH - I am just curious, who prints this new holiday planner? Is it the Government Printing Office and did this publication go out for a tender process?

Ms MARIANI - We have a list of preferred suppliers. Under the government contracts there is a list of preferred suppliers that we can go to for the production of a range of collateral material through the course of the year. We nominated a particular local production company to help us with the design and the print has been contracted separately as part of that design process. There is an issue that the Government Printing Office cannot do Web offset printing the way this has to be done so the printing of the publication is being done through the resources of the production company with someone on the mainland but the design and the pulling together of the brochure has been done with a local company that is part of our approved list of production companies that we can use here.

Mr FINCH - It didn't go on the open market for people to tender for that job?

Ms MARIANI - We did not have to because of the fact that we were using a list of already preferred suppliers who had in fact gone through process so there was a whole tender that is handled at a local level for all government agencies and there is a list of preferred suppliers that we are allowed to go to in instances such as this one.

Mr FINCH - You pick which one you want to use?

Ms MARIANI - In depends on whether they have the right skills that is what you have to look at. We did talk to a number of suppliers that were on the list and we nominated one that gave us the best option and the best price and was able to satisfy what we needed to have done within the time frame.

Mr FINCH - Thank you.

CHAIR - Thank you