Visit to Australia – 27 October- 4 November 2003

The purpose of this statement is to advise the Assembly on details of my recent visit to Australia.

The purpose of the visit was to promote Wales in Australia, in inward investment, trade and commerce, tourism, music, design and culture, utilising our participation in the Rugby World Cup as a useful backdrop.

Australia is the host for the 2003 Rugby World Cup and this was an ideal opportunity for a Team Wales multi-purpose mission to raise our profile generally and promote Welsh goods and services in Australasia.  Wales was the only country that attempted anything like this, using RWC 2003 as a backdrop.  In addition to the trade mission run by WTI to Australia and New Zealand, the Wales Tourist Board and the Welsh Development Agency organised several of the key events and visits.

I would like to thank the staff at the British Consulate-General in Sydney, the British Consulate in Melbourne and the British High Commission in Canberra for all their help in preparing for the mission and their support during the visit.  The same very much applies to our own Assembly Government officials, particularly in External Relations and WalesTrade International, and to the Wales Tourist Board and the Welsh Development Agency, for their help, professionalism and enthusiasm.  I also commend the 16 companies involved from all parts of Wales, 13 of whom also participated in the New Zealand leg of the mission – the first WTI mission ever to visit New Zealand.

The engagements undertaken involved meeting senior state Government ministers, key figures in the business world, tourism and the media.

In Sydney I met my opposite number Bob Carr, Premier of New South Wales twice – first to exchange ideas on exchanging best practice in public administration at devolved level and second as part of a large reception at Government House where the Memorandum of Understanding between Wales and New South Wales was re-affirmed in front of a very large audience of ‘influencers’.

I also met Michael Egan, Treasurer of New South Wales on three occasions, Sandra Nori, Tourism and Small Business Minister and Diane Beamer, Minister for Youth Justice.  The latter is one of four Ministers with a geographical as well as a portfolio responsibility, being Minister for the Western Sydney Suburbs (an area of 1.7m people).  I also met John Aquilina, the Speaker and former Education Minister.

In Melbourne I undertook three inward investment company visits and addressed an Australian British Chamber of Commerce lunch also attended by the Hon Bruce Mildenhall, Parliamentary Secretary to the Premier of Victoria.

In Canberra, Sir Alistair Goodlad, the British High Commissioner hosted a dinner for Federal level politicians and media representatives.  

I met Jon Stanhope, the Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Legislative Assembly and the Deputy Chief Minister, Ted Quinlan who hosted a working lunch for me to meet ACT area high tech companies.  Senior officials in the ACT Legislative Assembly then gave a number of presentations setting out strategic plans for development of the region.

I also visited the Kingston Foreshores Development, an ACT government organisation not dissimilar to the Cardiff Bay Development Corporation, and which is leading a fifteen year programme to develop the Kingston Foreshore as a centre for housing, retail and leisure.  

Returning to Sydney I addressed the launch of the Australian Technology Showcase where Australia’s top technology companies were exhibiting and demonstrating their products.  The point of interest about the Technology Showcase and many of the company visits is how rapidly the Australian IT, biotech and other high technology sectors are maturing to the point, where they are looking for a European base.  Our strategy is to establish Wales as the No.1 choice for Australian and New Zealand companies who have outgrown the Australasian market and need a base, where they feel at home and from where they can do big business in Europe.
 
It is too early to tell the full extent of the success of the trade mission which involved 16 Welsh companies.  13 travelled on to New Zealand where as a result of the Welsh team’s performance against the All Blacks the night before they crossed the Tasman, the mission was met at Auckland airport by a film crew.  The media followed their progress during their time in New Zealand.  They have now returned to the UK and whilst the majority of them went for the purpose of market research quite a number of them have already secured orders totalling in excess of £0.5m with further potential for business in the region of £5.6m.  These figures are expected to rise when all the participating companies have returned their post-mission questionnaires.  They are all extremely pleased and see their visit as an enormous success.

The launch of the Wales Showcase at the Museum of Contemporary Arts in Sydney was extremely successful.  Angela Gidden, one of Wales most successful designers used her expertise to design a very impressive exhibition promoting Wales Welsh arts and crafts and featuring the ten most popular Welsh family names, with a view to interesting the Welsh-Australian community in genealogy and return tourism.  The showcase had exhibits of Welsh products and the WDA’s Welsh Food Initiative was preparing samples of Welsh produce for visitors to taste and has resulted in the MCA wanting to exhibit the jewellery made by Anna Lewis.  I would like to record my thanks to Wales Arts International for their help in pulling this together.  The MCA was very positive about the showcase and has indicated a willingness to work with Wales in the future.

Three Welsh musicians and groups were represented at the showcase and played on the green outside the Museum, one of whom, Amy Wadge had secured a recording deal and would be returning to Australia next year to promote her album.  As a result of this trip she has also secured a distribution  agreement for South East Asia.  

The WDA had also arranged a number of visits to potential inward investment companies.  Whilst it is too early for any definite announcements, I am hopeful that some of those companies will set up in Wales.  During one of the company visits – Sims Metal – I was pleased to have been able to announce that the company would be investing more than £8m in its plant in Newport.  This investment will involve a new metal shredding plant and a second fridge recycling plant creating 44 new jobs.

The Wales Tourist Board was also well represented in Sydney and hosted a reception for Australian travel writers and tourist representatives to raise the profile of Wales as a holiday destination.  As a result WTB will be undertaking a joint tourism initiative with the state government of New South Wales.

In addition I had fourteen media interviews which covered, TV, radio and local newspapers.

Overall this was an excellent visit which successfully brought Wales, Welsh industry and Welsh culture and Welsh sport to the attention of not only an Australian audience but also a wider international audience.  

I would like to record my thanks to everyone involved in organising this visit which was a real Team Wales effort led by the Assembly Government.  It would be remiss of me not to conclude this report without referring to two events involving Wales in Australia, which we did not organise, but which contributed superbly to the Team Wales success.  

The first was the Max Boyce sell-out concert at the Sydney Opera House in the main 2,500-seat auditorium, at the beginning of the week.  The audience may have included some 500 or so Welsh ex-pats but the response of the Australian audience was superb, according to those who were there.

Second was the heartening performance of the Welsh team on the field, especially against New Zealand in the final group game (and of course subsequently against England) and the respect Wales has won back in the rugby world.  In Australasia, this is invaluable in profile-raising and therefore in all of our commercial and promotional activities.

Finally I have to pass on the compliments of the Chairman of the Sydney Rugby Club, Richard McLean on the superb behaviour of Welsh rugby supporters, who had used that Club as their base for much of the week.  ‘Great Ambassadors for your country’ were his words, for which I am undyingly grateful to all concerned.