Gee whizz: A G20 brawl over Brisbane
The claws are out following the decision by Australia’s federal government to award the 2014 G20 summit of world leaders to Queensland state capital Brisbane.
The Tourism Council of New South Wales said the decision to pick Brisbane over Sydney was "desperate political gamesmanship" and a disappointing outcome for Sydney "at the expense of marginal Government held electorates in Queensland".
"Sydney is Australia’s true global city and sending world leaders to Brisbane is akin to the United Kingdom sending the upcoming Olympic Games to Liverpool, instead of London," said the Council.
Melbourne took a different tack. Lord Mayor Robert Doyle said awarding the G20 summit to Brisbane was "a bit of federal government pork-barrelling", and Melbourne could do without the aggravation which G20 summits have attracted.
He said the 2010 summit in Toronto was a "nightmare for the city".
Doyle said it was ridiculous to suggest the summit would give Brisbane a big tourism boost.
"There will be 4000 people associated with the 20 leaders and a couple of thousand journos who will be locked up in conference facilities — fly in and fly out," he said.
"By coincidence, the very same year, 2014, we (Melbourne) have won the world AIDS conference, which will be the biggest conference ever staged in Australia."
Ian Jarrett
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
In Italy, the Meloni government congratulates itself for its tourism achievements
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive