Minister Bailey no comment, well nearly, on imminent MD appointment
Federal Minister of Tourism Fran Bailey in a general media briefing at Dreamtime on the Gold Coast, would not be drawn on the appointment of the new Managing Director of Tourism Australia, only saying that the Board of Tourism Australia has gone through the interview process and a recommendation has gone to Cabinet and the Prime Minister for consideration and approval.
When asked if the recommendation included one or two candidates, she did confirm that it was only one candidate and that an announcement would be made shortly.
There has been considerable conjecture within the industry about the appointment, which is considered critical to the future of tourism in Australia, coming about as a result of the sacking by Minister Bailey of the previous MD, former Liberal Party NSW Director, Scott Morrison.
It is known that in terms of external candidates, Grant Hunt the former MD of Voyages Hotels and Resorts withdrew some time ago and that David Pitchford, currently CEO of the City of Melbourne was believed to be still in the running at the time of the recommendation to the Cabinet and Prime Minister.
It is also known that there are two “official” internal candidates, Tourism Australia’s domestic tourism head Andrew McEvoy, noticeably absent from Dreamtime and North American Director Michael Londregan.
The delay in the appointment has stimulated considerable commentary with increasing industry talk that current Acting MD, Geoff Buckley, who confirmed to The Mole several weeks ago that he was not a candidate, has been tapped on the shoulder by Minister Bailey, with his hat now firmly in the ring.
Industry pundits say that if Mr Buckley’s performance as Acting MD is any indication of how he would approach the permanent role, he would be a popular appointment and it is known that Minister Bailey is very satisfied with Mr Buckley’s performance, his having worked very effectively with the Minister during this caretaker period, with the ability to work with the Minister, being crucial to the success of the permanent appointment.
We shall just have to wait and see, but the critical nature of the appointment to the future of Australian tourism should not be underestimated.
Report by The Mole
John Alwyn-Jones
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