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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 11 Hansard (28 November) . . Page.. 3315 ..

MS CARNELL (continuing):

This statement presents an account of the GMC 400's performance in 2000 and provides additional information on safety and environmental management of the event. I am delighted to inform the Assembly that the GMC 400 has met or exceeded most of the goals set by CTEC.

Attendance at the GMC 400 surpassed all expectations. An early estimate of attendance issued after the race was 109,000 people. Final reports of attendance received confirmed total attendance of 108,376, very close to the original figure. An accreditation system enabled entry by media, the host broadcaster, support teams, officials, volunteers, three-day access holders and precinct pass holders. The Australian Federal Police, children under 12 and holders of AVESCO cards did not require accreditation.

Categories of ticket sales included one-day and three-day tickets for general admission, entry to the V8 paddock and corporate attendance. Ticket sales were: one-day tickets, 40,340; three-day tickets, 10,095; total, 50,435. These details have been provided to the Assembly in response to a question on notice by Mr Osborne. Supplementary information, including information on additional sales by Ticketek and the accreditation system, has increased the total number of tickets sold to 58,450.

The GMC 400 contributed to the highest occupancy levels in our accommodation sector in the past 12 years for that time of year. Reports by the Canberra Visitors Centre and the accommodation industry associations indicate that Canberra's accommodation sector was almost fully booked during the June long weekend.

The survey of tourist accommodation for the June quarter of 2000, issued by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, has also confirmed the event's value to the tourism industry. The survey indicates that for the 2000 June quarter room occupancy rates increased by 3.8 per cent over the same period in 1999, rising to 64.7 per cent. The national average was 57.1 per cent, with the ACT achieving the highest occupancy rate in the country for that period.

The room nights occupied in the ACT increased by 14.1 per cent to 296,400. Nationally this figure rose by an average of 6.1 per cent. Room supply in the ACT also increased to 5,032 in the June 2000 quarter and was 7.4 per cent higher than the 1999 figure. Serviced apartment room supply also increased sharply by 19.2 per cent during this quarter. Takings for accommodation increased by 18.6 per cent to $30.1 million, compared with a 9.8 per cent increase nationwide. The overall increases in the tourist accommodation sector in a traditionally quiet tourism period in the ACT can be directly attributed to the impact of the GMC 400.

One of the reasons for attracting new events to the territory is the creation of new jobs. I am pleased to inform the Assembly that the event has delivered a far greater number of jobs than we expected. The GMC 400 created a large number of full-time and part-time jobs in areas such as catering, security, construction and administration.

The GMC 400 was screened throughout Australia on Network Ten and Fox Sports One and on TV One in New Zealand. Telecasts included fabulous aerial shots of the national capital, supplemented by images featuring the beauty of our city and the parliamentary triangle. Sponsorship Information Services was engaged to provide an independent

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