Page 1647 - Week 05 - Thursday, 11 May 2017
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frequency of services on the route and how supporting freight expansion might assist with this ambition.
Having the opportunity to engage with the CEO of one of the world’s largest airlines is significant. Reinforcing the ACT government’s commitment to support the growth of the direct service is invaluable, and I thank Mr Goh for his time and for his ongoing support of Canberra. The opportunity to grow freight movement out of Canberra Airport is an important part of supporting existing connections and driving new aviation links.
I followed the meeting with Mr Goh with a visit to the Changi Airport Air Freight Centre SATS Coolport. Together with High Commissioner Gosper we toured the facility and saw the infrastructure in place that is used to process perishable goods as well as the training procedures and policies to handle them. This tour provides an opportunity to see firsthand how goods are processed through Changi, enabling access to the Singapore market.
Madam Speaker, 25 April is, of course, Anzac Day and my first engagement on that Tuesday was attending a dawn service hosted by the New Zealand and Australian high commissions at the Kranji memorial cemetery. I then travelled to NEC’s Singapore laboratories to gain an understanding of the newly established NEC operations in Singapore and to learn about their tech investment focus in smart city capabilities, how this might apply in Canberra and to support the ACT government’s smart city program.
We are rolling out a range of smart city initiatives, such as the CBR free wi-fi network, however, it is clear that we must do more and make further investments in the right technology. The dialogue with NEC was productive, supporting previous connections made with their presence in the City of Wellington and their partnership with the Wellington City Council.
The day was rounded out with meetings with the Singapore Rugby Union and the Singapore Tourism Board. I accepted an invitation by the ACT Brumbies to participate in a meeting with the Singapore Rugby Union to discuss development of a rugby partnership between the Brumbies and the City of Singapore. The discussion with the Singapore Tourism Board focused on developing creative ways for promoting the capital express route in a range of key markets.
Wednesday, 26 April was an important one for Canberra and the next phase of our engagement with Singapore. My first appointment of the day was with Mr Daniel King, the managing director of BNP Paribas Wealth Management. As an ANU alumnus, Mr King has maintained a keen interest in Canberra, particularly across the innovation ecosystem and entrepreneurial activities that offer opportunities for investment.
BNP Paribas is a provider of financial services on a worldwide scale. In the Asia Pacific the company has over 15,000 employees and a presence in 14 markets. Mr King has directly facilitated investment for the Canberra-based company Seeing Machines and supported the expansion of the Canberra business Patissez into
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