Business Events Perth (BE Perth) will receive $15 million in funding as part of the Western Australian Government’s new tourism recovery package, which was announced by WA Premier Mark McGowan today.

Working in alignment with WA’s Safe Transition Plan, the $185 million Reconnect WA funding package will target tourists, skilled workers, international students, and events, including attracting lucrative business events, to the State.

The package also includes a $65 million aviation find directed towards re-establishing international and interstate flight routes, as well as targeting new routes including Germany India, China, and Vietnam.

BE Perth chair Bradley Woods said the funding would act as a direct and significant boost to WA’s tourism industry and praised the State Government for recognising the importance of the business events sector.

“In 2019, BE Perth generated $153 million in confirmed business events with $5.3 million in funding, which is a return on investment of 1:29, so we expect that this new funding from the WA State Government will generate significant economic returns for Western Australia and also support Perth’s CBD hotels which have borne the brunt of the pandemic,” Woods said.

The recovery of the State’s visitor economy is expected to have a flow-on effect to a broader range of businesses, with delegates staying at local hotels, dining at local restaurants, going on local tours and shopping in local outlets during their visit to WA.

“With business event delegates spending up to five times more than their leisure counterparts and almost two thirds of delegates choosing to attend a conference in order to extend their trip to take a holiday, the business events sector has a vital role to play in the ongoing recovery of Western Australia’s overall tourism industry.”

BE Perth chief executive officer Gareth Martin said the State Government’s funding over the last 15 months has enabled BE Perth to directly support 350 local events while securing a pipeline of national and international business events for the coming years.

“Thanks to this new funding, WA will be able to attract more conferences and more delegates, supporting the recovery of our visitor economy and helping our State become an even more internationally competitive and globally recognisable destination,” Martin said.

Full details of the package are expected to be released shortly.