The Minister for Jobs and Tourism is a minister in the

Government of New South Wales The Government of New South Wales, also known as the NSW Government, is the executive state government of New South Wales, Australia. The government comprises 11 portfolios, led by a ministerial department and supported by several agencies. Th ...

with responsibilities for

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

in the state of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. Tourism has often been combined with other portfolio responsibilities, most commonly

Sport Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...

. The Minister in Charge of Tourist Activities and Immigration was a ministry in the government of New South Wales, responsible for promoting New South Wales as a place to visit and encouraging migration through its offices in London, and for the management of government-owned resorts. It was created in 1946 and abolished in 1950.

Role and responsibilities

A government agency responsible for tourism and immigration was first created in 1905, the Intelligence Department, whose duties were "designed to make the attractions and possibilities of the State better known at home and a abroad, and to promote settlement on the land and to encourage immigration". It was renamed the Immigration and Tourist Bureau in 1908. In 1919 the bureau was divided into two separate agencies, with immigration becoming the responsibility of the Minister for Labour and Industry while the Tourist Bureau was the responsibility of the Chief Secretary. In 1938 Management of the Tourist Bureau was transferred to the Department of Railways. The responsibilities of the Tourist Bureau were managing the tourist resorts at

Jenolan Caves The Jenolan Caves (Tharawal language, Tharawal: ''Binoomea'', ''Bindo'', ''Binda'') are limestone cave, limestone caves located within the Jenolan Karst Conservation Reserve in the Central Tablelands region, west of the Blue Mountains (New Sout ...

, Jenolan Caves House, Abercrombie Caves, Yarrangobilly Caves, Wombeyan Caves and Hotel Kosciusko. The also conducted tours and published promotional material on NSW tourist attractions. The elevation of tourist activities to a ministerial level was controversial. The Premier

William McKell Sir William John McKell, (26 September 1891 – 11 January 1985) was an Australian politician who served as the 12th Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1947 to 1953. He had previously been Premier of New South Wales from 1941 to 19 ...

stated that there was a need for a Minister to devote himself to these matters and that "It is becoming increasingly, recognised, not only here but throughout the world, that we have much to offer the tourist, but to take full advantage of our opportunities we must take active steps to organise the trade and provide the facilities required".

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuous ...

criticised the unnecessary cost of the portfolio, stating there was no justification for the new office as immigration was a commonwealth matter and the political sphere was the worst way to develop tourist activities. The portfolio was abolished in the third McGirr ministry, with a new portfolio of

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...

, while tourism ceased to be represented at a ministerial level until the fourth Cahill ministry in 1959.

List of ministers

Jobs

Minister for Employment was a title which existed beside Industrial Relations in the Wran and Unsworth ministries. Employment continued at a portfolio as part of composite portfolios until the Third Fahey ministry in 1995 when it was merged into the Industrial relations portfolio. The portfolio was responsible for developing and managing job creation programs, to advise the government on the employment impacts of its policies and to analyse the labour market with particular interest in the effects of structural change and constraints in employment growth. Employment had not previously been represented in a portfolio. The following individuals have served as Minister where Employment was one of the responsibilities in the portfolio:

Tourism

The following individuals have served as minister where tourism was one of the responsibilities in the portfolio:

Former ministerial titles

Major events

The Minister for Major Events was a ministry first established in 2010 in the

Keneally ministry The Keneally ministry is the 92nd ministry of the Government of New South Wales, and was led by the 42nd Premier Kristina Keneally. The ministry was formed following a caucus motion to elect a new Leader of the Australian Labor Party in Ne ...

and combined with

Tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

and Gaming and Racing in the

O'Farrell ministry The O'Farrell ministry was the 93rd ministry of the Government of New South Wales, and was led by Barry O'Farrell, the state's 43rd Premier. The Liberal– National coalition ministry was formed following the defeat of the Keneally-led La ...

. Major Events was abolished as a portfolio title in the

second Berejiklian ministry The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of Un ...

. The first minister with specific responsibility for a major event was Michael Knight as the Minister for Olympics, following the success of the Sydney bid to host the 2000 Summer Olympics. The minister concurrently held the portfolios of Public Works and Services and

Roads A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. The ...

and was closely linked to the provisions of buildings and infrastructure for the event. The portfolio of Major Events was not responsible for a department, nor any legislation, with the ''Major Events Act'' 2009 remaining the responsibility of the

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

. The first minister,

Ian Macdonald Ian MacCormick (known by the pseudonym Ian MacDonald; 3 October 1948 – 20 August 2003) was an English music critic, journalist and author, best known for both '' Revolution in the Head'', his critical history of the Beatles which borrowed te ...

, also held the portfolios of State and Regional Development, Mineral and Forest Resources, and Central Coast. In 2011 the portfolio was absorbed by the new portfolio of Tourism, Major Events, Hospitality and Racing and remained a named part of portfolios until 2019 when it became part of the portfolio of Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney. The following individuals have served as minister before major events was combined with tourism:

Assistant ministers

Notes

References

{{New South Wales ministerial portfolios Jobs and Tourism Tourism in New South Wales Events in New South Wales