Premier Mark McGowan’s first Reconnect WA mission since the pandemic began will be focused on the State Government’s commitment to diversify the Western Australian economy, recruit new workers to WA and brief investors on WA’s finances.
The Premier’s first international visit since 2019 will see him visit Italy, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Qatar to market WA’s strong economy and safe opportunities for businesses, visitors, workers and students.
The Premier will travel to Italy on the official Qantas QF5 flight leaving Perth for Rome on Saturday June 25, 2022 to mark the commencement of the Perth to Rome, 16-hours and 25-minutes non-stop route.
Supported by the McGowan Government, this service will operate three days a week and bolster visitor numbers to WA, create and support more jobs for Western Australians, and bring additional opportunities to WA’s tourism providers and operators.
Perth’s first-ever direct connection to Rome will further strengthen economic ties with some of WA’s key trade and investment partners in Italy and Europe.
A series of tourism roundtables will be hosted in Rome and London for tourism wholesalers, key distributors and partners to meet with the Premier and WA’s tourism representatives.
The mission marks the Premier’s first visit to Italy since taking office and includes visits to Rome and Milan to meet with key tourism, trade and investment partners to boost and attract further investment in tourism, resources and renewables in WA.
The Premier will meet with key European energy players with interests in WA, including Enel Group and Saipem, as well as large-infrastructure builders Webuild Group, which are currently building a key METRONET project.
In his capacity as Treasurer, financial industry engagements will be a focus of events in London and Dublin with banks and investors, as part of the mission led by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation to help deliver better outcomes for WA’s borrowing program.
In a first, the Premier will visit Dublin on a range of economic and skilled workforce matters with the aim of attracting more skilled workers from Ireland to WA to take up jobs in residential construction, healthcare, hospitality, tourism and the mining sector.
This builds on the McGowan Government’s efforts to attract more skilled workers to WA, including the $195 million Reconnect WA package which includes initiatives to attract international workers, skilled workers for key industries, backpackers for hospitality, agriculture and students to WA, and the dedicated ‘Belong’ advertising and recruitment campaign to attract healthcare workers.
The State Government will also expand its marketing of the ‘Build a Life in WA’ campaign to attract construction and trade workers from Ireland and European markets.
As stated by Premier Mark McGowan:
“Prior to the pandemic, WA had a proven track record of securing direct routes and new flight connections to link Western Australia with the world to make it more convenient, and to support business, investment and tourism opportunities – and I want to see this continue.
“The State Government is committed to this new route which is why we invested significantly to market and promote the new Rome-Perth flights to ensure its success, which supports jobs and diversifies the local WA economy.
“Western Australia is a safe and incredible place to live in, study, visit and do business, and this is something I will be promoting as part of the upcoming mission.
“In my capacity as the Premier and Treasurer, I will be holding a series of economic, banking and financial meetings to showcase WA’s strong economic position we’ve held onto even throughout the pandemic, making WA an ideal place to invest and do business in.
“As my first Reconnect WA mission, there will be a significant emphasis on opportunities to diversify our economy, create more jobs and business prospects for WA, and attract more skilled workers to Western Australia.”
