Unemployment in the Far North has dropped from 12.4% to 8.9% in the last two months, showing that the region is "recovering and rebuilding" according to Federal Member for Leichhardt, Jim Turnour.  


In a statement sent to the Newsport, Mr Turnour said "With the drier conditions upon us, there is great deal of government stimulus work now underway, including school upgrades, road improvements and social housing developments.These projects have been critical to creating and supporting jobs in the region while the private sector has been in retreat during the tough economic conditions."

He noted that another positive sign for the region is more domestic and international flights are coming to Cairns. "I've been working hard to attract new flights to Cairns; the government has provided additional marketing support and is undertaking long sought after aviation regulatory reforms, and we are seeing positive results."

The latest tourism data shows Tropical North Queensland has outperformed the rest of Australia, increasing its share of domestic overnight tourism expenditure by 4% at a time when spending has remained flat at a national level.

If you're directly or indirectly involved in the tourism industry we want to hear your thoughts on whether you're seeing this reported increase.