Simon McGrath, Chief Operating Officer for Accor Pacific — Photo by Accor

With estimates that border closures are costing Queensland $17 million* a day, Accor Pacific, Australia's largest hotel group, is calling for urgent action to save the ailing state.

Simon McGrath, Chief Operating Officer for Accor Pacific, said: "The current border restrictions mean that Queensland will miss out on the summer dollar, a crucial period for local businesses, the economy and jobs.

Now is when people are booking visits for the next 3 to 6 months and if they don't have certainty that Queensland will be open, then Queensland will miss the surge in travel and fall behind other states.

Queensland could go from leadership to last in the race for tourism.

Many Australians love to visit Queensland and tourism annually contributes $25 billion to the Queensland economy and employs 217,000 Queenslanders (directly or indirectly).

If Queensland misses this crucial booking window and job keeper falls away, then some hotels will close for the first six months of 2021.

This will significantly impair the state's ability to bounce back; certainty is required now."

According to Austrade, Queensland has around 30,000 hotel rooms and apartments across the state. Accor predicts that over 70% could sit unoccupied through the coming months if the border uncertainty continues, which could lead to business closures for the first six months of 2021. This is not just bad news for the hotel business, but has a knock-on effect for local business owners too.

Simon McGrath continued, "The livelihoods of small business owners, from café owners, to restaurants to taxi drivers are at stake.

We are urging the State Government to use common sense, provide clarity and safely open up borders, which will set Queensland up for a stronger 2021 and save jobs. We all want to see local businesses thriving and workers return to work.

A hard border reopening date will give the rest of Australia the certainty they need to make plans for the future, and people need to be assured that when borders do eventually open, they will stay open.

As soon as we are certain of a border reopen date, Queensland should prepare for a big summer boom."

*SOURCES: Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland and the Queensland Government

About Accor, a world-leading hospitality group

Accor is a world leading hospitality group consisting of more than 5,300 properties and 10,000 food and beverage venues throughout 110 countries. The group has one of the industry's most diverse and fully-integrated hospitality ecosystems encompassing more than 40 luxury, premium, midscale and economy hotel brands, entertainment and nightlife venues, restaurants and bars, branded private residences, shared accommodation properties, concierge services, co-working spaces and more. Accor's unmatched position in lifestyle hospitality – one of the fastest growing categories in the industry – is led by Ennismore, a joint venture, which Accor holds a majority shareholding. Ennismore is a creative hospitality company with a global collective of entrepreneurial and founder-built brands with purpose at their heart. Accor boasts an unrivalled portfolio of distinctive brands and more than 260,000 team members worldwide. Members benefit from the company's comprehensive loyalty program – ALL - Accor Live Limitless – a daily lifestyle companion that provides access to a wide variety of rewards, services and experiences. Through its Planet 21 – Acting Here, Accor Solidarity, RiiSE and ALL Heartist Fund initiatives, the Group is focused on driving positive action through business ethics, responsible tourism, environmental sustainability, community engagement, diversity and inclusivity. Founded in 1967, Accor SA is headquartered in France and publicly listed on the Euronext Paris Stock Exchange (ISIN code: FR0000120404) and on the OTC Market (Ticker: ACCYY) in the United States. For more information visit group.accor.com, or follow Accor on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.