If re-elected, the Liberal government would establish a $500,000 fund to help stimulate interest by Yukoners in travelling inside the territory, two ministers announced this morning.

Tourism and Culture Minister Jeanie McLean and Economic Development Minister Ranj Pillai said the planned funding is meant to entice Yukoners to be tourists in their own territory.

The money would assist Yukon organizations to host events this summer, they said.

They also announced a Mountain Music Festival to be held this fall, featuring local artists.

“In my time as minister of Tourism and Culture, I worked closely with leaders in the tourism sector to build the Yukon Tourism Development Strategy, which became the foundation for the Tourism Relief and Recovery Plan that our Liberal government announced last fall,” McLean said.

“That plan will provide up to $15 million over three years to help this sector survive the pandemic and rebound stronger than ever.

“We also have approximately $13 million dedicated to tourism in the annual budget, so the $15 million is over and above that amount.”

To fully rebound, she said, the Yukon tourism industry will need to be able to welcome visitors from across Canada and around world.

“Slowly but surely, we are getting closer to that goal, but we know there is still a long way to go,” McLean said.

“Today I am very pleased to announce that a re-elected Yukon Liberal government will launch the Great Yukon Summer campaign as part of our plan to reignite tourism and support Yukon businesses across the territory,” she said.

“The Great Yukon Summer campaign will create incentives for Yukon tourism operators to offer Yukoner Rates for tourism products and services this summer.

“It will also provide Yukon businesses free access to the Yukon government’s marketing agencies to help them build campaigns to maximize the attraction of Yukoners in the summer of 2021.”

Pillai thanked McLean for her work on the Tourism Relief and Recovery Plan.

“The plan provides comprehensive supports for tourism businesses, including those in the accommodation sector and culture and tourism non-profit organizations,” said Pillai.

“Increased funding for the Tourism Cooperative Marketing Fund, the ELEVATE business mentoring program in partnership with Yukon University, and a three-year destination marketing strategy are all included in the Plan.”

The Economic Development minister noted how the Liberal government allocated more than $107 million last year to manage the pandemic, support Yukoners and provide relief to protect the Yukon’s economy.

“This year, we budgeted nearly $50 million in the 2021-22 budget to continue to provide these supports,” Pillai pointed out.

“I know that in my conversations with the business sector – and there have been too many to count – they have really appreciated and benefited from the support programs we put in place.

“We know there is more work to do to get us out of the pandemic, but we have laid a solid foundation and the Great Yukon Summer campaign is just one of the ways we plan to keep it going.”