QHA-Review_Feb_Digital

Bernie Hogan, Tom McGuire AM and Richard Deery
THE YEAR AHEAD
Like many Australians, I enjoyed a bit of time off over summer. I headed to some of Queensland’s best beaches and
enjoyed meals with friends at member restaurants, pubs and hotels throughout the state.
Unlike many Australians, I tore myself away from Netflix to do a lot of research on economics and forecasts for the
year ahead. Despite the typical amount of uncertainty in the future and the usual doomsayers that are trying to sell
newspapers and ‘clicks’ online, I am remarkably upbeat for 2023.
Australia is in an extraordinarily fortunate position. This has little to do with the politicians inhabiting our news feeds
and a lot to do with the ingenuity of Australian business owners to change their offerings quickly. Yes, there will be
some Australian families that will be experiencing a squeeze on their household budgets for the first time. This is
unsurprising as we have had economic growth for over two decades in Australia.
Yes there is war in Europe, but Australians don’t rely on Russian gas for heat or air-conditioning. If anything,
economic downturn in Australia will be of our own making, not the market conditions, but only if we discontinue to
innovate nor seek to improve our businesses.
International tourists and working holiday-makers are returning in droves, alleviating the labour shortages. China is
slowly opening up again to Australian exports and increasing the earning of Australian families. There’s also been
good rain across the agricultural sector injecting life into these communities.
In short, there are a lot of positives to be taken into 2023 and we can’t let the doomsday prophets talk down our
future. QHA will be out with more training, events and opportunities for our members than ever before. Keep an eye
out for energy deals for members, Pubs, Pots and Profits and of course improvements to our patron safety that will
roll out this year.
Also, I could not finish without mentioning the largest change for us here at the QHA. As has been reported already,
Tom McGuire AM has decided to retire from the office as President of QHA. Tom has been an integral part of
why QHA has been so successful over the decades that he has been involved. Since 2006, Tom has guided our
association through many testing times and always sought to improve our members, particularly those in our regional
areas.
On a personal note (and I feel I can speak for my predecessors), working with Tom as President has been one of the
great privileges of being the Chief Executive of the QHA. Thank you Tom.
BERNIE HOGAN
QHA CHIEF EXECUTIVE/EDITOR
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