The NSW Labor candidate for Oxley, Susan Jenvey, claims the live music scene in the local region will receive a boost under a Michael Daley Labor Government, if they are elected.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Ms Jenvey said a Labor Government would “remove red tape, encourage more venues to open and prevent unreasonable complaints from holding venues to ransom”.
“Labor’s plan to get music venues back on their feet follows years of stifling regulation by the Liberals and Nationals,” Ms Jenvey said.
“NSW Labor has a comprehensive plan to support our live music industry. Short-term cash splashes will not solve the industry’s problems. Labor’s broad and long term approach will.
“Labor has identified venues in Oxley, including The Ocean View Hotel at Urunga and The Riverside Tavern in South West Rocks, as operating with restrictive and outdated licensing laws.”
Earlier this year, a NSW Parliamentary inquiry established there was a music venue crisis in NSW.
A total of 176 venues have closed down in the past four years and there are fewer entertainment venues than when the Liberals and Nationals were elected in 2011.
“Labor recognises that music is an important part of the fabric of the community but at the moment the music is being strangled by a complex set of regulations that stymie growth,” Ms Jenvey said.
“For example, the Parliamentary inquiry found that 669 liquor licenses imposed conditions that either banned or restricted live entertainment.”
Labor believes musicians have a “right to play” and so a Daley Labor Government will act to:
- Amend the Liquor Act to introduce the “right to play” and create a new class of licence specifically for venues dedicated to live entertainment.
- Create a one-stop shop for both venues and residents to deal with noise complaints, and streamline the complex regulations that govern noise from live venues.
- Establish a single process for venues to obtain planning and liquor approvals to significantly reduce wait times for venues and provide the community with a simple comprehensive process for consultation.
- Create a Minister for Music and Night Time Economy, and hold regular round table discussions for the Night Time Economy;
- Conduct a census to establish the number of venues, musicians and performances that take place at any given time in NSW; and
- Provide practical assistance for venues with a new $1.2 million programme to venues to assist with soundproofing.
- Labor will also conduct an independent census of live venues every two years and will report statistics including the number of venues, number of performances, number of working musicians, and number of hospitality workers.
The census would provide valuable data to performers, venues and local councils, and would inform policy decisions on the sector that Labor would make in Government.
Stay ahead with local news by signing up for the Macleay Argus newsletter here.
Also making the news: