Ahead of the NSW state election, the Night Time Industries Association is calling on both sides to ‘commit to the night, commit to jobs, commit to operators and making NSW a world leader after dark’.
NSW Labor has already said that, if elected, it will extend the remit of 24-Hour Economy Commissioner, Mike Rodrigues, broadening the scope of the office beyond Sydney to include the Greater Cities Commission’s Six Cities, namely: the Lower Hunter and Greater Newcastle City, Central Coast City, Illawarra-Shoalhaven City, Western Parkland City, Central River City and Eastern Harbour City.
Labor also says that it will make the 24-Hour Economy Commissioner’s Office a statutory appointment meaning that the office is enshrined in legislation and signifying a ‘commitment to the office in the long term,’ says NTIA CEO Mick Gibb.
“Giving the 24 Hour Economy Commissioner’s Office an expanded remit means the office can build on its significant work to date and orchestrate the mechanisms of government to push for real change that bolsters industry. A stronger night time economy means more jobs, opportunities and prospects for NSW,” he says.
NTIA released its election statement urging all parties to build on the progress that it says has been made since Sydney’s lockout laws ended and pandemic restrictions were lifted.
Gibb says, “Fine tuning regulatory settings and legislation can have tangible impacts on how and where the night time economy operates. It can give operators the confidence to put on an extra band night each week or a small bar operator to open a new venue.
“There are more than 42,000 core night time economy venues across NSW employing more
than 279,000 people. It’s not hard to imagine how great an economic contribution this sector
could make with ongoing and expanded commitment.”
He adds that auditing sound and noise legislation must be one of the first agenda items for whoever is elected into leadership.
“Right now sound from a live music venue is treated in much the same way as a construction site. It’s an inappropriate regulatory regime that gives vexatious complainants too many avenues to complain,” he says.
NTIA’s Election Statement also requests that the elected state government:
- co-invest with local councils to create illuminated and patrolled spaces between nightlife precincts and transportation hubs
- deliver 24-hour public transportation across greater Sydney
- address the prohibitive costs of public liability insurance faced by live music and performance agents
- attract more blockbuster performances by increasing the availability of large scale performance venues with the capacity to host big crowd events.
Longer term, NTIA wants the state government to ’embed night time industries in large scale government and private developments’, suggesting that ‘residential zoning should accommodate multifunctional spaces for culture, hospitality and entertainment’.
The NSW election will take place on Saturday, 25 March.
Photo of Mike Rodrigues with thanks to Destination NSW.
