After the shock of an imposed snap 5-day lockdown in Victoria, activist group Save Victorian Events got to chalk up a significant win for the events sector yesterday (18 February), with state MPs across the board agreeing to establish a parliamentary inquiry into support for Victoria’s Tourism and Event Sectors. This follows MP Bill Shorten’s impressive presentation at federal parliament on behalf of people working in events, after being made aware of the group’s campaign.
A press release from Save Victorian Events stated “This is a direct result of nearly two thousand people and businesses from right across Victoria’s event industry working together to highlight the desperate situation in our industry. The inquiry can finally shine a light on the truly appalling way Victoria’s iconic event industry has been treated throughout this pandemic.”
MP David Davies set up the motion to get an enquiry to identify why there has been no support for tourism events and the motion received widespread support.
“This is the 3rd time that the [poor] state of the Victorian events industry has been raised by parliament” said Simon Thewlis co-founder Save Victorian Events. “But this is a huge step forward. One and half hours taken up in parliament talking about events & tourism – MPs talking about how incredibly important these are to Victoria.”
“We urgently need to get funding for the industry after March [end of JobKeepers]. That’s the absolute most urgent thing – “This is a call for the Victorian government to pay event organisers and suppliers for their lockdown decisions.” Said Thewlis.
