HUNTER promoters have welcomed the NSW Government's commitment to reform the controversial Music Festivals Act and offer funding support to the struggling industry.
Minister for Music and the Night-time Economy, John Graham, and Health Minister, Ryan Park, announced plans on Tuesday to amend the Music Festivals Act, which would make it easier for under-18 punters to attend festivals.
Under the planned changes all festivals would be required to have a health and medical plan. It is hoped the focus will shift towards health and safety, rather than security.
The NSW Government will also introduce a $3 million emergency funding pool for two years for festivals that cater for a capacity of 15,000 people or more. Festivals can apply for up to $500,000.
Larger festivals have been dealt a particularly painful blow over the past year as rising inflation and insurance and production costs have combined with softening ticket demand.
In the Hunter long-standing music festivals Groovin The Moo' and This That have been cancelled, while other major NSW events such as Splendour In The Grass and Falls Festival have gone on hiatus.
Newcastle's Greg Mathew, who was a co-promoter of This That and has launched new festival Howlin' Country in Foreshore Park on February 15, said the announcement was positive news for the industry.
"You can set an event budget and work to it and then in two months it can completely change and go up quickly just purely because of everyone's insurance," Mr Mathew said.
"If everyone's fees go up it goes to the promoter, and what does the promoter do? They just put it back on the consumer and nobody buys a ticket.
"It's definitely a really good starting point to break down the vulnerabilities of trying to put on outdoor events in any capacity. It's hard because of the risk and the reward is so small these days. It's not appealing to do it."
Howlin' Country will be headlined by American country star Tyler Childers and has a capacity of 15,000. Mr Mathew said he would likely apply for the NSW Government's emergency funding assistance.
The funding pool will not be available to Lower Belford music festivals Gum Ball and Dashville Skyline, which comfortably sit under that 15,000 mark, but promoter Matt Johnston said changes to the 2019 Music Festivals Act would be beneficial.
In particular, Mr Johnston welcomed the winding back of the 2019 Music Festivals Act introduced by the Gladys Berejiklian government which saw some festivals labelled "high risk" by the Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority on recommendation from police and NSW Health.
This led to a rapid spike in security costs.
Under the mooted NSW Government changes, all festivals would be treated equally and be required to submit a health and medical plan.
"In terms of the all-ages events it's a pretty positive step forward because it's almost impossible to host all-ages events of any capacity," Mr Johnston said.
"Even some of the 100-cap [all-ages] events have attracted a lot of attention from the police for some reason. That heavy-handiness approach is never going to fair well when it comes to these situations.
"The current government seems to value what is truly a really important thing, the development of youth and youth culture."
Asked if the emergency funding should be available to smaller festivals as well, Mr Johnston said: "I think they're looking at a particular type of product in terms of the festivals that really did fall over."
