Peter Jones shares his reaction to the publication of the Victorian Events Industry Enquiry

Well, we knew it was coming and we knew what it was going to say but that doesn’t change the fact that it is now laid out for everyone to see. The harsh reality has really hit home.

The report covers everything from border closures, restrictions on numbers, the potential use of vouchers, insurance and makes many recommendations which are all available to read online

Whilst we all understand and accept these, the scary thing is that at the end it says the government has six months to respond. That alone takes us to at least January before anything can really happen and then I’m sure it won’t be an overnight flick of the switch to enact whatever is finally agreed upon.

The simple fact is that many businesses will not be able to survive that long.

So, here’s an idea that I know many of my colleagues are thinking along the same lines – rather than looking at the entire report and waiting for the Government to respond, let’s concentrate on the key areas that may be possible to be addressed with the government now as a priority.

And that’s where we need your help. What’s more important to you right now?

• Event insurance
• Some form of ongoing financial assistance and standardized codes
• The establishment of one body to represent the industry
• How to restore confidence that events can happen in a guaranteed time frame after lockdowns
• Knowing what the health department will say in relation to events opening up when we get to the 70%-80% vaccination targets later this year.
• Some form of vaccination passport for events

I’m sure there will be other priorities not listed here so feel free to mention them. I do know that the Victorian Government is listening and is fully aware of the urgency of the situation.

This is not just a Victorian issue.  These same issues are affecting the event industry in all states.

So here is our opportunity to say to them here is what is important to us as an industry right now and can they be prioritized as a matter of urgency.

Have your say here or on the Event Professionals Facebook Group