Yesterday evening I championed music festivals in New South Wales, and particularly our local Groovin' The Moo festival.

I argued that the Government needs to step back from its current inflexible position in the Music Festivals Bill which is being debated in Parliament this week.

I am concerned that music festivals will simply pack up and move out of the State, affecting our cultural opportunities and our local economy. This is what I said:



In 2003 two Newcastle neighbours, one a teacher and the other a statistician, were having a drink together one evening and came up with idea of hosting a music festival for people in the greater Newcastle and Lake Macquarie region. From that first conversation and that idea, the great music festival that we now know as Groovin the Moo was born. Those two friends tell the story of their festival on the Groovin the Moo website and it is an inspiring story. They wanted to create a cultural event that the whole of the local communitythe whole of my communitycould be a part of: the Newcastle TAFE Music School, local bands, local clubs and local businesses. It is an event that was serviced by local community groups with the main focus being on fun and affordability. I wonder if, in 2003, those neighbours knew where their dream would take them.

In April 2005, after much planning and preparation, the first Groovin the Moo festival took place at the Gloucester Showground, about an hour away from my electorate and 1,400 people attended and had a great time. The following year the festival moved to its new home in Maitland, just up the road from where the people in my electorate live. Groovin the Moo also gave birth to parallel music festivals in Albury and Darwin. In 2007 the festival in Maitland sold out for the first time. Twelve years later, Groovin the Moo was hosted ealier this year in Wayville in South Australia, Maitland, Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory, Bendigo in Victoria, Townsville in Queensland and Bunbury in Western Australia.

If I sound like I am proud of this festival, it is because I am. Groovin the Moo was conceived in the Hunter and it is one of the great exports of the Hunterindeed, it is one of the great exports of our State to the rest of Australia. We should all be proud of its creativity and its economic benefits. We should all be grateful for it and other festivals like it. Across this Chamber we may not all share a delight in the music that this festival offers; it may not necessarily be to all of our tastes, but which of us would not wish that such a festival could be held in their local community? This festival brings not only the local community together but also people from across the State and the country, and it brings an injection of jobs and income to the region.

All that being said, imagine how I felt when I read this morning'sSydney Morning Herald. Under the headline "Festivals threaten to leave New South Wales", the article reports that the Australian Festival Association, which includes Groovin the Moo and a number of other music festivals in New South Wales, has released a joint statement saying that because of the legislation before us and because of the lack of any meaningful dialogue, these festivals are considering their future in New South Wales. So a festival which began as an idea in Newcastle, and which has expanded across Australia, may from now on be available in other States and Territories but not in its home of New South Wales.

Are we really prepared to let this happen? Are we really contemplating the withdrawal of the music festival sector from New South Wales? Are we going to stand by and allow a sector, which is worth over $325million in revenue for the New South Wales economy, to simply walk out of the door? These festivals fill hotels, restaurants, bars, coaches and many other businesses benefit from the industry. Should we let these festivals head to other States and not be held in our own State?

This is not the time for simply pushing legislation through at all costs. It is time for meaningful dialogue, a genuine roundtable and a coming together of minds, so that music festivals with the highest standards of safety can continue to thrive in our State. Labor's amendments will ensure this dialogue occurs. For the sake of our music industry, which is an important part of our economy, surely the Government will support these amendments.