Justine Elliot (Richmond, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak about the effects of the COVID-19 crisis in my electorate of Richmond, on the New South Wales North Coast. It's been a very tough time across the country, but particularly hard in our regional areas. In late 2019 we had the bushfires right throughout our communities, and many had only just begun to recover. Then, at the start of this year, we had the COVID-19 crisis and its many consequences, including the first recession in decades. This crisis is, of course, both a health crisis and an economic crisis, and it is particularly harsh in our regions. Industries in my region were hit hard at the very start of the pandemic. Our main industries, like retail, tourism and hospitality, were especially affected, as were those in the arts and entertainment sector. We've seen devastation right across our local economy—workers losing their jobs; our struggling local businesses; the impact on some of our major employers, such as our local councils, our airports at Gold Coast and Ballina, the Southern Cross University; and the loss of large music festivals.

At the start of the pandemic, Labor called for wage subsidies and we welcomed JobKeeper and its recent extension. It's vitally important that JobKeeper be extended, and we've supported that, as many businesses and employees rely on it. We need to do whatever we can to keep local people in local jobs and support our local economies. But very, very importantly, we need a jobs plan for the future, for the recovery, tailored towards rebuilding. The focus must be on protecting jobs and keeping businesses viable. Whilst the extension of JobKeeper is needed, there are still many people who've been excluded, and this is a major concern. Indeed, many of the hardest hit industries are those that have been excluded from JobKeeper, and they include many casual workers and those in the arts and entertainment sector.

When we look at any indicator, the impacts in the regions are massive. In fact, we have some of the highest percentages of businesses that rely on JobKeeper: Byron shire, more than 60 per cent of businesses; Tweed shire, more than 50 per cent; and Ballina shire, more than 40 per cent. Current figures for my electorate show there are now almost 8,700 locals accessing JobKeeper. We've also seen massive increases in the number of locals receiving support through JobSeeker and through youth allowance. Currently, there are over 14,900 North Coast locals who are unemployed or underemployed and accessing income support. That is an increase of almost 8,000 people. We've seen an increase in the number of young people on youth allowance, with an additional 1,000 young people receiving youth allowance in the six-month period between December 2019 and May 2020—that's an increase of 169 per cent.

On the North Coast we're very fortunate to have an incredibly diverse and vibrant arts and entertainment sector, but the government has left those workers and that industry behind. The government must provide much more overall industry-specific support to this sector because of the vast numbers that it employs and the huge economic benefits that it generates.

My region is the home of the music festivals, and our three largest major festivals have all been forced to cancel this year: Bluesfest, Splendour in the Grass and now Falls Festival—all major economic drivers in our community. Bluesfest is one of Australia's most acclaimed and respected music festivals. It's operated by a 100 per cent Australian owned company, and it is Australia's most highly awarded event. It is a five-time winner of the New South Wales Tourism award for major events and a member of the New South Wales Tourism Hall of Fame. Due to the crisis, the event was cancelled this year, resulting in a massive economic loss for our community and our region. Reports indicate the loss of the event this year will cost our region approximately $130 million and more than 1,400 full-time employment positions. That is a huge economic loss.

Yet the Morrison government is failing to support this industry and the broader arts and entertainment sector. This industry, like so many in my region, needs support. This pandemic has meant that our local workers and our businesses on the North Coast have been dealt a devastating economic blow. Our regional economies need more support, tailored to the needs of our area. We need a specific jobs plan, we need increased infrastructure investment and we need greater education and training opportunities for our young people. Our regions matter, and the Morrison government must stop neglecting them. This is why we need a concrete plan from this government about rebuilding, focusing on the recovery, focusing on jobs. Workers, businesses and communities need, and absolutely deserve, a comprehensive plan to get them through this crisis. I'm calling on the Morrison government to act and put in place a specific jobs plan, based on the recovery and based on rebuilding. Our regions need and deserve it now.