Page 1627 - Week 05 - Thursday, 5 May 2016
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There is no evidence of what the Chief Minister said, and what he said was not worthy of the Chief Minister of the ACT. When he got called out on them being predatory, he said they were just like fast food chains and that what he did not want was little clubs—little clubs that were there for a specific purpose—disappearing in the fast food chain look of the large clubs. You can take that up with the large club groups, which include the Tradies, and the Labor club, the Southern Cross Club, the Vikings, the Hellenic Club and all of those large groups, the Ainslie club—all of the groups that in their way do a great job for us.
We have to have a fundamental decision as to whether or not we want to support our local community in the best way that we can and how we do that. The way that we do that is not to allow a foreign-owned company that bought a casino knowing that it did not have poker machines now seeking to change the rules and change the entire model.
What does the club system do for the ACT? It has more than 200,000 members. Clubs spend, for instance, $1.2 million every year on music royalties. They are probably the largest sponsor of music, particularly live music, in the ACT. They donate over $11 million every year to the community. Let us go down to the local shops. If you are the local butcher, there is $1.8 million spent on purchasing meat. One of the quirky facts that have come out is that the clubs serve 1.1 million chicken schnitzels every year in the ACT. That is local; that is families; that is ordinary people going out to a venue where they feel safe, where they feel welcome, where, given the rising cost of living courtesy of this government through the rates, they can actually afford a meal. And it is quick and convenient because it is in their neighbourhood. It is their community.
Canberra clubs support over 1,000 community groups every year, and 50 of those are cultural or religious groups supported in addition to the non-ethnic clubs. Something like 2,300 people are employed by clubs in the ACT.
And it is not just that; it is what they provide. Canberra clubs have given $131.6 million to local sporting teams and sporting infrastructure since the year 2000. In fact, Canberra clubs maintain two-thirds of sport and recreational infrastructure in the ACT. They maintain over 400 hectares of urban green space for sporting use. The ACT government maintains only 300 hectares. This is what the government wants to put at risk, whether it be a racecourse, a hockey field, a yacht club or a BMX track. Three cricket fields, six golf courses, 20 bowling greens, five football fields, tennis courts and a basketball stadium are maintained by the not-for-profit ACT club sector. That is the difference.
On their own website some of the words about the club ethos summarise it beautifully:
Canberra’s clubs are not-for-profit organisations. The management and operations of clubs reflect their social, not-for-profit aims and the spirit of mutual benefit and community service for which they were established.
Clubs provide low cost facilities and fund various local community activities in part because of the involvement of volunteers. Using volunteer labour in the form of directors, and for trading, sporting and other purposes enables clubs to reduce labour costs and pass on savings to club members and the community.
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