Senate debates

Tuesday, 23 November 2021

Statements

COVID-19: Cinemas

1:48 pm

Photo of Rex PatrickRex Patrick (SA, Independent) Share this | | Hansard source

Cinemas have done it tough throughout COVID. They were closed during lockdowns, and they were limited in their capacity when they were finally allowed to open up, due to social distancing requirements. There's also, of course, an apprehension about going into cinemas—small rooms with a lot of other people. Finally, it's very hard to get blockbuster movies to display in circumstances where the United States or Europe were closed down, so cinemas have been quite affected by circumstances in other countries.

When JobKeeper ended, I advocated for, and the government provided, $20 million in funding in a screen fund to assist cinema operators. Some $9.8 million was distributed. Unfortunately, what's happened since is that we've had lockdowns in both Victoria and New South Wales. Whilst in South Australia there weren't any lockdowns, again distributors wouldn't release movies. Why release movies to a small market in South Australia that undermines openings in Victoria and New South Wales? So we've got cinemas that are really struggling. Unfortunately, we heard yesterday that Wallis Cinemas at Gepps Cross—the drive-in cinema—is going to have to close.

Now, there's $10.2 million sitting in a fund approved for cinemas, and the government's refusing to release that. In circumstances where they gave $13 billion away to companies that didn't need it, now we've got cinemas who desperately need it and they won't give it to them. They let them get all the way through COVID, and now they're going to let them fail. That is just stupid.