The pandemic has ground Camden’s thriving event and catering industry to a halt.
“Hospitality is one of the Camden electorate’s key economic drivers and since the onset of Covid-19 many function and event venues have suffered a serious economic hit,” says the State Member for Camden Peter Sidgreaves.
Yesterday, Peter Sidgreaves took NSW Better Regulation and Innovation minister Kevin Anderson on a tour of Camden’s historic Belgenny Farm to discuss the economic impact of Covid-19 on hospitality venues.
“The shutdown period and the current restrictions not only continues to impact venues like Belgenny Farm, but a huge range of local businesses who partner with them on big events such as caterers, musicians, florists and photographers,’’ Mr Sidgreaves said.
“A number of local venues have written to me asking me to see what can be done and that is why I invited Minister Anderson to visit Belgenny Farm with me to see first-hand the impact Covid-19 is having on local businesses and what we can be doing to continue to support them.”
Following the tour, Mr Anderson said that the onset of Covid-19 has seen 80 to 90 per cent of functions either rescheduled to a new date, cancelled completely or the subject of a dispute between the operator and the customer.
“The arrival of Covid-19 changed overnight the way hospitality businesses operate and also exposed them to a mass wave of cancellations and contractual disputes,” Mr Anderson said.
“The NSW Government is working with industry, consumers and NSW Fair Trading to develop guidelines for both customers and operators to better negotiate a fair outcome when these disputes arise.
“I would like to thank Peter for the invitation to tour the beautiful Belgenny Farm and see for myself the impact Covid-19 has had on its operations.
“Peter’s passion to support local businesses through this difficult time is extremely commendable.”
