Thursday, 9 September 2021

 Mr T BULL (Gippsland East) (15:24): It is a pleasure to rise and say a few words on the Racing Amendment Bill 2021. It is probably best to describe this bill as a bit of a racing omnibus bill that covers a very broad spectrum of issues within the racing industry. The opposition will not be opposing this bill because we know of the importance of the racing industry to this state and we know that many of the changes that are being made to legislation via this bill are changes that have been requested by the industry.

Racing in Victoria generates $4.3 billion for the Victorian economy. Racing has some naysayers in this chamber, but it is a very, very important industry for our entire state, and it sustains more than 33 000 full-time equivalent jobs. Sometimes that small little pocket that we have that wants to talk down racing in the chamber—not the government, not the opposition, but others—needs to recognise the great importance of this sector not only to our state but also to our nation, and not only to the city but also to the multitude of country areas where racing certainly thrives. We have more than 121 000 people directly employed, volunteering or participating in the various aspects of the sector.

This bill addresses several areas, and I will just touch on them briefly before I go into some more detail. The first of those is to enable racing on Good Friday; the second is to remove the requirement for thoroughbred racing clubs to obtain ministerial approval to race on Anzac Day, and I will get into that in more detail a bit later; to enable the minister to appoint an acting racing integrity commissioner—there is currently not that provision there now; to enable the board of Harness Racing Victoria to appoint administrators to harness racing clubs, and that actually tidies up, I guess, a confusing aspect of the existing legislation at the present time; and also to improve the operations of the Victorian Racing Integrity Board (VRIB). There are some other incidental and minor changes in this bill, but they are the areas where I will focus some attention.

The first is racing on Good Friday, and this is something that we need to recognise already occurs in other jurisdictions within Australia as it also does across a number of other sporting codes. We have some significant events on Good Friday. Obviously the football is the one that immediately springs to mind, but we do have an increasing number of events being held on Good Friday. And I was pleased that when we had the bill briefing on this bill, the undertaking that I sought on behalf of the opposition was that, as a matter of courtesy and respect, racing does not commence before 1.00 pm and that any racing is scheduled after that time. I was very, very pleased that that was confirmed in the bill briefing, and I was advised that members from the government who will stand up to speak on this after me will in fact confirm that in their second-reading speeches. So if any of you are listening, if you could work into your speeches that commitment, that would be terrific. This is the situation—after 1.00 pm—that exists on Anzac Day as a matter of respect to our fallen, and it is highly applicable that we transfer that obviously to Good Friday as well.

Now, from my previous contributions in this chamber it is no secret that I am a very strong advocate and supporter of country racing, and what I am very, very pleased about, member for Forest Hill, is that these Good Friday meetings will be held in country areas. That is fantastic. They will be held in country areas on a rotational basis, and that will provide a terrific opportunity to boost tourism and boost the economy of a lot of our country towns. It will be on a rotational basis, so different parts of Victoria will get a bite of the pie over the advent of the next few years. But I was very, very pleased to hear, as was my colleague the member for Gippsland South, that the Sale Turf Club will be the beneficiary of the first Good Friday meeting.

I was hoping that in the redistribution of the electoral boundaries Gippsland East would move by one road and I would have the Sale Turf Club in my electorate, but unfortunately the boundaries stayed the same and it is still about 200 metres out of my patch—so you certainly do not win them all. I have got Bairnsdale Racing Club and some fantastic picnic clubs, but I certainly would not have knocked back the opportunity to have Sale. I have had the opportunity to have a chat with the chief executive of the Sale Turf Club, Brad Evans, and Brad has indicated to me—and Brad has done a great job since he has taken over there at the club—that the turf club activities on the day will reflect the Christian perspective of Good Friday. He certainly acknowledged that there is a need to do that, and he also indicated, very pleasingly I might add, that the club is very keen to participate in the Good Friday Appeal aspect of the day. We know that the famous Royal Children’s Hospital appeal on Good Friday does an enormous amount of good in raising funds and bringing communities together for a common cause. We can go to any corner of this state and find beneficiaries of the Royal Children’s Hospital, who just do extraordinary work. So the fact that that will be a focus of this Good Friday race day at Sale, and I am sure a focus of the Good Friday race days at other venues in the future, I think is very, very important.

Apart from that, the great aspect of being able to race on Good Friday is that Easter is considered, amongst other things, a holiday weekend. A lot of people travel to areas of rural and regional Victoria to take in the local attractions and the local events, and this will provide a great opportunity for different regions and different clubs to showcase this meeting as an added attraction. So if you are coming to East Gippsland, for instance, Easter is a hive of activity.

Mr Angus interjected.

Mr T BULL: I think you have spent an Easter in East Gippsland, member for Forest Hill. We have got fish tastings, we have got speedways, we have got rodeos, we have got picnic races—we have got all sorts of things going on down there—and having another race meeting in the Gippsland region that will be a significant meeting on that day will certainly add to that list of events.

I want for a few moments to get onto other elements and other aspects of the bill. The first one relates to Anzac Day. Now, we already race on Anzac Day. We race at Flemington, and there are other country tracks where meetings are held. At present, clubs have to apply for ministerial approval to race on Anzac Day. Considering that race program scheduling sits with Racing Victoria and we know we are going to race on Anzac Day every year, we do not need ministerial approval applied for every time that scheduling comes up. So it goes without saying that permission is always granted by the racing minister of the day, no matter which side is in government or which political persuasion. It has become a very accepted part of our racing landscape, and it has become a day that has been modelled on acknowledging the service men and women from our country, and particularly those who made the ultimate sacrifice. Interestingly, Harness Racing Victoria and Greyhound Racing Victoria also race on Anzac Day, but they do not need ministerial approval to do that. So removing the need for ministerial approval brings Racing Victoria in line with the other two codes in not having to seek ministerial approval, and that is obviously a commonsense amendment.

The bill before us also provides the ability to appoint an acting racing integrity commissioner. At present we have one racing integrity commissioner, and it has been problematic when our commissioner wants a holiday or our commissioner is on sick leave. There is actually not provision to appoint an acting replacement when this occurs. This was probably a little bit of an oversight in the original bill—that there was not provision to appoint an acting integrity commissioner—but we know that racing integrity is so important; we cannot press a pause button when it comes to racing integrity. We need to maintain the confidence of the racing public and the racing community. This anomaly does need to be reflected. This is another measure of course that is a commonsense step in probably rectifying an oversight, but it certainly plugs a hole.

While I am talking about racing integrity, I want to make a few comments on a recent case, and in doing so I just want to state my views and the views that have been shared by many others in the sector in relation to racing integrity. We recently had a case involving a pretty well-known trainer in Victoria, a fellow by the name of Richard Laming, where Racing Victoria stewards pretty much stuffed up their investigation big time. That has been the finding. It happens—humans make mistakes. The point that I want to make here today is that when a trainer makes a mistake we throw the book at them. Whether that mistake was made in honesty or in human error, we throw the book at them—no leniency, no understanding, is generally applied.

And I have had a look at the case of Peter Moody, who lost his income. He was banned for a number of years for what I think everybody in the industry ultimately agrees was an error. He made a mistake, but to the judge and jury in that case, it did not matter. They were presented a horse that had a substance in it: ‘We’re not sure how it got there, but you’re out; your career’s over’. Now, he made a mistake. We had the recent case where stewards made mistakes and we had a much more sympathetic outlook. I think that as a racing industry we need to have a look at that human element—that people do make mistakes. I note Judge Bowman, when he described the scenario relating to those stewards, said the situation was poorly handled by Racing Victoria and the stewards. I think that is probably putting it fairly mildly.

So we need to uphold integrity. We need to maintain confidence in the racing industry—absolutely we do—but we also need to have some scope and understanding in relation to what has been done deliberately and what has been done accidentally, because humans make mistakes. There are always going to be some elements of human error. Yes, it is a little bit of a tightrope to walk, I do not deny that, and I understand that there are other complexities. We need to punish those who deliberately flout the laws and do the wrong thing, but we need to have different thresholds for those who make honest mistakes, and I would like to see some more discretion applied by authorities in these areas.

Moving on from that commentary to the next part of the bill, that caters for the appointment of an administrator of a harness racing club. This clarifies an area where it is fair to say a great level of confusion has reigned previously. On a matter in relation to a particular harness racing club in this state where some concerns were raised, I got correspondence from Harness Racing Victoria saying that they could not act on this matter without ministerial consent. I then had correspondence from the minister saying HRV could act without his consent. So there is certainly some ambiguity and some difference of opinion on the interpretation of the act in that regard. Now, I would have hoped that a phone call maybe could have resolved whether HRV needed ministerial consent to act or they could have acted on their own, but this amendment does clarify the matter and removes ministerial consent, if there is any conjecture or debate over that, being required. So HRV can take action in relation to individual harness racing clubs, and that is a good thing. As an auspicing body they need to be able to step in and do what they need to do when it is required.

The bill also relates to disclosure of integrity information to the Victorian Racing Integrity Board. At present the act lists bodies to which the racing integrity commissioner may disclose pertinent or relevant information, and this bill amends the act to give the racing integrity commissioner the authority to disclose integrity-related information to the Victorian Racing Integrity Board—it gets confusing with all these names and acronyms. So this addresses another anomaly, and clearly there is a need in this regard. That is certainly a positive. We need this information sharing to be able to get to the bottom of issues which invariably arise within the racing sector. It seems again to be perhaps an oversight with previous legislation and should have been included, but pleasingly it is being addressed now.

Delegation of Victorian Racing Integrity Board functions and powers—now, currently there is no power of delegation in relation to the statutory functions of the board. When I read this I wondered whether that would need to be written into the act, these delegation powers, but it seems that it does. This bill amends the act to allow the board to delegate certain functions to its chairperson or one of the three deputy chairpersons. Members who paid attention to the original legislation when it came in would know that the three deputy chairpersons are representatives from each of the three racing codes in Victoria. So the delegation of those functions is to those deputy chairpersons. Obviously you would envisage if it is a matter that relates to greyhounds, it would go to the Greyhound Racing Victoria deputy chairperson—and so forth with harness racing and so forth with thoroughbred racing. So we certainly support that delegation of functions and powers. It makes sense that for a variety of matters that would need to occur. Clearly, just before I move on from that one, the deputy chairpersons, because of their knowledge and expertise across the three codes, are well equipped to deal with those issues that arise. I am surprised that that needed to be put into the bill, but anyway it seems that it did.

Protections from liability for VRIB members—now, I understand that there are some provisions in the act that protect members of the racing integrity board from personal liability for anything done or omitted to be done while carrying out their functions, but this is clearly another omission that was perhaps an oversight in the original bill, the government not including this in their original legislation. So we have an amendment again here to correct an oversight. Whilst it does highlight perhaps the fact that the first bill was missing a few things, we are finally getting to plugging up these holes and what should have been done earlier. This will provide immunity for things done or omitted to be done in good faith while exercising powers or performing legislative functions under the act.

In winding up, and just going back to the, I guess, major point of this bill, which is the ability to race on Good Friday, I just want to make a few comments about a terrific conversation that I recently had with the Racing Victoria chair, Brian Kruger, on country race dates and race days in Victoria in general. One of the points that I highlighted to Brian was the shift that we have had. Whilst the country racing meeting figures remain pretty stagnant, over the last three decades we have had a massive shift from what I call the true country clubs—Bairnsdale, Horsham, Hamilton, Stony Creek, Echuca, Wangaratta, Benalla, all of those—to what we call the major provincial clubs: Cranbourne, Pakenham, Bendigo, Ballarat and Geelong. And the smaller country clubs have lost meetings more generally—I think over the last 30 years it is about 80 or 90—to the provincial clubs.

Now, there had to be some adjustment there. I understand that those provincial clubs get better turnover, and I understand that there needed to be an adjustment in a competitive market, but every time a meeting gets moved out of a small country community it impacts on the economy of that town. We have owners that come into the town, we have spectators, we have trainers, we have strappers and we have stablehands. They come into that town and provide a mini economic boost every time a country town has a race meeting. It was good to have that chat to Brian about that shift, and it was good to be able to explain the importance of racing to, I guess, our smaller country townships—our smaller rural areas. It was very, very pleasing that shortly after that chat—and I am not saying this chat was the reason—we had the announcement that the Good Friday meeting will be held in rural and regional Victoria each year. Whilst we need to stop that shift, I think we have had the shift and it has gone as far as it needs to go. We do not want to lose any more meetings at our smaller country clubs. It is terrific that Racing Victoria has made the determination to hold the Good Friday meetings on a rotational basis around the country.

We need to look after our really small country racing clubs. We need to look after our very small training facilities in rural and regional areas. That is where a lot of our trainers and jockeys and people who progress on to greater heights in the industry cut their teeth, in a lot of these smaller clubs around the regions. So I am absolutely delighted that that first meeting is going to be held at Sale. I know the member for Ripon is very keen to stick up her hand to have the next Good Friday meeting in her electorate and there has been a bit of good-humoured banter around that, but the reality of it is it will be visiting a number of areas of rural and regional Victoria. It is a meeting that we are going to embrace and look forward to, and I certainly look forward to, hopefully after COVID, being on course at Sale for the first Good Friday meeting in Victoria.

 Mr McGHIE (Melton) (15:45): I rise to contribute to the debate on the Racing Amendment Bill 2021. This bill seeks to amend the Racing Act 1958 to remove the prohibition of racing on Good Friday, bringing racing into line with other professional sports in Australia such as the AFL and the NRL, which conduct events on Good Friday and have done so for some years. It has been so successful, those football codes having conducted sport on Good Friday, and guess what—the sky has not fallen in.

Firstly, I want to acknowledge the recent passing of a horse trainer, Geoff Cousins, who was a trainer out at Cranbourne. Geoff was a real character. He was formerly a paramedic but had been training for a number of years. When he was a paramedic on the job, he would always give you a bit of a tip. Not many of his horses won, but he was a great character.

Sport is an integral part of our Australian culture, and racing has a strong history in Victoria, racing’s natural home turf. North Melbourne playing their Good Friday games here in Victoria and the NRL having had a Good Friday fixture since 2012 mean that many families can spend time off together enjoying a shared passion. Often the enjoyment and festive atmosphere with these games flows together with a sense of community support in helping to raise funds for the Good Friday Appeal, another Victorian institution. The ability for racing to occur in regional Victoria on Good Friday adds yet another fantastic event for Victoria whilst promoting our regional areas and creating local economic benefits on a long weekend. Out of respect for the day Racing Victoria and Country Racing Victoria have committed to these race meetings not commencing before 1.00 pm, and that is the same as what happens on Anzac Day. I also believe that Greyhound Racing Victoria and Harness Racing Victoria have made the same commitment. I want to thank the Minister for Racing for achieving that commitment from all the racing codes, and I acknowledge the member for Gippsland East and his efforts in assisting to achieve that 1.00 pm start.

The benefits of helping to promote local tourism and support our regional communities are another way that the Andrews Labor government supports our Victorian economy. I have had the privilege to represent the Minister for Racing at an event in my own electorate at Melton Tabcorp Park for the ANZGOG annual Team Teal fundraising gala. The Australia New Zealand Gynaecological Oncology Group does incredible work for ovarian cancer research through its Team Teal campaign, and I want to give a shout-out to those amazing women who have survived this insidious disease and are now educating medical professionals about it. The Team Teal campaign has become an integral part of harness racing in Victoria and New Zealand. It has become a highlight seeing the colour teal splashed across Victorian harness racing tracks during the campaign every year. The Team Teal campaign is a great example of how Harness Racing Victoria contributes to the community, important social issues and improving health outcomes. It is another fantastic event that is held in my seat of Melton at Tabcorp Park and provides employment opportunity and investment in the Melton community. This Andrews Labor government has provided over $503 000 for 12 infrastructure projects and $756 000 for 24 race day attraction projects at Tabcorp Park. This is a total of $1.25 million in funding and a total of 36 projects to the value of $3.41 million.

This bill makes other technical amendments to improve the operation of the Racing Act, including removing the requirement for thoroughbred clubs to seek ministerial approval to conduct a race meeting on Anzac Day. It enables the appointment of an acting racing integrity commissioner for a period of up to three months by the minister. It amends the act to remove the ministerial power to suspend a committee and appoint an administrator of a harness racing club based upon the recommendation of the board of Harness Racing Victoria. It enables certain powers and functions of the Victorian Racing Integrity Board to be delegated to its chairperson or deputy chairperson of the board.

Racing Victoria, along with Country Racing Victoria, have publicly announced that following the passage of the bill the Good Friday meeting will in the first year be conducted at the Sale Turf Club and then be rotated annually to regional venues. I am sure that the member for Gippsland East and the Shadow Minister for Racing would be pleased about this, and I am pleased the opposition is not opposing this bill. By rotating the Good Friday meeting to regional clubs, this new feature race day will support local businesses and communities across Victoria through increased visitation on the Easter long weekend. It will be another attraction for these regional towns.

While it has been an extremely difficult number of years for regional tourism operations, especially those in the Gippsland region off the back of the 2020 bushfires, it is hoped that events such as these can assist and encourage race fans to travel to regional Victoria for next year’s long weekend. Victorian regional racing clubs host some of the most iconic regional events, showcasing stunning locations. Events such as the Dunkeld cup at the southern tip of the Grampians or the Buchan Cup in East Gippsland are highlights of the racing calendar and an important positive economic impact for the local tourist sector.

Ms Kealy interjected.

Mr McGHIE: I have attended the Dunkeld cup and it is a great day in a beautiful location with normally beautiful weather—

Ms Kealy interjected.

Mr McGHIE: It is one of the good locations in the state, one of the good locations. And it was a very good day the day that we went and a very warm day the day that we went, and it was very much a festive feeling around the cup. And it is a beautiful backdrop when you see those horses run down the straight at Dunkeld.

With the support of Racing Victoria and Country Racing Victoria there is no doubt that regional clubs who host future Good Friday races will be a significant drawcard for visitors to the regions across the Easter long weekend.

The racing industry is one of the state’s most significant industries, delivering more than $4.3 billion in economic value each year and supporting over 34 000 full-time equivalent jobs. During COVID this is an industry that has continued with little COVID infection, and I congratulate them on all their efforts to maintain this industry to continue and to also continue with the race meetings right around the state. A strong and vibrant racing industry is particularly key for regional Victoria, where more than 100 clubs are supported by more than 80 000 individuals who are involved in this industry either as a participant, an employee or a volunteer. The government recognises the critical importance that our regional racing clubs have for local communities. From a 2018 report there are almost 30 000 racing club members across regional Victoria, with more than 980 000 attendances annually to our tracks in regional Victoria alone. Not only is this sector a key employer in regional Victoria, employing more than 20 000 full-time jobs, but also it is a key community hub for regional towns and centres. This can be either through the social occasion of the annual country cup or through clubs providing key infrastructure for their local communities.

The Andrews Labor government has been a strong supporter for regional racing through the $72 million Victorian Racing Industry Fund. This fund has provided critical funding over a number of years and was extended for a further four years as an election commitment in 2018. Since 2014 the government has provided more than $70 million in funding to support almost 900 projects across all three codes to assist with both race day attraction and infrastructure in regional Victoria.

The funding support for infrastructure projects provided by the government has been key not only to supporting training and animal welfare initiatives but also in delivering club infrastructure that is of significant community benefit to surrounding towns and regions. What that means is that we have facilities at some of these racing clubs and local groups outside of the racing industry can use those facilities for their own benefits. The government has provided more than $41 million since 2014 to support more than $132 million worth of infrastructure projects to regionally based thoroughbred clubs.

Of course some of those examples are $300 000 to support the $4.9 million Matilda Room extension at the Warrnambool Racing Club, which is an important community asset and a centrepiece for the May Warrnambool carnival—a significant driver for the local economy and a renowned three-day event in the south-western district—that attracts Victorians and interstaters to this great event. There is $57 000 to support the refurbishment and upgrade of facilities at the Manangatang Racing Club, which hosts an iconic meeting once a year in north-western Victoria; and also $41 000 to support irrigation upgrades at another of Victoria’s iconic once-a-year racetracks, and that is at the Gunbower Racing Club in northern Victoria.

In my years I have attended many regional racetracks, such as at Echuca, Burrumbeet, Avoca, Warrnambool, Colac, Camperdown, Wangaratta and Benalla, just to name a few. I have also attended many harness racing tracks and also quite a few greyhound racing tracks throughout the state. Yes, I do love my punting. These were very social days, and it was great to be out and contributing to regional communities. And it is more than just race meetings; it is a really festive atmosphere and it is great to see the local communities attend these race meetings. I am excited to see another fantastic event added to Victoria’s long list. I think regional racing on Good Friday will be successful, as have been the football and rugby. I support the bill and commend the bill to the house.

 Mr CARBINES (Ivanhoe) (15:55): On the Racing Amendment Bill 2021, I am pleased to make a contribution, to follow the member for Melton and also to note that the opposition are not opposing the bill. The member for Gippsland East made many comments and also reflected on his experience and advocacy for the racing industry, and I want to add my support for the industry. I have had the opportunity, not so much for the racing, of being at the Bairnsdale Racing Club with the member for Gippsland East when it was used for other community activities that we were engaged in, particularly our volunteer consultations, which the member for Gippsland East also touched on, in relation to the volunteer effort in communities far and wide across Victoria that support the racing industry.

But also, as the member for Melton touched on, there is the very significant investment in infrastructure at turf clubs and racing clubs right across the state, particularly in regional Victoria, because that infrastructure is used not just in the racing industry but for so many other community organisations and events that are held right across the state. So investment in those facilities not only supports the industry, tourism and the very big and significant racing events that happen across the state but also provides the opportunity to ensure those facilities are available for a wide set of community priorities.

There are 33 000 full-time equivalent jobs in the racing industry, which is really significant and touches very many people right across the community. Can I say overall in relation to the bill that it is in very many ways almost an omnibus bill that touches on a range of tidy-up provisions, but the crux of the bill is the removal of the prohibition on racing on Good Friday. I can reiterate and confirm, as was requested by the member for Gippsland East, racing on Good Friday, under the provisions that will follow through the bill and the regulations. Of course those public commitments have been given in relation to racing—and greyhounds and trots to follow this arrangement—whereby 1.00 pm on Good Friday will be when the racing will begin. That is out of deference to perhaps other sports that are able to have these provisions on Good Friday, such as the AFL and other sporting events, which begin from 1 o’clock. As the member for Gippsland East picked up, it touches on the fact that these are also provisions that apply in relation to Anzac Day and other arrangements.

A couple of the other changes proposed in the bill will remove the requirement for thoroughbred racing clubs to seek ministerial approval to conduct a race meeting on Anzac Day, provide simpler processes for the appointment of an acting racing integrity commissioner, provide the board of Harness Racing Victoria with the power to suspend a committee and appoint an administrator of a harness racing club, approve the operation of the Victorian Racing Integrity Board and make other and minor technical amendments.

Can I say also, as a journalist in the past at the Geelong Advertiser, the Geelong Cup is a big event in a big provincial city, just one of very many events you have the opportunity when you are a journalist to cover in the community. A lot hangs off these significant race day events in regional Victoria in particular. I note that it will be in regional Victoria where the first Good Friday racing calendar events will be able to occur, and that is really significant. As you would know, Deputy Speaker, the Bendigo Cup is still one to cover off on my list. I have not been able to work a Bendigo Cup day with a non-sitting day yet—I think you might be aware of that—so I have not been able to pick up on that one just yet. But the Geelong Cup for very many years I was able to attend not only as a spectator but to report on the event, not just on the horseracing but on so many community activities and the engagement of people who invest in their working lives, their passions and their careers—as apprentices, as businesspeople, as trainers, as jockeys. And there are all the hospitality and other supports that fall off the back and hang off the racing industry in Victoria. I have seen that from before the crack of dawn right through to the end of the day, they are huge events and provide great opportunities in regional Victoria, not just here in metropolitan Melbourne.

Kerang races are usually—and I am happy to be corrected—I think around Easter Monday. That is another opportunity that I have had—to attend those sorts of race meetings—and they are all different. They all reflect local communities, and they reflect the priorities, the cultures and the activities that local communities would highlight. It is important that it is an industry that has seen a lot of investment in community infrastructure from our government investing in facilities that are used by many other organisations.

Of course the provisions around integrity are critical, and it is important that the matters have come out, really, of the experience and opportunities to tighten and place a greater emphasis around racing integrity as we have seen some of those provisions in past legislation put into practice. Stakeholders and the industry in particular have made some requests around further work that we could do around integrity to improve some of those aspects around the acting racing integrity commissioner appointment process.

Some of these other elements that are picked up in the bill are really critical for the work that we need to do, and I welcome those amendments and the feedback and consultation—that hand-in-glove approach, really, of stakeholders in the racing industry, who know that racing integrity is critical not only to community respect and engagement and support for the industry and its advocacy but really to the way in which it functions. I think we have seen a lot of change over the course of our time in government around racing integrity and also around animal welfare. We have also seen a lot of work done that I think had been left to drift till the Andrews government was elected, and we have seen a much greater focus on reforms around racing integrity, welfare measures and support for an industry that needs to grow and be able to respond to community expectations into the 21st century.

Can I say also that there have been some other elements that I think are really important to note. Sale Turf Club of course will be where the first Good Friday meeting will be held. That is really exciting for that community. I notice also that right across Victoria there have been a lot of constraints on communities through the global pandemic in playing their role, in the way that we often have significant community events marked in the calendar every year. They have not been what they might have been in past years. That has placed a lot of pressures on the community, but I know the Minister for Racing has also been able to ensure in the various roles that he has for businesses as well as in the tourism and major events portfolios in that broader sense that there is support for the racing industry. That has been critical as well, because it has left a real hole and a challenge for communities and local economies, particularly in regional and rural Victoria, where these events draw people in.

They are a great boost to local hospitality and tourism industries and local economies, so we are really keen to see their support there in the interim and to see as we come out of the pandemic the opportunity for those race meetings and for those community, sporting and cultural events to be picked up again into the latter part of this year and into the new year. So that is exciting as well—this opportunity to make sure that we are respecting cultural sensitivities around Good Friday racing but also reflecting, I think, that broader opportunity that already exists in communities, in community sport and in commercial and more professional sporting organisations where there is already activity on Good Friday. I reflect that we have picked up on that 1.00 pm start time that also reflects what we do around Anzac Day, providing a level of engagement, empathy and respect to cultural sensitivities and priorities in sports that some in the community have around Good Friday and of course all of us do in relation to cultural and very respectful and sombre days like Anzac Day.

So in a lot of ways we are really reflecting in this Racing Amendment Bill what already occurs in other professional sports and other significant events in the community. It is good that we are providing that alignment with this industry, an industry that really is so significant—something like $4.3 billion it is worth to the Victorian economy. It is really significant not only for the economic drivers but for the cultural opportunities and the events that bring people together in regional and rural communities. There has been so much that hangs off the racing industry that is so important.

The amendments in this bill, while they may sound minor, that relate to racing integrity measures really build on some very significant work from our government to restore, I think, in many ways a greater level of credibility and with support from stakeholders and the industry itself to ensure that racing integrity matters continue to evolve and reflect community expectations. But also these changes that provide racing opportunities on Good Friday in the right circumstances are to be commended. We look forward to getting back to the track very soon.

 Mr FREGON (Mount Waverley) (16:05): I rise also to speak on the Racing Amendment Bill 2021 this afternoon. This is a sensible bill, like, I would say, all the bills that we present in this house. As others have stated, our Victorian racing industry is a large part of the economy of our state, and a much loved one at that. From owners to strappers to catering staff to event staff, they have seen over the last 18 months, like many, many Victorians, a very hard time. To have a little bit of hope that on Good Friday next year there will be a race meeting as we follow the national plan to open up at 70, 80 per cent, I think we can all see a brighter summer ahead of us, and we are all looking forward to that.

Victorians love their sport. We have watched it with empty crowds—or empty stadiums, rather; I do not know that the crowds are empty, but we have watched it. I have watched the Hawks; I have said goodbye to Alastair Clarkson—I was a bit sad about that. Clarko, thank you. Our racing is in our cultural psyche. It is part of Melbourne; it is part of Victoria. We are, as far as I am aware, the only country—maybe the only state—that has a public holiday for a horse race, and I think we are pretty proud of it. It is one of the idiosyncrasies of Melbourne—that is the Melbourne that we love—and the sooner that we get back to those things the better. I appreciate that our Spring Racing Carnival will be affected as we still work our way through this pandemic, but we will get there.

Currently racing is prohibited on Good Friday, as others have said, and on Christmas Day. And that makes sense. In the past a lot of things were restricted on many days. AFL only in the last few years has been played on Good Friday. I can remember back in the old days Dad ran the chemist shop, and the chemist shop was the only thing open on a Sunday morning. There was nothing open. Now times have somewhat changed; our economy is a bit different. We rely more on our supermarkets being open until nine at night—some open more. This brings racing into line with other sporting codes—as I said, AFL, rugby, basketball—to allow the conduct of events on Good Friday.

This bill also amends the act to remove the requirement for thoroughbred clubs to seek ministerial approval to conduct a meeting on Anzac Day. I think when thinking of Anzac Day a lot of us will think of two-up, so it is not like betting or gambling is something that is far away from what we would accept on Anzac Day. I would say also that there may be some in our community, especially some of the Christian members of the community, and I would consider myself one of those—for whom Good Friday is probably one of the days where the family would be at church, and presumably we will still do that. I am more likely to be at church than at racing myself. I am not an avid racing follower. But I do not think this bill does anything to affect that in the detriment. I do not think this puts any fervour against the importance of that religious holiday. Commercial activities, as I said, used to be limited. They are now not. Restaurants, bars, cinemas, festivals and professional sport are all open for business.

While I think of racing, I also think about the things that you race for, and at the moment we are in a race for vaccines, and we have been in a race for vaccines. I will take this opportunity to thank all of our racing fraternity of Victorians that are doing the right thing to get the jab in their arms. I have had my AstraZeneca. My wife has had her Pfizer. My daughter will get her Pfizer very soon, as soon as it opens up to the 12 to 15 group. We understand that sense of racing and winning, but in the sense of vaccines the race is more than just winning; the race is to get back to the normality that we all crave and the importance of choosing things on the fly again. I think that us seeing those vaccines roll out is a bit like watching the tote when you go to Flemington—we are all watching the daily numbers of 61.5 per cent, 62.7 per cent, 64 per cent. We are all watching that because we can see when we get to 70, things will be a bit better; when we get to 80 things will be a bit better; and when we get to double dosed, things will be a bit better.

We all understand the culture of racing, and we have taken it to our hearts. If you go back to the time when Good Friday was a closed shop for business and Sundays were a closed shop for business, if you go back far enough—probably before my time—there was the 6 o’clock swill, or something, when they closed the pubs at 6.

Mr Fowles interjected.

Mr FREGON: Thank you, member for Burwood, for confirming that.

Mr Fowles: Not in Mount Waverley, though.

Mr FREGON: Not in Mount Waverley, though, no. But I think that is another bill, and it is a little bit later today that we will be talking about drinking in Mount Waverley and Ashwood and Burwood and Camberwell—I will go off on a tangent to The Sullivans if I am not careful. So we have changed a lot, and yet we have still kept the culture that is Melbourne, and we have built on it. We are a different state, a different city, but we are a better city. We are more than we were, and so changes like this do not necessarily take away from things. If there are people who are concerned about what this may mean, I would try and reassure them and say, ‘No, this doesn’t mean we’re taking away’. All of the sensibilities and the importance, as I said, of Good Friday stay, and it is still a holy day. And I think this is a very sensible move.

I was thinking about, I guess, growing up in the Gully. On Friday nights, I can remember, we would come back from Dad’s shop, because Dad used to work late, because again pharmacists were open late when nobody else was. We would get home, and usually Friday nights would involve, if I can remember, probably Monty Python on TV, and then you would have Pot Black, a favourite—the old Pot Black on the ABC. Yes, I am getting some nods in the house from people of a similar age to me. And then you would have the trots. We are talking the early 1980s, and it reminds me of Fine Cotton. Now, our racing fraternity are a fantastic group of people, and our regulators are fantastic, so none of this would ever happen here. But I remember Fine Cotton. I was thinking about Fine Cotton this week, because what happened with the Fine Cotton affair was you had an underperforming bay gelding, from memory, who, because it was underperforming and in the second or third tier, or whatever race it was, was replaced by another horse that was a better horse, a better performing horse. But unfortunately the brainiacs who chose this better performing horse did not quite work out that the colour did not match, and there were other problems. I think the better horse was named Bold Personality, from memory. So this Bold Personality came in to replace Fine Cotton, but what became apparent is the brainiacs decided, because they got this horse at the last minute that did not match colours, actually to paint the horse’s legs, I remember, with white paint.

Now, how they ever thought that bringing in this supposed better performer was going to trick the people judging—you know, the stewards and others judging—and how they ever thought that would work, I do not know, because it was pretty obvious to those stewards that this was a fake. This was not the horse that they were pretending it was; this was an imposter. And I do not know why I thought about it this week, but I think, in the end, be who you are, stand up for racing, for Victoria, and just believe in who you are enough that you just act like who you are. And when you get a horse that really knows what they are doing and they are on fire, back them in. (Time expired)

 Dr READ (Brunswick) (16:15): Can I just start by thanking the member for Mount Waverley for taking us back to the Fine Cotton affair. I think a little bit of history, of kind of bar-room racetrack history, is fantastic and absolutely relevant to this bill, which is about expanding the racing industry in our state, presumably in a slightly more ethical manner than the Fine Cotton affair, but that remains to be seen. This bill allows thoroughbred, harness and greyhound racing to take place on Good Friday and removes the restrictions on thoroughbred racing on Anzac Day so that Victorian clubs will no longer need ministerial permission to hold a race on that day.

Now, racing is allowed on 362 days of the year already, and this major, consequential and earth-shattering bill brings that up to 364—at first glance, barely worth a mention. But it does tell us a few things that deserve comment. It tells us that while we are in the grip of a pandemic and worrying about whether our hospital system will survive the onslaught of COVID patients next month, we are legislating to boost the profits of the racing industry, although it is almost worth it if you get to hear about Fine Cotton. We could be legislating better support for renters and casual workers, for example, or working out how to better support our hospitals. Instead we are smoothing the path for the racing industry and the gambling that goes with it. Now, let us face it, an extra two days a year does not mean much, but if we are going to bring MPs together, even in this socially distanced manner—I have never been so far from the member for Burwood—to deliberate on a bill drafted with great care, it should do something good. And surely the top priority in any bill on horse racing in this era should be to outlaw whipping.

That was recommended by a federal Senate committee 30 years ago. Several aspects of horseracing are cruel, but it is hard to imagine anything more blatant in its disregard for the welfare of animals than whipping. Whipping of horses has been claimed to be necessary for the control of the horse and the safety of jockeys. I am not sure I really buy that, but let us just assume that is true; then we could still allow jockeys to carry the whips in case their safety is at risk, and if they lose control of the horse to the extent that whipping is actually necessary to preserve life and limb, then they could just wear a disqualification. Abolition of whipping would demonstrate a sincere intention to reduce cruelty, and allowing whipping in the final 100 metres, which I think is what is currently allowed, demonstrates the priorities and values of our racing industry at the moment. Ending whipping is surely the simplest and easiest step that racing could take to make their entertainment more acceptable.

We would also like to see some improvements in the safety of horses and greyhounds in racing. We frequently hear of the many deaths and injuries that occur on Victorian tracks. The Victorian greyhound racing industry is the deadliest and most dangerous in the entire country. Last year there were 72 deaths and 3716 injuries on greyhound racing tracks in this state. Little aths does not get that dangerous. It is also pretty standard for a racehorse to be put down behind the green curtain after a race—31 racehorses either were put down or died in Victoria last year—and maybe we should do more to prevent horses being ridden to death.

It was not all that long ago that I was speaking about handouts and special treatment from this government to the racing industry, and it has not been, let us face it, such a tough lockdown for the racing industry compared to many other industries, with horse and greyhound racing still open for business and a great many other industries closed. I understand one of the motivations for the changes in this bill is to boost regional tourism by creating more major racing events on public holidays, specifically in the country. Obviously the Greens could think of better ways to promote travel to country Victoria: we could encourage people to visit our national parks, to go camping in the Grampians or to visit our beautiful coastline and take in the Twelve Apostles—just do not look at the gas drilling while you are there.

We do not need to kill horses and greyhounds to encourage people to visit our regions. In fact now is a good time to be thinking about how we promote economic recovery all over Victoria, since we are back in the middle of a significant lockdown with many jobs lost or furloughed and many industries on hold. So instead of continuing to promote economic recovery through harmful industries, like gambling and racing, or fossil fuel extraction for that matter, we should invest in something akin to a Green New Deal where we create jobs and new businesses by looking after each other and the environment—jobs in caring, in renewables and in building new public housing. But this week the government has prioritised expanding the racing industry. It is not the most forward-thinking decision when our state desperately needs long-term vision, so the Greens think this bill should go back to the drawing board and will not be supporting it.

 Mr FOWLES (Burwood) (16:21): I had hoped that my friend the member for Brunswick was going to wax a little bit more lyrical there, but I am very grateful for the opportunity to make a contribution around this bill, the Racing Amendment Bill 2021, which of course amends the Racing Act 1958. It amends it to remove the prohibition on racing on Good Friday and makes a number of other technical amendments and governance amendments which are I think largely uncontroversial, and I note with thanks that the opposition is not opposing this bill.

The racing industry is an industry that contributes so much to the great state of Victoria, and it does it in a number of ways. There is of course the core of the industry itself—the raising, the breeding, the training and then the riding and the racing of racehorses—but there is so much that attaches to that activity. Whether you are in the bush, whether you are in a regional centre or whether you are at Flemington on Melbourne Cup Day, there is so much about the racing industry that provides excitement and a terrific recreational pastime for so many Victorians over the course of the year. Whether your connection to racing is incidental, recreational or professional, there is something about the magic of the thundering of hooves that elicits a thrill for so many Victorians. I think it is just an absolutely terrific industry and ought to be supported at every turn.

I am very pleased that we are using this amendment as an opportunity to bring a marquee race day to the bush on Good Friday. Good Friday has of course special significance for Christians, and I acknowledge that. But I think we are gladly moving towards a more formal separation of church and state in the state of Victoria. There are a few other things on the list of things I would see further to that cause in an ideal world. I still find it somewhat anachronistic, for example, that we have a daily prayer in this place that is from a particular subset of Christianity that is represented in the choice of words. I think it is more appropriate for Victorians to be embraced more broadly than that and to not have one particular religious grouping dominate in any of our discussions. But I am very pleased that racing is following the good work of the AFL and the NRL and by deed of this bill will be able to schedule race meets for Good Friday, albeit of course in the afternoon, and that is consistent with other public holidays like Anzac Day, when the scheduling of race meetings in the afternoon also occurs.

As the member for Mount Waverley noted, it is a terrific thing that Melbourne is, we think, the only jurisdiction in the world that has a public holiday for a horse race. It says something about the culture of Victoria, as being the hub of major events, major sporting events, which are a key part of the culture of the city, that we honour that race in that way. It is of course the race that stops the nation, and so it should—and so it will continue to do. Despite the somewhat try-hard efforts of those north of the Murray to rain on the parade of the Victorian racing industry, it remains the pre-eminent racing jurisdiction in Australia, and long may it be so.

It is important to note that we are not seeking to be prescriptive about the scheduling of race meetings in Victoria under this bill, nor should we be. It is not the role of the minister, it is not the role of government, to be dictating exactly which meetings are occurring on which day and where. That would only slow down, would only clog up, the administrative wheels of scheduling racing across all the three codes in the state of Victoria, and I am very pleased to see that the requirement for ministerial approval to schedule a meeting on Anzac Day is being removed by this bill as well.

I think there has been resistance in some quarters around the important symbolism of Good Friday for those who are Christians and the importance of that day in the Christian calendar, and I absolutely acknowledge that. I do find it curious, though, that some of those who profess to have very strong views about those matters are the same people who were involved in an extraordinary rebuttal of the pairing conventions of this place just some three years ago—that those who might seek to hold very strong views about the importance of Good Friday on the Christian calendar are the same people who, on the orders of the newly recycled Leader of the Opposition, would come and vote on Good Friday, on Good Friday morning no less, as directed by the Leader of the Opposition in circumstances that were odious at best. It is absolutely incredible that the coalition find themselves led again by someone who is prepared to trash the norms of the Parliament with little or no thought for the consequences.

Ms Kealy: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, I just ask you to bring the member back to the bill that is before us today. He is using this as an opportunity to attack the opposition, particularly around matters in the other chamber. I ask you to bring him back to the bill, please.

The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member should be speaking to the bill. I did not actually hear what the member was saying—my apologies—but I do ask you to speak to the bill. There have been other members who have spoken quite broadly on this bill.

Mr FOWLES: Well, thank you, Deputy Speaker. I shall, but I stand by the comments I made regarding the perceived importance of Good Friday and perhaps the actual importance in the eyes of some.

There are plenty of us who like a punt. I have got the great misfortune of being in a punters club with my idiot cousins, and we make a pretty concerted effort to drop our 20 bucks each and every week pretty consistently. We have got some amazing personalities. One of my cousins in fact works in the racing universe, and, to the surprise of exactly no-one, he is far and away the worst tipper of the lot of us. His tips are complete rubbish. They continue to be complete rubbish, and much to the chagrin of the more sensible of us cousins he continues to tear up our dosh on rotation once every eight weeks. It is a great shame and a source of great derision for him because his professed professional expertise lies in this particular domain, and it turns out, notwithstanding that, he is complete rubbish when it comes to selecting horses for the punters club. We have had a bit more success on matters AFL of late. I think that has been assisted by the fine efforts of the mighty Melbourne Football Club in recent times, which have been a source of some joy in amongst all of the challenges that attach to a protracted lockdown, and I take this opportunity to wish the mighty Demons all the very best for their preliminary final on Friday night—unbelievably, to be held in Perth.

This bill is not particularly complicated. It is a bill that, whilst it traverses a number of technical matters, really just has at its heart the ability to take more racing events to more Victorians more often. It is an incremental increase. It is not a dramatic increase by any stretch of the imagination, but it is an important one, because we know that so many Victorians use the Easter break not so much—and I am talking historically of course—for international travel or those sorts of further afield events. So many Victorians particularly use the Easter break to enjoy the regions, and they enjoy them in great numbers. And I hope come Easter next year they enjoy them in fantastic numbers again.

The racing industry will have the opportunity to capitalise on some of that tourism, to give people an event to attach to their holidays and give them the ability to celebrate with family and friends at a race meet, the atmosphere of which simply cannot be compared to many other of those sporting events across the calendar. There is something special about racing and, as I have said already in this contribution, long may it continue.

I have some sympathy for the matters the member for Brunswick raised, particularly in relation to animal welfare. I think animal welfare issues are very important and they will continue to be a matter of some debate, both inside this chamber and inside various groupings within the chamber. But I think the focus of this bill is one that we all ought to embrace: a chance for more Victorians to get together with family at Easter and enjoy a fantastic racing day.

The ACTING SPEAKER (Mr McGuire): Melbourne supporters were given some leniency because it is R U OK? day. That is the acknowledgement.

Following speeches incorporated in accordance with resolution of house of 7 September:

Ms ADDISON (Wendouree)

Introduction

I am pleased to support the Racing Amendment Bill 2021 and welcome that it is being supported by the opposition.

As the member for Wendouree, my electorate is home to the Ballarat and District Trotting Club and the Ballarat Greyhound Racing Club in Redan, and the Ballarat Turf Club is just out of my electorate in Miners Rest. I am a proud member and supporter of the Ballarat Turf Club and the Ballarat and District Trotting Club.

I am pleased to contribute following great speeches from the member for Melton and the member for Ivanhoe. I have commented on it before, but it is remarkable how many times I am speaking on the same legislation as these two—I am definitely in good company!

I would like to thank the Minister for Racing, his ministerial office and the department for the work they have done to bring this bill to the house. Thank you to Simon Shiell, senior racing adviser, and I would also like to recognise the hard work of the minister’s senior adviser, Charlotte Gray, and thank her for the outstanding support she provides to the Wendouree office.

I am pleased to see that the proposed legislation has gone through a process of stakeholder consultation and it has been welcomed and supported by Country Racing Victoria CEO Scott Whiteman and Racing Victoria CEO Giles Thompson.

This bill amends the Racing Act 1958. For those with an interest in thoroughbred racing, in the year the Racing Act was introduced, Baystone won the Melbourne Cup, finishing the race one and a half lengths in front of Monte Carlo. Baystone was certainly a lucky number 7 for many that day, with odds of 10 to one. Interestingly the 1958 Melbourne Cup was the first with automatic barrier stalls. And locally, the winner of the Ballarat Cup in 1958 was Royal Symbol, who won the race again in 1959.

This bill will make the following changes to the Racing Act 1958 to remove the prohibition on racing on Good Friday and make other minor and technical amendments. While the proposed legislation removes the prohibition of racing on Good Friday, it retains the prohibition on Christmas Day.

The bill will also remove the requirements for thoroughbred racing clubs to seek ministerial approval to conduct a racing meeting on Anzac Day, provide a simpler and more timely process for the appointment of an acting racing integrity commissioner; enable the board of Harness Racing Victoria to appoint an administrator of a harness racing club, and improve the operation of the Victorian Racing Integrity Board.

Racing Victoria have publicly committed that should the bill pass they will create a feature annual race meeting on Good Friday that would be shared amongst country clubs. It is proposed that the Good Friday race day would then rotate annually throughout regional Victoria promoting different regions of the state and encouraging tourism on the Easter long weekend. Greyhound Racing Victoria and Harness Racing Victoria will also allocate race days to regional venues. This is great news for Ballarat and racing centres across regional Victoria.

The proposed changes to racing on Good Friday will take place from 2022. Racing in Australia is currently conducted on Good Friday in Western Australia and Tasmania.

The changes proposed will remove the prohibition on racing on Good Friday—bringing racing in Victoria into line with the sporting codes who currently conduct events on Good Friday, including the NRL and the AFL.

The AFL has played matches on Good Friday since 2017 whilst the NRL has played matches on Good Friday since 2012.The AFL game on Good Friday has become part of the Good Friday Appeal game, providing the Kick for the Kids match raising vital funds and awareness for the Good Friday Appeal. The Melbourne Storm also partnered with the Good Friday Appeal, helping to celebrate 90 years of giving for the kids at the Royal Children’s Hospital.

It is reassuring to know that racing has a rich history with the Good Friday Appeal. I was interested to learn that Victorian racing’s connection dates back to its inaugural fundraising event 90 years ago when a football match between Flemington and Caulfield jockeys was held and watched by a crowd of 20 000.

I am also pleased that the relationship continues, and that Racing Victoria will be ensuring that this feature country race day plays its part in assisting Victoria’s important fundraising efforts on Good Friday for the Royal Children’s Hospital.

It has been announced by Racing Victoria that if the bill passes, the inaugural Good Friday race day would be held at the Sale Turf Club, and that the meeting would not commence before 1.00 pm out of respect for the religious significance of the day.

Thoroughbred training in regional centres provides a valuable source of employment and economic activity. The racing industry is important for the Ballarat region, providing more than 1 300 full-time equivalent jobs, and including an economic impact of training expenditure in the region of $48 million annually.

The Victorian government has supported some key infrastructure in regional Victoria that has supported the retention and growth of local jobs in training, such as $4 million to support the construction of a synthetic track at the Ballart Turf Club, a project worth $10 million.

I wish to congratulate Ballarat Turf Club CEO Belinda Glass and the Ballarat Turf Club for the great work they are doing to build the club and the reputation of Dowling Forest as an excellent place to train and race thoroughbreds with the development of stables and training facilities.

It has been fantastic to have seen continued growth in the number of trainers choosing Dowling Forest’s world-class facilities as a base. More and more horses are being trained at Ballarat, and this is great news for our reputation as well as creating more jobs and supporting our local economy.

Regional training centres like Ballarat are essential to the success of Victorian racing. The Ballarat Turf Club will welcome Rob Hickmott Racing to Ballarat at the end of September. Ballarat Turf Club is home to Melbourne Cup winning jockey and now trainer Michelle Payne and her equally famous strapper brother Stevie Payne, as well as some great trainers: Archie Alexander, Tony McEvoy and Matt Cumani. Rob Hickmott Racing will certainly be in good company at Dowling Forest. I strongly believe that the Ballarat Turf Club is the place to train thoroughbred horses.

I am also pleased that the Ballarat Turf Club will be working with local stables to partner with Racing Victoria and registered training organisations to deliver a pilot program to strengthen the workforce and fill skills gaps.

I would also like to recognise the outstanding effort of the Ballarat Turf Club to respond to the challenges of COVID. They have conducted over 50 COVID-safe race days. Well done.

At this point, I would like to acknowledge that gambling can be harmful, and I would encourage anyone struggling with it to reach out as there are services available. People can call 1800 858 858 for support. I would also encourage people to raise the issue with their healthcare professional and family and friends who could be supportive.

In concluding I wish to extend an invitation to all members of the house to attend the Ballarat Cup, which will be held Saturday, 20 November 2021, at Dowling Forest.

I commend the Racing Amendment Bill 2021 to house.

Ms BRITNELL (South-West Coast)

As the member for South-West Coast—the home of country racing’s best and most famous event, the Grand Annual steeplechase—I am pleased to make a brief contribution on the Racing Amendment Bill 2021.

As the shadow minister, the member for East Gippsland, has indicated, we will not be opposing this bill, which makes various changes to the Racing Act to allow racing on Good Friday, streamline integrity processes and provide greater powers to Harness Racing Victoria to act on matters relating to club administration.

In terms of Good Friday, this brings Victoria into line with other states, and a Good Friday meeting will be held in country Victoria on a rotational basis—I am sure the Warrnambool Racing Club will be very keen to add a Good Friday race day to their already great annual program.

This bill also allows the ability to appoint an acting racing integrity commissioner to backfill that important position if the commissioner is sick or on leave. The ability to do that doesn’t exist currently and this bill fixes that, which I think is extremely important because we want to ensure that the racing industry is always maintaining the highest levels of integrity.

As the shadow minister said, these are all changes that have been put forward by the racing industry participants and it’s not something we oppose.

I do want to take a minute to talk about the incredible Warrnambool Racing Club in my electorate, which I know many members in this chamber are familiar with—especially over the days leading up to that first Thursday in May.

I of course talk about the May racing carnival—the premium country racing carnival in the nation.

It’s hard to believe standing here in lockdown surrounded by perspex screens and wearing masks that in May this year we were at the Warrnambool racecourse with thousands of other racegoers.

After the carnival was scaled back to a two-day program in 2020 with no spectators it was brilliant to be back up on the hill to watch the Grand Annual and to catch up with friends in the fantastic new facilities the racing club worked so hard to have established.

CEO Tom O’Connor, his team and the committee led by Nick Rule need to be congratulated for the work they put in to pull that event off in a COVID-safe way.

I also want to pay special tribute to Nick, who has announced he will stand down as committee chair in October after four years. Nick has made a significant contribution to the racing club and leaves a lasting legacy, including a $5.8 million upgrade of the Matilda Room and spending more than $1 million to improve on-course training facilities at the course.

The new-look Matilda Room is an amazing facility and will be well utilised by the wider community when restrictions allow. It would be remiss of me not to acknowledge former CEO Peter Downs, who was an integral part of kicking off that redevelopment.

The May carnival isn’t just a major support for racing, it creates a huge economic injection for the whole region—the 2019 carnival generated a total expenditure impact of $13.9 million for the south-west region.

The 2021 carnival figure will be similar—so you can see that the event isn’t just important for the racing industry, it’s vital for the south-west community. It provides a financial boost to hospitality and accommodation providers ahead of the generally quiet winter period.

As we know, the tourism, events, accommodation and hospitality sectors have been the hardest hit by the continued shutdowns across Victoria, particularly in regional areas.

Even when regional Victoria is open, but Melbourne is closed, these sectors still really struggle in regional areas. They are going to need financial support to continue over the coming weeks while Melbourne remains in lockdown and unable to travel to regional areas.

Recently local caravan park operator Steve Moore told the Warrnambool Standard that he would struggle to stay afloat without visitors from Melbourne and without government support payments.

I again call on the government to provide some financial support for tourism businesses in regional Victoria for the duration of the Melbourne lockdown, because if you don’t, we may be running the risk of not having a bed for our Melbourne friends when they are allowed to come back, because businesses will have closed.

So this bill is simply addressing issues that the industry has flagged with the government—they make sense and I am more than happy to support them.

Mr CHEESEMAN (South Barwon)

It is with some pleasure that I rise today to make a contribution on the Racing Amendment Bill 2021.

The bill amends the Racing Act 1958 to remove the prohibition on racing on Good Friday, bringing racing into line with other professional sports in Australia, such as AFL and NRL, which conduct events on Good Friday. The bill also makes other technical amendments to improve the operation of the Racing Act, including:

removing the requirement for thoroughbred clubs to seek ministerial approve to conduct a race meeting on Anzac Day, bringing the thoroughbred code with the harness and greyhound codes under the act;

enabling the appointment of an acting racing integrity commissioner for a period of up to three months by the minister. Currently there is no provision for the appointment of an acting RIC where the incumbent is on leave or unable to perform the duties of the office for short periods of time;

amend the act to remove the ministerial power to suspend a committee and appoint an administrator of a harness racing club based upon the recommendation of the board of Harness Racing Victoria. The power to remove a committee and appoint an administrator will now reside solely with the board of Harness Racing Victoria, bringing the code into line with the process currently prescribed in the act for the greyhound racing code;

enable certain powers and functions of the Victorian Racing Integrity Board to be delegated to its chairperson or deputy chairperson of the board. This will improve efficiency for the VRIB to respond quickly to requests from controlling bodies, especially around urgent proposed rule amendments that may be required; and

other technical amendments to improve the efficiency of the act.

Racing Victoria along with Country Racing Victoria have publicly announced that following the passage of this bill, the Good Friday meeting will in the first year be conducted at the Sale Turf Club, and then will be rotated annually to regional venues.

By rotating the Good Friday meet to regional clubs, this new feature race day will support local businesses and communities across Victoria through increased visitation on the Easter long weekend.

While it has been an extremely difficult number of years for regional tourism operators, especially those in the Gippsland region off the back of the 2020 bushfires, it is hoped that events such as these can assist in encouraging race fans to travel to regional Victoria for next year’s long weekend.

Victorian regional racing clubs host some of our most iconic regional events, showcasing stunning locations.

Events such as the Dunkeld Cup at the southern tip of the Grampians or the Buchan Cup in East Gippsland are highlights of the racing calendar, and an important positive economic impact for the local tourist sector.

With the support of Racing Victoria and Country Racing Victoria, there is no doubt that regional clubs who host future Good Friday races will be a significant drawcard for visitors to the regions across the long Easter weekend.

The racing industry is one of the state’s most significant industries, delivering more than $4.3 billion in economic value each year and supporting over 34 000 full-time equivalent jobs.

A strong and vibrant racing industry is particularly key for regional Victoria, where more than 100 clubs are supported by more than 80 000 individuals who are involved in the industry either as a participant, employee or volunteer.

The government recognises the critical importance that our regional racing clubs have for local communities. From a 2018 report, there are almost 30 000 racing club members across regional Victoria, with more than 980 000 attendances annually to our tracks in regional Victoria alone.

Not only is the sector a key employer in regional Victoria, employing more than 20 000 FTE jobs, but also as a key community hub for regional towns and centres.

This can be either through the social occasion of the annual country cup, or with clubs providing key infrastructure for their local communities.

The Andrews Labor government has been a strong supporter of regional racing through the $72 million Victorian Racing Industry Fund. This fund has provided critical funding over a number of years and was extended for a further four years as an election commitment in 2018.

Since 2014 the government has provided more than $70 million in funding to support almost 900 projects across all three codes to assist with both race day attraction and infrastructure in regional Victoria.

The funding support for infrastructure projects provided by the government has not only been key to supporting training and animal welfare initiatives, but also in delivering club infrastructure that is of significant community benefit to surrounding towns and regions.

The government has provided more than $41 million since 2014 to support more than $132 million worth of infrastructure projects to regionally based thoroughbred clubs.

Just some of the key thoroughbred projects that the government has supported in regional Victoria include:

$300 000 to support the $4.9 million Matilda Room extension at the Warrnambool Racing Club, which is an important community asset and a centrepiece for the May carnival, a significant driver for the local economy;

$57 000 to support the refurbishment and upgrade of facilities at the Manangatang Racing Club, which hosts an iconic meeting once a year in north-western Victoria;

$41 000 to support irrigation upgrades at another of Victoria’s iconic once-a-year racetracks at the Gunbower Racing Club in northern Victoria;

Thoroughbred training in regional centres provides a valuable source of employment and economic activity. The government has supported some key infrastructure in regional Victoria that has supported the retention and growth of local jobs in training. These include:

$4 million to support the construction of a synthetic track at the Ballart Turf Club, a project worth $10 million;

more than $600 000 to support a $1.3 million project to upgrade training facilities at the Geelong Racing Club;

$550 000 to support the upgrade of a sand training track at the Bendigo Jockey Club worth $1.1 million;

$175 000 to support a $385 000 project at the Stony Creek Racing Club for upgraded tie-up stalls facilities.

Mr D O’BRIEN (Gippsland South)

I am pleased to make a brief contribution to this bill given the significance it will hold for my electorate in 2022, which I will come to shortly.

This bill is somewhat of an omnibus bill for the racing industry with a number of changes to harness racing, scheduling of race meets on Anzac Day and various other minor but important changes to the racing integrity framework and regulations under the principal act.

However, I want to particularly speak about the provision which will allow racing on Good Friday for the first time from next year.

I have to say, my broad view is that some days in our calendar should remain sacrosanct. In particular, I’m not in favour of extending major events to Christmas Day and in another time I might have objected to activities on Good Friday.

I take this view not so much from a Christian perspective, although that is a consideration, but more so that there should be some days on the calendar where we can focus, refresh and stay home with family.

Nonetheless, with respect to Good Friday, that horse has bolted, pun intended. Racing is already allowed to occur interstate and there are a number of other major sporting and other events that occur on Good Friday in Victoria, notably AFL football.

So at this point it would be churlish to oppose, and we will not be opposing this, or any other aspects of the bill.

The other reason I am supportive is the fact that Good Friday meets are to be scheduled at country clubs and the first will be at my own home club, Sale Turf Club.

As the member for Gippsland East has noted, there is agreement that as a mark of respect to Good Friday, no races will be scheduled before 1.00 pm.

I have been out recently to Greenwattle Racecourse as the Sale course is known and had a chat with turf club CEO Brad Evans, who does a great job looking after his club and the industry in our region.

Brad and the club, headed by president David Wilson, have some great ideas planned for their Good Friday meeting in 2022. They will of course place a big focus on the Royal Children’s Hospital Good Friday Appeal and no doubt both lucky and unlucky punters will be harassed by tin-shaking volunteers on the day.

The club also has ideas it is developing further to promote the local visitor economy in Sale and central Gippsland—better known in marketing terms as the ‘Middle of Everywhere’—to try and attract more tourists to our region for that Easter long weekend, and after bushfires, drought and COVID, heaven knows we need it.

They will be working with our local tourism organisations, the shire, local MPs and everyone else to ensure that the race meeting helps attract many more visitors who will stay and visit the region over a few days, not just for the race meeting.

I’m sure there will be many locals and people from across the wider Gippsland region who will also make a day of it.

That is a good thing and a reminder that our race clubs are generally, indeed exclusively in my experience, good corporate and community citizens.

I have a similar experience of the other club in my electorate, being Stony Creek, and remain a strong supporter of country racing.

I look forward to seeing what Sale can put together for the inaugural Good Friday race meeting. I invite all members of the house to come down at any time, but particularly next Easter to the region we’re now marketing as the ‘Middle of Everywhere’.

I commend the bill to the house.

Mr NORTHE (Morwell)

I welcome the opportunity to provide a contribution to the Racing Amendment Bill 2021. The purpose of the bill includes enabling racing to occur on Good Friday; to remove the requirement for thoroughbred racing clubs to obtain ministerial approval to conduct a race meeting on Anzac Day; to enable the minister to appoint a person to act as the racing integrity commissioner on a short-term basis; to enable the board of Harness Racing Victoria to appoint administrators of harness racing clubs; to improve the operation of the Victorian Racing Integrity Board; and to make minor and other technical amendments.

In terms of the major provisions of the bill, the most contentious aspect probably relates to extending the ability to host racing in Victoria to Good Friday, or put in another way and as the bill suggests, removing the prohibition on racing on Good Friday. Essentially control of the scheduling of race meetings is set by Racing Victoria, Greyhound Racing Victoria and Harness Racing Victoria and therefore decisions in terms of conducting race meeting on Good Friday will be controlled by those entities. Whilst there will be various views and opinions on this specific clause of the bill the reality is racing on Good Friday does occur in some other states on this day. Other professional sports as we are well aware are already played on Good Friday in Victoria. It seems that Good Friday race events are likely to be scheduled in regional Victoria, which will be welcomed by many regional racing clubs, and of course, I support Gippsland communities being the destination for such race meetings into the future.

In terms of racing on Anzac Day, this already occurs in Victoria and as noted in the second-reading speech, it currently requires the Victoria Racing Club to obtain approval from the minister to host its Flemington thoroughbred race meeting on this day. Such approval is not currently required by Greyhound Racing Victoria and Harness Racing Victoria so it makes sense to tidy up the legislation in this regard. The necessity for the Victoria Racing Club to obtain approval from the minister to host Anzac Day events will be removed but importantly the proceeds from these race meetings will still be donated to the ANZAC Day Proceeds Fund or a similar veterans fund. In addition, the prohibition on race meetings being held prior to 1:00 pm on Anzac Day stays in place, which is entirely appropriate.

I will say that in terms of potentially expanding race meetings there are some who have been critical of the fact that racing has been allowed to continue whilst other liberties and freedoms have been constrained. And this is certainly not a criticism of the industry, but one can understand why some people say, ‘How on earth can racing of all forms continue across the state yet I can’t even go to visit my children or my parents in their own home?’. I do understand why people get frustrated and angry at such a comparison. The industry has shown it can operate in a COVID-safe manner, and personally, I believe the government needs to put similar faith and trust in Victorian people and other groups and organisations. The inconsistency of some of the COVID-related restrictions is creating division in many circles and that is very unfortunate. From my perspective, it is about the government giving people back some of their liberties consistent to what the racing industry has, but of course, that is an argument for another forum.

I wish to take the opportunity to pay tribute to the racing clubs in my electorate. In the Morwell electorate, we have the Traralgon Greyhound Racing Club, which has recently gone through a significant transformation with relatively new facilities, and a new track constructed. Greyhound Racing Victoria and the state government have been strong supporters of the club and that has enabled the club to modernise its precinct into one of the best tracks and assets in regional Victoria. In contrast, but on the same precinct, the Latrobe Valley Racing Club (LVRC) has struggled to receive the same support over a period of time. I know the loss of race meetings has been an ongoing issue for the LVRC. The club has gone from three meetings per season, then down to two, back up to three and now has only two scheduled meetings this season. Through the efforts of the likes of Frank Bezzina and Peter Walkley and other local volunteers, the LVRC has been kept alive and ironically, the precinct is currently operating as a state-run COVID-19 vaccination centre, which I think is fabulous, particularly given that despite enormous potential, the facilities at the LVRC have been well and truly underutilised. I want to place on the record my support of the LVRC, and it is imperative the state government and Racing Victoria do all they can in their respective powers to likewise support the club, its members and our community. Having only two scheduled race meetings is not sustainable and the club has the scope, capacity and will to host additional trials and race day meetings. As other members in this house have noted, the economic impacts to local communities can be profound. This year the LVRC has two meetings, with the Derby Day meeting set down for 30 October and the iconic Traralgon Cup to be held on 28 November. One could write a book on the various challenges and horrible luck the LVRC has experienced in its hosting of racing events over the past few years but I wish the team every success with its two race days in 2021. Thank you for the opportunity to provide some feedback on the bill before us.

 Ms HORNE (Williamstown—Minister for Ports and Freight, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation, Minister for Fishing and Boating) (16:31): I move:

That the debate be now adjourned.

Motion agreed to and debate adjourned.

Ordered that debate be adjourned until later this day.