Can Centrelink payment hikes boost music festival participation?

In a world where the cost of living seems to be perpetually on the rise, it's no surprise that discretionary spending, especially among the younger demographic, is taking a hit.

The pinch is being felt all the way to the music festival scene, a cultural staple for many young Australians.

But could increasing Centrelink payments be the solution to reviving this industry? This question has sparked a heated debate across the nation.



A bar owner's call to raise Youth Allowance and JobSeeker payments to enable young Aussies to afford nights out and attend music festivals has stirred controversy.

Hugh Scobie, co-owner of Ancient World, pointed to the cost-of-living crisis and rising rents as culprits preventing many from engaging in social activities and thereby crushing the entertainment industry.


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A bar owner called to raise Youth Allowance and JobSeeker payments so young Aussies can attend music festivals. Credit: Shutterstock


Music festivals, once seen as a rite of passage for the youth, are experiencing a significant drop in ticket sales.

‘Most people can't afford to spend $50 on a night out,' Scobie said.

'Raising JobSeeker and Youth Allowance to the amount recommended by the Australian Council of Social Service would help a lot.'

High-profile events like Splendour in the Grass have even been cancelled, with a report from Creative Australia’s Soundcheck revealing a 24 per cent drop in ticket sales. Among the key demographic of 18 to 24-year-olds from 2018/19 to 2022/23.

The National Arts Participation Survey echoed these findings, citing the cost of tickets as the most common barrier to attendance, impacting 55 per cent of respondents.

The most pronounced issue among party-goers under 35 was money issues, with nine out of 10 experiencing financial difficulty in 2023.



'We lost a huge amount of our audience–young people and students whose main income is from Centrelink–almost immediately after interest rates, rents, groceries, and petrol prices went up,' Scobie said.

'Seeing bands and socialising with their friends doesn't seem to be affordable for them in the current economic climate.'

JobSeeker recipients who are single and do not have children receive a fortnightly payment of $762.70, and those on Youth Allowance receive between $395.30 to $806, depending on their age, living arrangements, relationship status, and whether they have children.

Scobie suggested raising Centrelink payments per the Australian Council of Social Service's recommendation.

It is understood that the most extensive set of permanent Centrelink payment increases, particularly a $40 increase on JobSeeker and Youth Allowance, started on 20 September.

JobSeeker recipients, currently receiving an average of $55 a day, should have their payments increased to match the pension rate of $80 a day.



Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young has weighed in, suggesting that more taxpayer funds should support festivals while also attributing festival cancellations to climate change and extreme weather events.

'Festivals are an important part of the arts and live music ecosystem. 'Festivals support jobs not only for artists but also in hospitality, tourism and trades as well,' Senator Hanson-Young said.

'It is not a surprise to hear festival organisers say that extreme weather and insurance are among their biggest challenges.’

'We have known for some time that extreme weather events and climate change are making it harder and more unpredictable to put on large-scale events.'
Key Takeaways
  • Festival ticket sales among young Australians aged 18 to 24 have significantly dropped, attributed to the cost-of-living crisis and ticket prices.
  • A bar owner, Hugh Scobie, has suggested raising Youth Allowance and JobSeeker payments to enable young people to participate in social activities like music festivals, which would support the entertainment industry.
  • The Soundcheck report revealed a 24 per cent drop in ticket sales within the key demographic for festivals and pointed to the financial pressures on young adults, with costs like rent and groceries limiting their ability to afford event tickets.
  • There have been several cancellations of major music festivals in Australia, with reasons ranging from economic pressures on consumers to challenges posed by extreme weather and the unpredictable nature of hosting large-scale events due to climate change.
Do you think Centrelink payments should be increased to support young people's participation in cultural events like music festivals? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
 
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How about looking after the aged pensioners, most of whom have spent their working lives paying taxes, so they can live above the poverty line.
Most young unemployed people
have yet even started to contribute to society but want money to go to music festivals. I don't think so!!
How about getting a job. I see ads all the time in Coles, Woolies, ALDI, coffee shops, etc looking for workers. Why are we paying people to sit on their rear ends when there is work available.
Of course , I'm not meaning all those poor unemployed lion tamers.🦁
Can't expect them to lower their standards and take a menial job.
Look after the elders who've worked.

Make young work by cancelling the safety net after a number of weeks/months. Getting work doesn't mean pick and choose. It means get work, anywhere it exists so that you can contribute and then be looked after when you're old.
 
it's not about youngsters complaining they can't afford to go out to bloody festivals . It's about the festival owners saying they are not making ends meet . For gods sake stop ripping into the disadvantaged.
Disadvantaged!! How are they disadvantaged, they get paid for doing nothing, since when was that a disadvantage.I am not talking about those genuinely looking for work,but about the hundreds of them that reside in the Mandurah area, where I used to live. It used to be a lovely beachside holiday town.
Now it's full of drug addicts, young no hopers hanging around shopping centres, shoplifting, hassling people.
Home invasions, car stealing, break and enters. There are very nice areas, with beautiful homes, but then you've become a target for break-ins.
Society is enabling them. So they can't have luxuries,but they still seem to be able to smoke, drink, buy drugs etc.
money that should be used for food, rent, etc.
I don't think you live in the real world or very naive.
 
Plenty of jobs out there....if young people want to go to more concerts and Jobstart isn't enough !! 😡🤬
I agree get a job. i reckon the Government should offer long term unemployed people 3 jobs, and they need to take one of them, (freedom of choice) if they don't take the offer, no benefits. The Government should be helping genuine people. Do hardworking taxpayers want to pay for someone else's entainment while they struggle to pay their own bills, mortgages, food and clothe their children etc. I DONT THINK SO
 
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This is your time to work.
This site is for Seniors. I am such a being. I volunteer, I still work around home, I still have my health, and I hear many, many “youngsters“ who say they will never get a job, do they try, no way.
 
Cannot believe taxpayers are expected to fund dole recipients' social life! So many of us who work hard just to try & keep on top of escalating costs of living, can't afford much of a social life either, & don't expect anyone else to fund us.
 
Rubbish. People want to work. Can you survive in job seeker with all it's onerous requirements
It's not rubbish ....... I've seen it first hand..... teenagers grouping together and renting a house, being able to buy and run a car ........ and they say why work when we can survive on the dole.....My sister has lived on welfare since she was 25 her partner since he was 23.... they have two boys 19 and 22 that they brought up on welfare they have a car..... live in housing and can afford to go to the pub and drink and play the pokies...................And NO they don't want to work........
 
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It's not rubbish ....... I've seen it first hand..... teenagers grouping together and renting a house, being able to buy and run a car ........ and they say why work when we can survive on the dole.....My sister has lived on welfare since she was 25 her partner since he was 23.... they have two boys 19 and 22 that they brought up on welfare they have a car..... live in housing and can afford to go to the pub and drink and play the pokies...................And NO they don't want to work........
Totally agree with you. Some people just have no idea, they live in their own little bubble, and actually have no idea what is going on in"that other world" around them.
Genuine people do find it hard dealing with Centrelink requirements, but these other freeloaders
know how to work the system. A lot of young guys live with single mums who are getting rent assistance and all the other benefits, they get Jobseeker and between them manage quite well, no need to work and no intention to do so.
No incentive to do so.
The poor children born from these relationships are the ones who suffer, and then they grow up and repeat the same cycle.
As I said, some people just truly have no ide because, luckily for them, their life is
oblivious to these things and they genuinely believe what they say.
No sense getting yourself in a pickle about their opinions, just realise that they genuinely don't know.
 
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Disadvantaged!! How are they disadvantaged, they get paid for doing nothing, since when was that a disadvantage.I am not talking about those genuinely looking for work,but about the hundreds of them that reside in the Mandurah area, where I used to live. It used to be a lovely beachside holiday town.
Now it's full of drug addicts, young no hopers hanging around shopping centres, shoplifting, hassling people.
Home invasions, car stealing, break and enters. There are very nice areas, with beautiful homes, but then you've become a target for break-ins.
Society is enabling them. So they can't have luxuries,but they still seem to be able to smoke, drink, buy drugs etc.
money that should be used for food, rent, etc.
I don't think you live in the real world or very naive.
When I was over the West , I popped in to see my bro, he was living in Mandurah.
We went shopping and what a place to be!! where were the cops??
Trashy people yelling and screaming at each other Youth's looking at you with a blank gaze, look into their eyes there is no intelligence there only a DRUG HAZE.
Sickening truly sickening!! 🥴💩🥴
 
As an alternative to upping Centrelink payments, maybe the festivals should consider lowering their prices.
 
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