Taxpayers fund Mardi Gras for first time
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The 30th Mardi Gras was held last March. (AAP: Jane Dempster)
The New South Wales Government will provide funding to Sydney's Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras for the first time in the festival's 30-year history.
Events NSW says the one-year arrangement will help develop a financial plan for the festival so it can continue to expand.
The Government is not revealing how much it is investing but Mardi Gras chief executive Anna McInerney says the boost is long overdue for the often cash-strapped organisation.
"It's really an official recognition of what the Mardi Gras contributes to the state economy," she said.
Ms McInerney says the parade generates around $30 million for NSW but better marketing could increase that by around $15 million a year.
"Being able to tap into that is really going to help in terms of bringing back in those international tourists into the city and the state," she said.
Events NSW chief executive Geoff Parmenter says the strategy aims to include more national and international participants in the parade and the integration of the festival with tourism marketing.
"This is really a tactical investment to allow a plan to be developed so that it can grow and be self-sustainable and not need a funding lifeline into the future," he said.
"It's an investment that's going to drive a very substantial return, or allow the continuation of a very substantial return.
"It's a relatively small investment in what is a proven event in terms of its capacity to bring visitors to Sydney in very large numbers who spend a lot of money."
'Now is not the time'
The Government has announced the funding despite crying poor following the failure of dumped premier Morris Iemma's power privatisation plan.
And despite stalling most of its projects ahead of its Budget review in November, the Government has also announced it will contribute $30 million to ensure the VB Supercar grand finale is held in Sydney for the next five years.
NSW Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell says with the future of major infrastructure projects uncertain, now is not the time to be funding these types of events.
"Whether the Mardi Gras, whether motorsport events, if Mr Rees is saying the state's facing a financial crisis and he's putting question marks over major infrastructure works, he's confusing the hell out of people across the state by finding money for these other events," he said.
"If Mr Rees wants to prioritise funding, some of the announcements he's made in recent days would be further down the list."
Organisers reported a profit of about $500,000 from this year's Mardi Gras, which they said was the biggest yet.
It was a big turnaround from six years earlier, when they faced $700,000 in debts and a voluntary administrator found they were trading while insolvent.
