After almost a month of operation following the rollout of mandatory ID scanners in Safe Night Precincts around the state, there may be some relief on the horizon for Queensland live music venues, as long as the gig they are hosting is organised by an external promoter.
As The Music reported earlier this month, the upcoming BIGSOUND Festival across Brisbane's Fortitude Valley will be exempt from forcing its attendees to submit to the obligatory scan of their identification on entry and re-entry after 10pm.
QMusic's Joel Edmondson told The Music that BIGSOUND was able to secure exemption because the festival is "considered a private function because it's a ticketed event that's run by a third-party promoter at the venues".
Under the Liquor Act 1992, the state's ID scanning laws do not apply to any person "whose sole purpose for entering the premises is to attend a function held on the premises".
Key Points
- Licensing experts tend to agree that, as long as a live music show meets the definition of a "function" as it appears in the Liquor Act 1992, it should be exempt from ID scanning requirements
- The gig must also be promoted by a third party — that is, someone other than the venue involved
- The exemption only lasts as long as the event itself, and only extends to ticket-holders — all other patrons are still subject to the laws
The Act defines a "function" as "an event or occasion to which persons are invited by, or for, the organiser of the event or occasion" that "is not organised by the owner or licensee of the licensed premises for the owner's or licensee's own benefit" and will not provide either party a benefit "other than a charge for using the premises and providing catering facilities".
Section 101 of the Act delineates further between what constitutes a "private event" and "public event", the latter explicitly including festivals and concerts.
However, the definition of "function" does not specify that a public event is precluded from falling under its umbrella — and this seems to be the crucial wiggle room through which gigs and festivals such as BIGSOUND have been able to fit the bill.
"The exemption from scanning only applies for the duration of the function." — OLGR Licensing Director Mike Farrah
Valley venue Crowbar was among the first to take notice of the potential workaround, releasing a statement recently informing its ticket-holding patrons: "If your purpose for attending the venue is to a show/gig/event, when booked by an external promoter, band or business, you will no longer need to be scanned in for the duration of the event."
"This is classified as a function and is listed as one of the exemptions in the legislation," the venue's owners wrote.
"This may be different for other venues, but this will be our approach moving forward until otherwise advised by the government."
According to Mike Farrah, the Licensing Director of the Office of Liquor & Gaming Regulation (OLGR), that logic apparently applies to any ticketed event run by a third-party promoter at a venue inside a Safe Night Precinct — as long as the event meets the appropriate criteria to be called a "function".
Farrah said — under the proviso that his advice be taken as "general in nature", and that venues seek their own "expert legal advice before acting" on it — "If the live music show meets all the elements of the definition of a function ... then it should meet the exemption for ID scanning under the Act."
"Further, if the music show meets the definition of a function and persons are not required to be scanned, the exemption from scanning only applies for the duration of the function," he said.
"And if persons remain on the premises after the function has concluded or enter other parts of the regulated premises, they must have their ID scanned."
"To be absolutely clear, if the venue is the promoter, then this exemption will not apply." — Oztix Director Brian Chladil
This was echoed in a letter to Qld venue managers and owners from Oztix Director Brian Chladil, who explained, "There is shared view amongst liquor licence consultants and venue operators that if an event is ticketed via a third party promoter ... that this means the event is a function."
"This applies to both pre-sale tickets and door-sale tickets," Chladil wrote. "This means an exemption from ID Scanning will apply because the 'function' is being hosted by an outside promoter and not the venue itself.
"To be absolutely clear, if the venue is the promoter, then this exemption will not apply."
Farrah said that venue operators don't have to apply for an exemption from the legislation, either, "as it is provided for under the Act and persons entering for the sole purpose of attending the function are not required to be scanned".
It's not a total bypass, of course — as Chladil explains in his letter, in addition to the exemption only lasting as long as the gig itself, "If [a venue has] a second area within [its] premises where the 'function' is not occurring and non-ticketed guests attend this area at the same time, these patrons need to be scanned."
"This at least has the benefit of substantially reducing queues," he noted.
As with the OLGR, Chladil and Oztix — who consulted with liquor licensing organisation RSAPro in writing their letter — stress that their standpoint is "not professional advice … and we recommend you talk with your liquor licence professional" before moving ahead with any change in policy.
Echoed Farrah: "The licensees of licensed venues must comply with the provisions of their licence and the Liquor Act 1992, and if they are found to be breaching any of these provisions, they may expect to face disciplinary action over any proven breaches."
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