Fears JobKeeper support will still be required for the events sector in Mad March

South Australia is set to face significant challenges for Mad March after the Superloop and Tour Down Under cancellations. A new survey shows how worried the business sector is.

Almost one in two South Australian businesses in the hospitality, tourism and events sector says it will still be reliant on JobKeeper in Mad March, sparking calls for a major boost in next week’s State Budget.

Business SA chief executive Martin Haese called for the budget to include “much-needed financial support for these hardest hit businesses that remain severely compromised by ongoing Government restrictions”.

With the sector rocked by the State Government’s decision to scrap the Adelaide 500 and expectations that key Mad March events, such as the Fringe and Womadelaide, will be scaled back, Mr Haese said significant support was needed.

In the events sector alone, three in four businesses said they would still need the Federal Government’s JobKeeper safety net, the new Business SA survey showed

Across the board, 46 per cent of businesses in the state’s hardest hit sectors from COVID-19 – hospitality, tourism and events – said they would still need JobKeeper in March.

Treasurer Rob Lucas said the government was committed to saving as many jobs and businesses as possible and would monitor the need for additional support for struggling sectors after March. He said more investment for stimulus would be in the budget.

Martin Haese, chief executive officer of Business SA. Picture supplied

Mr Haese called for a major event to fill the void, including possibly a Formula E race.

“Motoring events can bring more interstate and overseas visitors to Adelaide and, if positioned right, can deliver a significantly higher than average per person spend,” he said.

“This is good for SA’s accommodation providers, hotels, restaurants, cafes and cultural institutions. Either way, it’s time for the State Government to double down on the city economy.

“The city is vulnerable and must be healthy for the state economy to rebound and thrive.” Today, supporters of a Formula E race, including Business SA, will launch an advertising campaign, spruiking the electric vehicle motorsport.

The Australia Institute SA director Noah Schultz-Byard said research by the think tank showed the state “is ready to look to the future and host the all-electric, ultra-modern Formula E racing series”.

The Adelaide 500 Supercar event has been cancelled.

But Premier Steven Marshall ruled out such a race last week when he fronted the media to discuss the scrapping of the Supercars event.

The fallout from the V8s decision continued yesterday with revelations taxpayers may have to spend millions to compensate Supercars. Mr Marshall and the South Australian Tourism Commission were yesterday remaining tight-lipped about the potential taxpayers may have to fork out.

But it is estimated to be worth millions of dollars.

Negotiations are under way to settle the contract.

Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas said South Australians had a “right to know” exactly how much the decision would cost taxpayers.

Mr Marshall also confirmed that any government-owned assets associated with the Adelaide 500 that could not be used for other events would be sold off.