Ahead of the state election on 25 March, NSW Labor has pledged $103m to rejuvenate the state’s ailing live music sector.

Geared to “grassroots” projects in the suburbs and the regions, the funding package will seek to reverse the decline in the number of music venues in NSW (which currently stands at 133 according to Liquor and Gaming NSW) and encourage the creation of new live music infrastructure. The aim is to double the number of venues across NSW.

Launched at the Lansdowne Hotel in Sydney by Labor arts and nighttime economy spokesman John Graham and NSW Labor leader Chris Minns, the policy seeks to reverse a two-decade decline in the live music sector’s fortunes, brought about by issues including changing inner city demographics, the expansion of gaming machine rooms, noise complaints, gentrification and urban redevelopment, state “lockout” laws introduced to curb street violence and the global pandemic.

In 2018, a NSW parliamentary inquiry heard 176 venues had closed since 2014.

In an attempt to reverse the decline in venue numbers, Labor says it would work towards a simplifying of the procedures around noise complaints. It would also encourage the creation...