24 Hour Economy to Make Sydney Glow

Greater Sydney’s nightlife will be revamped in a major boost for businesses and jobs in the wake of the economic impacts of COVID-19 thanks to the NSW Government’s 24-Hour Economy Strategy.

Member for Manly James Griffin welcomed the investment in Greater Sydney’s night-time economy and said it would support the state’s recovery efforts following the impacts of COVID-19.

“As we continue to adapt to the challenges of COVID, we are paving the way to attract greater visitors and ultimately investment into NSW,” Mr Griffin said.

“We know when we bring people to Sydney, Manly and the Northern Beaches we can best showcase all that NSW has to offer, including day trips to nearby national parks, beaches and coastal walks.

“The new 24-Hour Economy strategy aims to drive investment, create jobs and attract more businesses Sydney, laying the ground-work for our State’s economic recovery so we can keep more businesses in business and people in jobs.”

Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney Stuart Ayres said the Strategy was led by industry and aims to grow and support jobs in hospitality, tourism, retail and the arts.

“When we started planning this Strategy our goal was to take advantage of the $16 billion economic uplift from realising the potential of non-traditional work hours. Now, with the job losses resulting from the pandemic, that goal is more important than ever,” Mr Ayres said.

“Sydneysiders deserve a global city that’s thriving 24-hours a day, and the world wants a 24-hour Sydney. We are going to turbocharge Sydney by working closely with industry and councils to implement the 39 actions across the Strategy’s five strategic pillars so the productivity of the night can rival that of the day to create more employment opportunities in arts, entertainment and cultural events throughout the evening.

“COVID-19 has hit the tourism, hospitality and the arts sectors hard. This Strategy sets out a pathway to activate home-grown events that create safe opportunities for people to enjoy across Greater Sydney.”

The 24-Hour Economy Strategy will be spearheaded by a new 24-hour Economy Coordinator General who will be responsible for bringing this strategy to life. A Neon Grid or ‘night map’ will also be developed to target investment towards and help promote 24-hour economy hubs across Greater Sydney.

The NSW Government will work closely with industry and councils to identify and accelerate local 24-hour economy hubs across Sydney.

The Strategy can be found here: global.nsw.gov.au/24-hr-economy-vision