Lobby for new, one-stop licence to heat up

Operators in service industries in Barbados are calling on the new Mia Mottley administration to make good on a promise to introduce a one-stop-shop for obtaining entertainment licences.

This comes as the Barbados Coalition of Service Industries (BCSI) adds its voice to the call for a safe re-opening of the country so that entertainment events can take place.

President of the BCSI Paul Clarke said one-stop entertainment licence was something that the BCSI would be pushing for this year.

He said the measure would ease a lot of pressure on promoters and event producers, who under current laws, are required to fill out forms with the Barbados Revenue Authority (BRA), and obtain documentation from several agencies including the police force, the fire department and the Town and Country Development Planning Office.

“We are pushing hard for that one-stop entertainment licence. We are helping the entertainment industry within the creative sector to lobby for that,” Clarke told Barbados TODAY.

Over the past two years, the creative industries have been hardest hit by a lack of events and especially by the absence of the annual Crop Over festival, which is also having a significant impact on summer bookings for the accommodation sector.

Clarke told Barbados TODAY he was eagerly looking forward to the safe re-opening of the country so that events could take place on a larger scale once again.

“There are challenges with the possibility of a third year without Crop Over,” said Clarke.

“Crop Over is a significant part of the economy not just directly but indirectly as well. That is something we are hopeful for. We are in support of the safe re-opening of the country fully,” he said.

Acknowledging the impact the absence of the annual festival was having on the services sector, Clarke noted that while Barbados continued to take “very cautious steps” in fully re-opening the country to certain activities, businesses continued to have “some serious downturn” in revenue and opportunities.

The BCSI membership consists of more than 40 associations including those representing architects, musicians and entertainers, artists, fashion designers, accountants, lawyers, office professionals and medical practitioners.

While Clarke was unable to quantify the dollar amount that the island would forego as a result of not having the “sweetest summer festival”, which usually runs from
May to the first Monday in August each year, he said its absence was far-reaching, though not obvious for some sectors.

The services sector is estimated to collectively contribute in excess of $6 billion to the Barbados economy annually. The Crop Over festival is said to generate between $80-$100 million in the economy each year.

“It does affect quite a few of our member associations because a lot of them, as much as you don’t realise it, depend on the entertainment industry – not only those in the creative industry, but there are also some lawyers, accountants, and even the cleaners’ associations, that would have seen a drop-off in business because of the lack of entertainment,” he explained.

Ahead of the last Crop Over festival in 2019, event producers were allowed to obtain their entertainment licences from the National Cultural Foundation (NCF) in what could be considered a trial run, after government met with officials of the BRA.

In June 2019, Prime Minister Mia Mottley promised that changes would be made to the over 35-year-old Public Entertainment Act to accommodate the move.

Clarke said he was looking forward to that change to make things easier for the entertainment industry. He also suggested that the Ministry of Business Development should be the centralised location for the licence instead of the NCF.

“There is definitely a need for that one-stop entertainment licence. I am not sure it should be managed under the NCF but they are a good stop-gap for this time. I do think it sits very well under the Ministry of Business Development because of the nature of how quickly things need to be done,” he said.

Clarke said the BCSI was also pressing authorities to take sports more seriously.

“Everywhere else in the world sports is big business and we now need to start looking at things that way as well in this new world dynamic that we are moving into.”
marlonmadden@barbadostoday.bb