Local government leaders have expressed disappointment at the federal government’s decision not to relocate the headquarters of multicultural broadcaster the Special Broadcasting Service to Western Sydney.
After establishing a steering committee in 2023 to examine the feasibility of a full relocation of SBS’s north shore HQ, the “significant costs involved” have led the government to decide against the move.
Instead, it has been announced this week that – “subject to the completion of a detailed business case” – the region will become home to a $5.9 million production hub featuring a TV studio, radio and podcasting booths, and a small workspace.
“Millions of dollars and countless hours have already been spent on moving SBS, and all we have to show for it is a report saying the move won’t happen, with the government now distracting us with yet another report,” said Liverpool City Council Mayor Ned Mannoun.
Speaking to Government News, Mannoun added: “Over and over again, the Albanese government has short-changed Liverpool and all of Western Sydney. Our population is growing faster than the eastern half of the Sydney basin. Our economy is growing five times as fast. But we are still treated as if we don’t deserve a role in Australian culture. The promise to move the SBS headquarters to Western Sydney was a small step towards fixing that, and better yet made financial sense for the government and for SBS.”
“Now, after many, many patient months of waiting to hear the government’s plan, we learn that the government wants to backtrack on this, too. We want to see the SBS headquarters move to a location that helps ensure the financial future of SBS, provides affordable homes and a great lifestyle to SBS staff, and embeds the broadcaster in the vibrant multicultural Australia that it was created to serve.”
While expressing surprise at the government’s revised plans for SBS, the Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils – the peak body representing local government in Greater Western Sydney – nevertheless welcomed the funding for a satellite HQ.
“Locating the SBS location hub in our region demonstrates a commitment to representing and amplifying the voices of multiculturally diverse populations,” said WSROC president Brad Bunting.
Bunting – also Blacktown City Mayor – added that the WSROC held hopes that “this will be the start of providing a permanent home for SBS in Western Sydney”.
With more than 45% of residents born overseas with over 100 languages spoken in the area, Bunting said: “Western Sydney is Australia’s most culturally and linguistically diverse region, making it a natural hub for multicultural storytelling … establishing the SBS headquarters in Western Sydney just makes sense.”
SBS will commence work in early 2025 to explore potential sites for the production hub which, when in operation, will deliver approximately 360 hours of original Australian screen content a year as well as 1,440 hours of audio content.
“The SBS board is delighted at the opportunity to embed SBS within Western Sydney,” said chair George Savvides – who leaves the broadcaster when his term expires in July 2025. “When SBS makes content with communities – especially those who are under-represented in the Australian media – those communities feel more included in society.”
In the meantime, Bunting said councils will continue to drive for a permanent home for SBS in the region. “The area offers a rich tapestry of communities with unique perspectives and languages that would provide the broadcasting service with an authentic connection to its target audience.”
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