The special position of vignerons in the liquor industry has been recognised with changes to licence arrangements, The Nationals Member for Murray Valley, Ken Jasper, said today.

Mr Jasper said vignerons major concerns had been included in the extensive range of representations he had been making to the Minister responsible for the liquor industry, Tony Robinson, in relation to the anomalies and inequities contained within the changes to the liquor licence arrangements.

In addition to the vignerons licence fee, the vignerons had been hit with a fee of $95 for a temporary limited licence to attend a maximum of three markets or special events per year, he said.

Following representations, including discussions with the Minister, the fee has been reviewed and one temporary limited licence will allow the vigneron to attend up to 12 markets or special events in 12 months, Mr Jasper said.

The Minister confirmed he had considered the vignerons special position, and, in particular, the temporary limited licences which allow vignerons to attend farmers markets and special events, more to raise the profile of their winery and offer wine tastings, than to make massive wine sales.

Vignerons wishing to attend more than 12 markets or events in any one year will need to apply for an additional licence, and this will be the subject of further representation, he said.

I believe the Minister needs to give further consideration to the vignerons licensing arrangements, recognising their importance to the economy of Victoria, and indeed including those vignerons operating within my electorate of Murray Valley, Mr Jasper said.

In discussions and correspondence with the Minister, and in speaking in the Parliament last week, I was able to highlight a range of inconsistencies and anomalies in the new licence fee arrangements, in addition to concerns about the massive across the board fee increases.

However, whilst we have had some success for the vignerons, there are still major concerns with the new liquor licences generally, and I encouraged the Minister to act decisively in addressing the anomalies and inequities in the licensing system, which have had such a massive impact on the industry.

The Minister must recognise that around 80 per cent of licensees have now paid their fees, without any adjustment and often under duress, and fearful that if they didn’t pay before January 21 2010 they would face penalties for being technically unlicensed.

Mr Jasper said the Liquor Licensing Authority and Director Sue Maclellan could have played a major role in addressing the range of anomalies and inequities instead of taking a hard line with licensees, particularly those in country Victoria.

It’s clear inappropriately high fees have been applied to community sporting clubs; and small businesses, including general stores, hotels and holiday parks, he said.

The issue of massive licence fee increases for the 2010 calendar year has been a major concern for the large number of licensees across Murray Valley and the State of Victoria and I will continue to make representations on behalf of my licensees until I achieve a just result.