Questions Raised Over Peter Garrett Booking For Music Fest In Financial Trouble

Management for the upcoming Darwin Festival have called on the NT Government to provide near half a million dollars in funding within the week or face axing the whole event, just days after the festival was slammed for booking Midnight Oil frontman Peter Garrett over local talent. 

As ABC reports, former NT Labor chief minister Clare Martin confirmed yesterday that the 18-day festival scheduled for August could not go ahead unless the government pays $450,000 in remaining contract payments. 

"Very sadly it is not an exaggeration," Martin said.

"Unless we have that cash in the next few days we can't pay the artists' contracts and simply we will be in an insolvent position."

Last week, Country Liberals Minister for the Arts Gary Higgins rejected the calls made by festival organisers and accused them of making some poor calls in relation to its spending, one of which being the booking of Garrett.

"Why have we got Peter Garrett coming up, I mean why in the hell are we paying that much money — I don't know how much — but I presume we are paying a lot of money for him to come up and perform...when we are in a financial hole?" Higgins said in an interview with 1057 ABC Darwin.

"Is that a responsible step to take?"

ABC also claim that a report from auditors Deloitte shows that the board approved six new full time staff (worth $350,000), despite having no funds to cover the costs.

However festival management have claimed in a statement that they met with the Government to request adjustments to the current payment schedule, which they are yet to receive a response to.

The 2016 Darwin Festival is to take place from 4-21 August. Other acts scheduled to perform include Sarah Blasko and The Birds.