Greens leader Richard Di Natale claims that Australia suffers from the excessive political influence of "special interests", and singled out licensed clubs as an example of an industry whose concerns he presumably thinks should not be heard. 
Unlike the Greens, which typically reap around 10 per cent of the vote at elections, registered clubs enjoy paid membership from more than one in every two Australian adults. This makes clubs more than five times larger than the union movement and the largest collective membership base in the nation. Clubs are also the most generous donors to sport, charities and good causes of any industry, by some margin, and employ tens of thousands of people including many in regional and rural areas. In our view, the interests of an industry that makes an economic and social contribution of almost $10 billion to Australian society should certainly be considered by our nation's politicians.
Josh Landis
Clubs Australia
Sydney, NSW