Sir Humphrey would be proud…Victorian decision not to fund Atheists reads like the script of Yes Minister

The events surrounding the decision not to fund the Global Atheist Convention seemed eerily familiar to me but I couldn’t pin it down.  What was the cause of this niggling déjà vu?

It hit me this morning.  It was reading like a scene from Yes Minister

Indeed it seems that from the start their has been a reluctance to engage with the Global Atheist Convention organisers.  This is not religious bigotry, just the usual interference that Bureaucracies run when there is no benefit to the party in power for supporting your event.

David Nicholls, President  of the AFA gives some indication of the piss-farting around that the convention organisers have had to go through to first submit an application, and then get an answer on its success:

…The application was made in June 2009 through the Premier’s Department. It was then passed like a ball of flaming brimstone to the Convention and Visitors Bureau and, from there, to the Victorian Multicultural Commission where it has remained, smouldering, for months.

The AFA was advised that the basic criteria for funding was over one thousand ticket sales, including purchases from interstate and overseas. That goal was accomplished in October.

Also in October, the Atheist Foundation received a letter of rejection from the Premier’s Department. But, when AFA President, David Nicholls, questioned the decision he was told the letter had been sent in error, because the application was now being handled elsewhere.

This week, the Convention & Visitors Bureau advised that it was rejecting the AFA’s application because the Convention was already ‘secured’. This was a surprise to the AFA, who believed their application was being handled through the Multicultural Commission and had never been told that securing a venue would disqualify the Convention from funding. In fact, the venue was secured months ago prompting no comment from any government department until now.

“One has to ask,” says Nicholls, “how you can confirm 1,000 ticket sales before having a venue secured.”

“And,” Nicholls continues, “if our application didn’t meet the government criteria, why did they hold on to our application for five months without once mentioning that fact?”

…

[Source]

I particularly like the two mutually exclusive requirements  issued by two different departments i.e. we need you to sell more than 1000 tickets(which presumes a secured venue)  and we need you not sell any tickets and be looking for a venue.

Is it about money?  I don’t think so, the support of the Parliament of World Religions aside from bringing in tourism also makes the Victorian government look good in promoting religious Harmony.  I don’t think that they can gain the same benefits out of the Global Atheist conference.

In May, 2009 Victorian Premier Mr Brumby highlighted what he thought were the benefits:

Ms HUPPERT — … Can you provide us with more information about how this event[Parliament of World religions] will benefit Victoria?

Mr BRUMBY — Yes, I can. As I said before, I think the Parliament of the World’s Religions, which will be held later in the year at the new convention centre, will be a fantastic event for our state. There will be 5000 visitors come to our state from all around the world, representing all the religions. I think you could not get a better event in terms of reinforcing our community harmony and our multiculturalism. As I said, it will be held at the new convention centre, which is 6‑star rated and the largest in Australia.

[source]

So while I have heard that one of the reasons why the Parliament of World Religions was financed was because of tourism, it seems quite clearly that Mr Brumby sees other benefits, particularly to the image of Victoria under his parties governance.

Atheists are simply lacking the ”political sexy”.

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