89B   Exemption of holiday resorts

(1)  The Minister, on application being made pursuant to this section and where he or she is satisfied that all or part of an area (within the meaning of the Local Government Act 1993) outside the County of Cumberland, the City of Newcastle and the City of Wollongong:

(a)  is, or is within, a holiday resort, and

(b)  during the period or periods of the year specified in the application or any part of that period or those periods usually has a holiday population that is large by comparison with its normal resident population,

      may, subject to this section and for that period or those periods, or some part thereof, as he or she thinks fit, by order exempt the shops in that area or part thereof, as the case may be, from the provisions of this Division, and from specified provisions of the regulations, subject to such conditions as to hours of opening, or of trading in any classes of goods, or as to other matters, as may be specified in the order.

(2)  An application for an order under this section may be made to the Minister only by the council of the area or part thereof in respect of which the order is sought and shall:

(a)  state the reasons therefor,

(b)  specify the area or locality in respect of which, and the period or periods in each year for which, it is desired that the exemption shall be in force,

(c)  specify the times at which it is desired that shops be allowed to remain open, or to trade in any class or classes of goods, pursuant to the exemption, and

(d)  state whether, and if so to what extent, the application has the support or concurrence of the shopkeepers of shops situated within the area or locality.

The period or periods specified pursuant to paragraph (b) shall be an unbroken period not longer than, or more than one period totalling not more than, fifteen weeks and shall be the same period or periods in each year.

(3)  The Minister shall not make an order under this section until he or she has obtained, and has considered, a report by the prescribed person as to whether or not the area or locality specified in the application for the order is, or is within, a holiday resort and, if so, whether during the period or periods so specified that area or locality usually has a holiday population that is large by comparison with its normal resident population.

In this subsection the prescribed person means the person for the time being holding, or acting in, the office of Director of Tourism or, where the holder of some other office is prescribed for the purposes of this subsection, the person for the time being holding or acting in that office.

(4)  An order under this section:

(a)  shall be published in the Gazette,

(b)  shall, until revoked and subject to any variation thereof that may from time to time be made, remain in force from year to year in respect of the period of exemption specified therein,

      and any revocation or variation thereof shall also be so published.

(5)  No person shall be guilty of an offence against this Act by reason only that a shop within an area or locality in respect of which an order under this section was for the time being in force was open at a time within the period of exemption specified in that order and in accordance with the conditions, if any, so specified.