Council will write to the Minister for Small Business, requesting Melbourne Cup Day to be declared as the official public holiday for the entire Hepburn Shire.
Townships on the western side of the Shire have previously observed the Ballarat Show Day public holiday, while the remainder of the shire observed the Melbourne Cup public holiday.
In April 2021 Ballarat City Council voted to make Melbourne Cup Day the observed public holiday for November for 2021 to 2024. Golden Plains Shire has also recently adopted Melbourne Cup as their municipality’s public holiday.
Council conducted an online survey in July, which found that 94% of respondents voted in favour of a shire-wide Melbourne Cup public holiday.
