Corona cafe crackdown

New limits to keep customers at a distance

CAFES and bars have to slash the number of customers they serve at one time and staggered seating will be introduced in cinemas under unprecedented restrictions on indoor gatherings.

The national coronavirus cabinet’s new rules limit all non-essential indoor venues to one person per four square metres, meaning a cafe covering 100 sqm can only let 25 people inside at once.

Fines of up to $100,000 apply to businesses ignoring the restrictions, which do not include essential services such as supermarkets, offices and public transport.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said cinemas and theatres would need to stagger seating, except for families who could sit together, while some restaurants would need to reduce capacity.

It follows bans on non-essential indoor gatherings of more than 100 people and outdoor gatherings of more than 500 people, which forced the cancellation of sporting events, concerts and conferences.

Restaurant and Catering Australia chief Wes Lambert said hospitality businesses would adjust.

“We have been advocating since early on in this crisis that businesses innovate and determine novel and unique revenue streams that they may not have had before,” he said.

Mr Lambert said restaurants were signing up to food delivery apps and creating individual vacuum-packed meals for diners — particularly those working from home — to take away.

“This will also help people who are finding grocery store shelves are empty,” he said. Australian Hotels Association liquor and policing director John Green said pubs would create more space between tables and ask punters to sit down instead of standing.

“We ask the public to be sympathetic to what we’re trying to do,” he said.

“Pubs are part of the Australian psyche. We’ve been there through flood, through drought and most recently through bushfires, and we intend to be there and remain open where we can.”

The national cabinet is also urging venue owners to enforce strict requirements recommended by medical experts to reduce the spread of the virus.

While food markets are exempt from the 500-person limit, they must seek to reduce the density of stalls and control the number of people shopping at the same time.