LNP BID TO GET REGION TICKING
Pitch to ditch one-size COVID plan and lure tourists back within weeks
EMBATTLED Cairns tourism businesses could be weeks away from hosting interstate visitors under an LNP COVID-19 recovery plan designed to kickstart the state’s economy in the wake of dropping coronavirus infection rates.
Dubbed the “road map to recovery” the plan will be rolled out in four stages beginning with the reopening of all cafes, restaurants and retail shops before the last week of May.
Queensland Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington said the plan was all about boosting a Far Northern economy suffering under COVID-19 travel bans.
“The LNP’s road map to recovery is all about supporting jobs in Cairns,” she said.
“Our plan also allows people to start planning their domestic next holiday to Cairns, which will be a crucial step to getting the local economy working again.
“Cairns is especially reliant on tourism and our plan provides operators with the certainty and confidence they need to plan their reopening.”
Under the fourth phase of the plan all interstate travel restrictions would be lifted by mid-July opening the door to southern tourists in need of a tropical getaway.
By early July all licensed clubs, zoos, libraries and pools would open.
“Queenslanders need to know there is a plan to get our economy moving,”
“(And) one of the first steps of our plan would allow the people of Cairns the freedom to travel further from their homes.
“Regions like Far North Queensland have been struggling with one-size-fits-all restrictions dictated from Brisbane.”
Ms Frecklington described the plan as a “staged and sensible” approach, saying they had undertaken consultation with industry and that it had also been modelled off the Northern Territory’s plan.
The LNP says the plan is subject to consultation and dependent on the coronavirus infection rate remaining low, while maintaining appropriate social distancing measures.
Advance Cairns executive chairman Nick Trompf confirmed the organisation had been invited to provide feedback on the plan.
“It is ambitious and if it could be achieved it would be wonderful but really only time is going to tell as we don’t know yet (the impact) of last week’s easing of restrictions,” he said.
“One piece of feedback we have given them is in the suggested first phase they are allowing travel up to 200km for non-essential travel … we have asked in the second phase to include non-essential travel across all of Queensland.”
A spokesman from Annastacia Palaszczuk’s office said the Premier was relying on the best health advice available.
The Queensland Government will hold talks today with representatives from the hospitality and tourism industries as they continue to work on their roadmap. “We’re working on the roadmap to recovery, then I’ll release that and everyone will have the detail,” Ms Palaszczuk said yesterday.
Responding to criticism of the plan from within the Premier’s office suggesting the plan offered “false hope”, Mr Trompf said the State Opposition was entitled to put forward propositions to government.
“I applaud (the LNP) for taking the initiative but in the end the government will call the shots. And we will wait and hope that (the plan) can be safely done as quickly as possible,” he said.
Queensland added no new coronavirus cases yesterday, with just three active cases remaining in the Cairns region.
It was reported last night that National Cabinet was expected to allow groups of up to 10 per household. The eased restrictions on gatherings could come in time for Mother’s Day but implementation would be up to each state.