COVID-19 FIGHTBACK Industry wants a way out
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TOWNSVILLE businesses are hoping today’s National Cabinet will reveal just how quickly life will return to normal.
While business, medical and political leaders made another call yesterday for restrictions in Townsville to be lifted as the region reached 28 days COVID-19-FREE, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said she would not reveal plans until the National Cabinet’s road to recovery was released.
Ms Palaszczuk announced yesterday that families of up to five people can travel from this weekend, allowing Mother’s Day gatherings.
But PVW Partners managing partner Carl Valentine said while this was a good start, he believed business should have the same level of restriction.
“Why don’t we keep going with that? If five is the magic number, why can’t we have five people going to a cafe or five people going to a restaurant, as long as we are practising social distancing, with people that are in our households?” he said. “Every day these restrictions stay in place where it is not necessarily required from a health perspective … makes it that much harder for people to get back to business.”
Mr Valentine would like to see a plan similar to the Northern Territory’s, which details when each industry and social activity can return.
“The Northern Territory has also flagged that there will be a checklist that businesses need to complete to show they are ready to reopen,” Mr Valentine said.
“If our businesses in Townsville, and indeed throughout Townsville, had that plan and had that checklist, they’d be working really hard to open their doors as soon as the Chief Health Officer says it is time to do so.”
Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington has also called for more restrictions to be eased in Townsville, and said the region had already done the hard yards.
“North Queensland has contained coronavirus and it shouldn’t have to stick to Brisbane’s rules any longer,” she said.
“The LNP’S recovery road map will get Townsville’s economy back on its feet. Townsville could easily be fasttracked through the stages, given how COVID-FREE it is.”
The National Cabinet will meet today to discuss how restrictions will be eased across the country. Once that has been released, Ms Palaszczuk is expected to announce further measures to ease restrictions.