Retail battle steps up
THE next step in the battle to change regional retail trading opening hours in Mission Beach has been taken with a petition asking the State Government to consider the effect of the laws on the tourist-reliant town.
Mission Beach Community Association has called for public support for an “urgent review of the prohibition on Woolworths opening on Sundays and public holidays”.
The recent closure of independently owned Mission Beach Supermarket has made the situation dire.
The petition states “we now have the ridiculous situation where a major tourist destination has no food store open on Sundays and public holidays”.
“The economic benefit to the town is obvious and the store itself claim they would increase employment with additional opening hours.”
MBCA leaders said due to recent natural disasters the town was a crucial candidate to be granted an exemption to the laws which bar country areas from unlimited trading until 2022.
Earlier this year, residents were horrified to realise the changes to the State Government’s Trading (Allowable Hours) Amendment Act meant shops would be closed over the Easter long weekend, a peak tourism time on the Cassowary Coast.
News Corp reported the Act did not have the words “including Easter Saturday” in relation to the operation hours of major supermarkets in 15 regional Queensland towns, including Mission Beach.
The closest supermarket is a 30-minute drive away in Tully.
MBCA secretary Truus Biddlecombe said, although the petition had just started, feedback on Facebook was very positive.
“The local people can go to Tully but tourists have no idea they can’t shop on public holiday and Sunday,” she said.
“I think we’ll get enough support, we’ll keep it going until we get enough support.
“We still want all the other shops to keep on going, this is important for tourist industry.”
Another Mission Beach community leader, Ken Gray, said he was strongly in favour of the petition.
“I suspect employees would rather get one day off but the truth is you can’t even get a bottle of milk in this town on Sundays,” he said.
“If somebody comes in on a Sunday, as they often do, and come into a camping ground or motel without a restaurant, it’s a bit ordinary to come to a tourist town which just isn’t open.”
Ayr, Blackwater, Bowen, Charters Towers, Childers, Chinchilla, Cloncurry, Goondiwindi, Kingaroy, Longreach, Mount Isa, Murgon, Proserpine and Roma were also affected by the changes.