From the President

DAVID BASHEER – AHA|SA PRESIDENT

Time to Learn from Mistakes of the Past

KEY POINTS:

• Speed up vaccination.

• State what percentage of the population must be vaccinated to return to unrestricted trading.

• Credit where it is due: SA did not go into lockdown thanks to the Police Commissioner and Premier.

There would not be a hotel in South Australia, regardless of its size or location, that has not lost business in the past two weeks as a result of COVID-related restrictions.

Our members and our staff cannot continue to operate this way. Again, in the last two weeks, we have endured:

• Lost accommodation bookings due to border closures

• Mass cancellations of function and events, especially cocktail parties with no stand up drinking

• Live music shows cancelled

• The loss of general bookings and trade as a result of the limited capacity.

As Ian Horne says in his column, it is likely to have cost the industry, including staff, a staggering $30 million.

LEADERSHIP

In government and in our health departments, we need adults in the room and we need real leadership.

In South Australia last week, our officials certainly stood out. Those restrictions when we had no cases and our borders closed to hot spots appeared premature, but the fact we did not go into lockdown when cases emerged was a credit to our Police Commissioner and Premier.

As leaders in other States bickered all week instead of focussing on those affected, SA leaders, to their great credit, have stayed closer to the facts and the needs of the people they are there to serve.

WE WARNED OF THIS SCENARIO

In April, I used this column to express concern about the apathetic attitude to the vaccine rollout from our political and health leaders. They told us we must be cautious and careful, as well as the infamous “it’s not a race” line.

By contrast, we sent a strong message from the tens of thousands of South Australians with “a dog in the fight”, that those comfortable with the slow pace of the rollout were toying with our people’s jobs and livelihoods.

It is our 26,250 staff and members that are put out of work or see their debt levels shoot up every time there is a lockdown. And these are lockdowns that could have been prevented if we had adopted a more assertive vaccine rollout like the UK, USA, Israel, the European Union, South Korea and Japan.

How can it be that we are lagging behind the likes of Chile, Slovenia, Estonia, Mexico and Colombia that don’t have the incredible health care system we enjoy in Australia?

National cabinet targets have failed to materialise. We are so far behind on the original vaccine rollout target – and the revised rollout target – that it beggars belief. Both Federal and State Governments need to approach this with greater urgency. They need to demonstrate empathy for business - something that has been sadly lacking – and show they understand the impact on staff who are reliant on getting hours in their workplace because an 80-person function can be held in a 90sqm room.

Three months ago, the general theme was that Australia was fortunate not to have the widespread health crisis suffered by other countries, so there was no need to rush. However, those whose livelihoods were threatened by restrictions and border closures saw it differently. Now, as we roll into a new financial year, the nightmare scenario we warned of has come to haunt us.

Will things improve? National Cabinet has again sought to rectify the problem with new initiatives last Friday (July 2) and a promise of better times ahead. The plan looks good and we enthusiastically hope that this pathway plays out.

NO VACCINE TRIGGER A MAJOR CONCERN

Worryingly, no measure has been put in place regarding the level of vaccinations that are required to trigger increased freedoms in Australia. Remember, in the first week of May the SA transition committee forecast a move back to 100% capacities, subject to increased vaccination rates. Two months later we are still waiting for those rates to be revealed.

And as long as the Premiers and State health officials continue to have the last say on restrictions, normality appears out of reach.

The Premiers have never agreed on the definition of a hot spot, meaning hospitality continues to bear the brunt of more lockdowns and restrictions.

Sophie Elsworth from The Australian astutely tweeted: “Interesting to watch politicians/bureaucrats lecture Australians to get vaccinated while giving no guarantee of having civil liberties returned. No wonder so many people are doing this at snail’s pace.”

THE SOONER THE SAFER

Those of us who need the vaccine rollout to accelerate have watched on helplessly as the decision makers found time to bicker amongst themselves.

QLD chief medical officer Janette Young - the next Governor of Queensland - convinced anyone under 40 not to go near AstraZenica but former deputy chief medical officer Nick Coatsworth made it clear it was not an issue. Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt, ATAGI, the peak medical bodies and Lieutenant General John Frewen all chipped in with conflicting views.

We are stuck with the consequences of this confusion. These days, long term planning in hospitality barely reaches Friday afternoon. Compare the attitude here to the UK.

In Australia, we have political point scoring and blame shifting, and some politicians and the media are peddling fear over Astra Zenica. As columnist Matt Abraham wrote, we are forced into lockdowns with dire warnings such as “tinder box” and “wildfire”.

Yet in the UK, the vaccine’s developer Andrew Pollard received a standing ovation from the Wimbledon crowd last week. That’s because life in the UK is returning to normal as they learn to live with hundreds of cases a day.

In fact, half of the UK population will be offered a third jab by September, alongside the flu vaccination to reduce even more the risk of restrictions this coming Northern winter. The publicity there surrounding vaccinations is ‘the sooner the safer’.

AHA|SA members would not have traded places with their UK colleagues during peak COVID-19 in that country - but today, they have clarity well beyond our vision.

As 5AA breakfast announcer Will Goodings said in April: “The vaccine is a restrictions killer.” It is abundantly clear the vaccine rollout is not purely a health issue… it is an economic issue of the highest order.

CRTS MEAN SAFETY

For many gaming venues with bank notes and ticket in/ ticket out, CRTs have become a way of life. They offer customers an increased level of convenience and act as a secure safe for the venues to keep cash at the cashier to a minimum.

The AHA|SA is in discussions with CBS to remove the requirement to have these CRTs turned off at 2am. CRTs provide venues with an increased level of security, particularly in light of the recent increase in gaming room robberies.

And of course, it is the period after 2am that is most vulnerable. These units are fitted with bank grade locks and negate the need for so much vulnerable cash during our most dangerous trading times.

Hopefully, common sense will prevail soon.