Allowing standing-up drinking from Friday, instead of Monday, is ‘crucial’ for SA hotels

There are just two weekends before Christmas - and if standing-up drinking isn’t allowed from Friday, pubs and clubs are in real trouble, the industry says.

The hotels industry is calling on the state government to move the easing of “illogical” stand-up drinking restrictions from next Monday to this Friday, saying it strips pubs of a lucrative pre-Christmas weekend.

The state’s Transition Committee on Tuesday recommended a raft of changes from Monday including standing-up drinking in licensed venues, a fivefold increase in the number of people allowed at home gatherings, and increases on caps for private functions such as weddings and funerals.

Play gym cafes will reopen, gyms can operate at half capacity and more patrons can attend theatres and cinemas from Monday if they are masked.

But Australian Hotels Association SA boss Ian Horne said it was “illogical” not to allow pubs and clubs a return to stand-up drinking before the weekend.

“There can be no genuine risk over two days,” Mr Horne said.

“There’s only two peak trading periods left, it’s unexplainable that they wouldn’t maximise it for the hospitality employees’ benefits, so they can earn their wages to turn December from a disaster month like November, to something maybe better than break-even.

“Two days in one weekend at this time of the year is equivalent to five days of a normal week’s trading.”

Mr Horne said the industry had been “wiped out” over November and December, thanks to the ongoing effects of the Parafield Cluster, and restoring standing-up drinking this coming weekend was be “crucial” to venue operators and employees alike.

“We’ve argued strongly that November’s been trashed. November and December are crucial months in the financial viability in the industry going into next year,” he said.

He was perplexed that funerals could have 200 attendees, cinemas allowed 75 per cent capacity, but hospitality venues were capped at 50 per cent, while a maximum of 150 people were allowed at private functions.

Mr Horne said while the industry was “grateful” for eased restrictions – adding the immediate restoration of the one-person-per-2 sqm rule was the “best thing” for the mental health of employees and operators – delaying the return of standing-up drinking was “inexplicable”.

“The boost to the mental health wellbeing of hospitality workers was significantly impacted in a positive way on Friday when Grant Stevens made that announcement. There was euphoria across the industry,” he said.

Announcing the new rules on Tuesday, Premier Steven Marshall hailed the “massive changes” after a “very, very tough year” and said the state was now the “envy of much of the rest of the world at the moment”.

“I want to really congratulate every single person in South Australia,” he said.

BREAKING from Monday Premier @marshall_steven
Standing up drinking allowed
Play gyms can reopen
Home gatherings up to 50 from 10
Lift cap on private gatherings to 200
Gyms half capacity
Weddings;funerals 200 cap
Cinemas 75%
No longer work at home#coronavirus #covid19#Adelaide pic.twitter.com/U3sRFfBrqK

— Andrew Hough (@andrew_hough) December 8, 2020

“We stared down this cluster, we stared down the second wave in South Australia.

“And now we’re all going to be the beneficiaries in the lead-up to Christmas from the fantastic work that every South Australian has put in.”

More than 25,000 COVID-Safe marshals have been trained within the hospitality sector, and with the inclusion of the QR code check-in, hailed as a “fantastic initiative” by the industry, according to Mr Horne.

He added that all systems are in place to operate as safely as possible.

“Our hotels have never been safer, they’re safer than the supermarket,” he added.

“It’s about how you manage functions; it’s more than just standing up at a bar.”