Coronavirus Qld: Quarantine outrage over alcohol rationing
Quarantined Queenslanders are furious after having their beer confiscated and rationed despite having to pay thousands for their own quarantine hotel rooms.
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Quarantined Queenslanders are having their alcohol confiscated and rationed despite forking out thousands of dollars for self-funded hotel quarantine.
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A Sunshine Coast couple currently in quarantine at Rydges South Bank told The Courier-Mail their alcohol deliveries had been withheld by authorities who were “drip-feeding us six beers a day (each)”.
The “furious” couple – who did not wish to be named for fear their treatment would worsen – had returned to Queensland on Monday after working in Melbourne.
“The first day we were here we placed an order with Dan Murphy’s for two cartons of beer and a bottle of rum,” the couple said.
“(The hotel) would only send six of each beer up and they wouldn’t send the rum,” the couple said.
The couple said the “un-Australian” regulation begged the question:
“If I was a paying customer … and I walked through reception with a carton of beer, would they pull us up and say that we can’t take that up to our room.”
The Courier-Mai l is aware of at least two other cases – at the Four Points hotel in Brisbane City – where paid-for alcohol was withheld from people in quarantine.
The couple claimed they were told the restriction aimed to ‘limit the ramifications of hooliganism’ which they said was particularly insulting given their willingness to quarantine.
“We’re law abiding people … unlike the people that are stowing away and … sneaking cross the border.”
“How do they have the right to confiscate my alcohol when I haven’t done anything wrong … I wasn’t drunk and disorderly, I wasn’t drinking in the street,” one of the couples said.
“They’re holding back our alcohol deliveries that we’ve paid for, that we own” from a hotel room that has cost the couple $3710 – for the room and food.
Queensland police said it was not aware of police imposing any alcohol limits for quarantined Queenslanders.
The Courier-Mail understands the directive has been issued by the hotel in regards to Responsible Service of Alcohol obligations.
Queensland Health, Rydges South Bank and the hotel’s parent company, Event Hospitality and Management, declined to comment on the issue.
Four Points Hotel did not respond to a request for comment before deadline.