Lockdown doesn’t meet seven-day trigger for business financial aid

Small businesses affected by Queensland’s most recent Covid-19 lockdown will be denied financial relief because the shutdown didn’t run for seven days.

Small businesses won’t receive any extra financial relief from the state government in the wake of the most recent lockdown, because it didn’t reach a seven-day threshold.

The move was criticised on Sunday by the state Opposition as Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk sought to talk up her government’s record.

The government has confirmed it would roll out support measures to businesses if a lockdown reaches seven days – similar to the federal government’s previously declared support framework.

Quizzed on Sunday about whether the state government could do more, Ms Palaszczuk insisted the government had already done “a lot” for small businesses during the pandemic.

Opposition Leader David Crisafulli says many small businesses will not be able to survive any further lockdowns. Picture: David Clark

“And I’m quite sure that we can do some small assistance in terms of getting people out to support those businesses once we get through this challenging period,” the Premier said.

Opposition Leader David Crisafulli said an assistance package was needed to ensure certainty for business, pointing to suggestions that there could be further lockdowns in the future.

“To say that you have to wait up to seven days before financial assistance will be there means that you will have some small and family businesses that will just throw in the towel,” he said.

“You could hear their hearts breaking when that announcement was made.”

During the recent snap lockdown in the NT, the Territory government announced that certain businesses would be eligible for one-payments of $1000.

Meanwhile, Gold Coast business and political leaders say Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s path out of Covid-19 is too slow and will leave the city’s economy a shadow of its former self.

Mr Morrison on Friday unveiled a four-phase plan which relies on Australians getting vaccinated in exchange for greater freedom.

The plan, which will see governments pivot from suppressing community transmission to treating the virus like the flu, has been criticised as lacking detail and leaving Gold Coast businesses to an uncertain future.

Village Roadshow chief operating officer Bikash Randhawa said speeding up the vaccine rollout was the key.

Destination Gold Coast held emergency talks over the weekend with state and federal tourism bosses to try and salvage the remainder of the school holidays.

CEO Patricia O’Callaghan said the city’s marketing body would step up its advertising campaigns within the state to try and lure the drive market back to the city.

But she warned it was only a short-term solution and insisted getting the jab would be the Gold Coast’s long-term salvation.

“We are ramping up our marketing and working with Tourism and Events Queensland to show off the great deals we have here right now to salvage what’s left of the school holidays,” she said.

“The vaccine rollout is the key – it is the only way we will survive and we need to see it roll out sooner rather than later.”