Mission Beach Tavern closed indefinitely after Covid compliance enforcement

The forced closure of a Far North venue has triggered a stern warning from an angry business owner after multiple Covid compliance checks have left 17 workers without a job. DETAILS

Employees and patrons of a popular Far North tavern are facing an uncertain future after authorities forced the closure of the business following Covid compliance checks.

Mission Beach Tavern which was forced to close its doors on January 28, must apply for permission from the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation before it reopens.

It was the second time in about a month the pub had a run in with police and OLGR officers over proof of vaccination compliance, after multiple fines were issued following a random check on December 24.

Tavern owner Jeanette Lamb said patrons at her venue were never required to prove their vaccination status.

Mission Beach Tavern owner Jeanette Lamb. Picture: Arun Singh Mann

“I am not a doctor or a health professional, I don’t have the right to ask someone for their private health information,” she said.

Ms Lamb said two days prior to the forced closure, about eight uniformed police officers attended the tavern in a random visit and began asking for proof of vaccination from patrons and staff.

She said as a result of the visit, a number of patrons and staff were told to leave, with staff members instructed not to return until they could show proof of vaccination.

On January 28, she said a group of police officers along with OLGR and health officials returned to serve her a closure notice, with the advice that she would need the permission of the OLGR to reopen, once she could prove her business was compliant.

An OLGR spokesman confirmed, a direction to close the business under the Public Health Act 2005 was issued to the Ms Lamb and said it would be “revoked if the operator demonstrates willingness to follow the chief health officer’s public health directions.”

“Requiring businesses to close is a last resort where all efforts to encourage and assist operators to comply have failed,” the spokesman said.

But Ms Lamb said it was the wider community that was getting affected by this.

“We are an essential service especially for the mental health of our community,” Ms Lamb said.

“People come into the tavern for a bit of ‘R and R’ and it is a social outlet for them, so open us back up.

“The government is mandating us to be vaccinated but they are now punishing both the vaccinated and the unvaccinated, and the biggest pain in all of this is that we are not able to provide an income for 17 people who have now lost their jobs.

“There are other venues in town who need us to be open for the welfare of their businesses. “The caravan park and motel directly beside and behind us have both said that people won’t come to their place when they tell them the pub is closed, as that is one of the reasons they book their venues because we are in walking distance for them.”

Hill MP Shane Knuth said “lives are being ruined” by the state government’s mandate.

“Right at this present moment, we have a 90 per cent vaccination rate across Queensland.

“We have the sick, the disabled, the frail and the elderly that cannot get the appropriate care because of the mandate, and yet the government have got police out there targeting pubs,” Mr Knuth said.

Kennedy MP Bob Katter also argued a pub was an essential service.

“For whatever reason they may have, going to the local pub is, for some people, the single thing that keeps them going. The social interactions that come from having a drink at the pub can’t be underestimated, particularly in regional towns.

“So, reopen the Mission Beach Tavern or there will be hell to pay,” Mr Katter said.

Originally published as Mission Beach Tavern closed indefinitely after Covid compliance enforcement