Coronavirus Australia: WA Premier giggles over NSW kebab fine

It’s been a hard week for Aussies including the West Australian premier, who couldn’t contain himself after hearing who NSW was fining.

In some lighter news to come out of this week, West Australian Premier Mark McGowan struggled to contain his laughter yesterday afternoon while answering an odd question on social distancing.

The question came after NSW Police fined a man $1000 after he was caught eating a kebab on a park bench in Newcastle on the state’s Central Coast.

“I find it hard to believe someone was going for a run and then stopped for a kebab,” he said, giggling at his answer.

“In any event, they do things very differently in NSW.”

Mr McGowan continued to struggle through the rest of his sentence, even causing his sign language interpreter to break into fits of laughter.

“There’s nothing wrong with going for a run and having a kebab but … I don’t think there’s anything wrong with … we’re not making it unlawful to go for a run and eat a kebab.

“It’s whether or not you’re in a group,” he ended.

MUST WATCH

After a long week Premier @MarkMcGowanMP gets the giggles answering a question about eating a kebab and going for a run. pic.twitter.com/mQzIMqbZU6

— Perth LIVE 6PR with Oliver Peterson (@PerthLive6PR) April 3, 2020

In a statement, NSW Police confirmed a 21-year-old man had been fined $1000 on April 1 under the Public Health Act.

Police allege the man ignored two warnings he was going to be fined before officers found him, for a third time that day, eating a kebab on a bench.

Ministerial guidelines have given police powers to issue on-the-spot fines to people who won’t comply with social distancing guidelines under the Public Health Act, and in NSW members of the public violating these rules can be handed fines of up to $1000.

Gatherings of more than two people, apart from immediate family, are banned as are all non-essential activities to try to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said police are trying to make reasonable decisions when enforcing the new rules and he’s urged NSW residents to use common sense.

The police commissioner is personally reviewing each infringement notice. He said the rules are in place for 90 days until June 29 and hopefully not longer.

The announcement came with a raft of other fines handed out across NSW and Victoria, including police spotting a man and woman sitting in their car in Muswellbrook in the NSW Hunter Valley on Wednesday.

After conducting inquiries police found the man, 27, and the woman, 32, both didn’t have “a reasonable excuse not to be at home”. Both were handed Penalty Infringement Notices (PINs).

Police also attended a single vehicle car crash in Lavington, where the sole occupant, a man, 51, allegedly told police he was on his way to visit his drug dealer.

The man was arrested and taken to hospital for blood and urine tests, and checks later revealed he’d been disqualified from driving.

He was given a Future Court Attendance Notice and an PIN for contravening a Public Health Order.

They also fined two men who were spotted drinking alcohol at Casey’s Beach Reserve at Batehaven.