‘It’s far from over and it’s far too early to start celebrating, so please hang in there’: Chief Minister

CHIEF Minister Michael Gunner is urging Territorians to be patient, with plans to lift coronavirus restrictions expected to begin in mid-May

Chief Minister Michael Gunner addresses the media after National Cabinet on April 21, 2020. Picture: Che Chorley

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CHIEF Minister Michael Gunner is urging Territorians to be patient, with plans to lift coronavirus restrictions anticipated to begin in mid-May.

At a press conference today, Mr Gunner said he would go into the next scheduled National Cabinet meeting with a plan to ease the Territory’s coronavirus restrictions.

“I again ask Territorians for patience,” he said.

Chief Minister Michael Gunner is giving an update on elective surgery restrictions in the NT and what is set to happen on Friday when Parliament sits again.

Posted by The NT News on Monday, 20 April 2020

“This is like the grand final. We are only at half time. We are in front but it’s far from over and it’s far too early to start celebrating, so please hang in there, stay safe, stick together and we can see this through.”

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Mr Gunner said the plan would solely focus on how the Territory could best recover.

“If things keep going well we can begin to plan this transition in the next few week. It will be safe, it will be staged,” he said.

“It’ll be done at a time where we can be confident that any future outbreak of the virus can be caught and maintained through a rapid response that identifies it, traces it and locks it down.

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“We won’t be following anyone else’s timetable. We’ll do what’s right for the Territory when it’s right for the Territory.

“I know there will be some people who jump up and down saying all of this has been too extreme, that it’s not needed, that it’s taking too long.

“They can have a go at me about it if they want but we’ve made ourselves the safest place in Australia by taking this threat seriously and I’m not going to let that slip now.”

He added the Territory was in the best position to recover economically, according to Deloitte Australia.

“Deloitte has forecast that once this crisis is over, the Territory will have the strongest economic comeback in the country, with the highest rate of growth in the country,” he said.

“To get to that point, to get on the road to recovery, we are throwing the kitchen sink saving local jobs right now. I’d rather see the government take a hit rather than local business hit the wall or a local worker hit the dole queue.”

Almost 1000 applications have been made for the Small Business Survival Fund. About 700 businesses have applied for the Business Improvement Grant; more than 50 organisations have applied for an Immediate Work Grant, and almost 600 new job offers have been made by the Territory Jobs Hub.