David Malone doubles down on his fight for a government plan for NT businesses in lockdown

Since lockdowns look set to be a feature of society for the forseeable future, businesses need a plan for if another one is imposed, says Master Builders NT chief executive David Malone.

MASTER Builders NT chief executive David Malone has doubled down on his fight for businesses, saying Chief Minister Michael Gunner has a fundamental misunderstanding of the impact of lockdowns.

Mr Malone, who on Thursday launched a full frontal on the NT government over a perceived lack of planning for future lockdowns, said the cumulative impact of forced business closures was “devastating”.

“Even short lockdowns can challenge a business,” he said.

“They don’t have the very, very deep pockets of large corporates or governments, for that matter.”

NT Master Builders Executive Director David Malone addresses the media. Picture: Justin Kennedy

Mr Malone has led industry calls for a detailed plan for businesses to operate in an environment where the threat of a prolonged lockdown is constantly hanging over business owners’ heads.

“Lockdowns look like being a feature for the foreseeable future, and what’s needed is to have a plan in place for something that’s a bit bigger than the short lockdowns that we’ve had so far,” he said.

“We of course think people have to get vaccinated, but that doesn’t stop us from having lockdowns, and if it is going to be a feature of our landscape going forward, then we’d like to have a plan for it.

“What I’d really love to see is for Territory businesses to know what a lockdown looks like for them, well before one happens. Right now there’s just lots of areas of grey.”

But Mr Gunner backed the previous actions taken around snap lockdowns amid two Covid scares earlier this year, pointing to the NT’s “resilient economy”.

“I thank Master Builders and every Territory business for being the best for the past 18 months,” he said.

“Because they’ve understood the importance of saving lives, we’ve not only been the safest, we’ve been the most resilient economy of this pandemic.

“Our two lockdowns to date have been textbook – short, sharp, and highly targeted. Darwin has spent a total of eight days in lockdown – not hundreds of days. Other parts of the Territory have spent even less time locked down, or none at all.”

When the Territory hits a double vaccination rate of 70 per cent, the national Covid plan states lockdowns would be “less likely but possible”.

Originally published as David Malone doubles down on his fight for a government plan for NT businesses in lockdown