Page 2620 - Week 09 - Thursday, 16 September 2021
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
force. A health crisis like we have seen across Australia and across the world calls for leadership. People look to their political leaders for information, for financial and other support, for a sense of reassurance and hope and, most importantly, for a plan about how that leader will manage a crisis and lead their community out of it. The ACT Chief Minister has failed this test of leadership. He has failed the Canberra community, in particular the business community, by serving up larger doses of lockdown and nothing else. The reason the Chief Minister did not detail a clear path out of lockdown on Tuesday as he promised he would and as everyone expected is simply that he does not have one. The Chief Minister does not have a clear path out of lockdown.
We all know about the health crisis in our midst, but this notice of motion today is not about that; it is designed to respond to a different crisis. We are seeing in Canberra a business crisis, but of course you will not hear about that from the government. The government talks about business support, but that is almost an oxymoron, because most of the struggling small businesses have received no support—not one cent in their bank accounts—and they have no idea when any money might appear. So much for business hopes of surviving lockdown—no financial support and no clear path out.
Yesterday we learned the popular Chisholm Tavern will shut its doors, and I fear this is just the beginning. Canberra businesses are bleeding. The Chisholm Tavern said in a statement yesterday:
Again, We are locked down for another month as of yesterday, which makes the total of nine weeks lockdown unmanageable as far as keeping the business afloat.
It’s with sad regret that we will not be opening the Tavern doors again. Not because we want to retire, not because we don’t love all the regulars and those who have come to enjoy the atmosphere and the food, it’s going to be impossible to manage the restrictions that the government will put in place yet again.
I emphasise that last sentence:
Not because we want to retire. It is going to be impossible to manage the restrictions that the government will put in place yet again.
The ACT government had no plan to support business when it first announced the lockdown, and, tragically, we are starting to see the business fallout. Canberrans have slaved to develop these businesses and to get them off the ground. Canberrans and have put their hearts and souls into them. They employ hundreds and thousands of Canberrans. These businesses deliver sleepless nights and stress, with the constant barrage of bills, overheads, debt and worry. Sometimes business owners question, ‘Is it worth it?’ Tragically, yet not surprisingly, as a result of this government’s severe lockdown and failure to support business, we are starting to see that Canberra businesses are answering that question with a no. And I fear the worst is yet to come.
Canberra’s small business sector has been completely let down by the ACT government. The government failed to prepare for the lockdown and provide clarity, certainty and financial support. That has become crystal clear to me from the daily emails I receive from business sharing their tales of despair about issues ranging from
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video