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Katie Woolf spoke with Hospitality NT CEO Alex Bruce · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: If you want to know what's happening on the local
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: political landscape, Katie Wolf has it covered on three sixty
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: Every One is Listening Mix one oh four point nine. Well,
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  Speaker 1: I noticed on the social media pages that Hospitality INT
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  Speaker 1: you've got a bit of a survey happening at the moment,
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  Speaker 1: still in the very early stages, but it is well
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  Speaker 1: asking how you'd feel about having to show your identification
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  Speaker 1: every time you get a drink, So essentially if you
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  Speaker 1: go up to a bar, if you had to go
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  Speaker 1: and show your ID each time you went up to
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  Speaker 1: buy yourself a drink at the bar or at a
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  Speaker 1: pub and joining us on the line to tell us
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  Speaker 1: a little bit more about this survey and why they
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  Speaker 1: decided to conduct it. Hospitality NT CEO Alex Bruce, Good morning, Alex.
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  Speaker 1: Good Akatie, Alex, tell us a little bit more about
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  Speaker 1: this survey and why you decided to do it.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, the paper last week put one on and we're
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  Speaker 2: really appreciative of the support that they've been able to
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  Speaker 2: do highlighting this issue is a big issue for our industry,
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  Speaker 2: and I think it ended up I still open at
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  Speaker 2: the moment, but it's running at about sixty one sixty
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  Speaker 2: two percent, overwhelming support within the leadership of the NT
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  Speaker 2: News for our position, which is that this is not
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  Speaker 2: something that's appropriate for further roll out beyond the bottle shops.
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  Speaker 2: And I think they had at the moment that's seven
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  Speaker 2: hundred and sixty votes. We've got a lot of people
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  Speaker 2: in our industry that wanted to put their concerns through
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  Speaker 2: that system that might not necessarily get behind the payball.
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  Speaker 2: So we just did one twenty four hours ago online.
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  Speaker 2: It's three it's opened for all territories and already we've
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  Speaker 2: had five hundred votes and over ninety percent of them
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  Speaker 2: are very supportive of our position, which is very strong. No,
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  Speaker 2: this is not something government or oppositions should be considering.
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  Speaker 1: And Alex is that really the reason why Hospitality and
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  Speaker 1: have decided to do this survey, to really show the
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  Speaker 1: territory government, if indeed they are considering or if there's
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  Speaker 1: any consideration whatsoever of rolling out the band drinkers register
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  Speaker 1: into licensed premises ie pubs and restaurants, that it's not
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  Speaker 1: the best move.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah. Look, so we had our annual conference out at
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  Speaker 2: kimber Creek yesterday with all the way sight in and
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  Speaker 2: Roadhouse operators and they're very supportive of the grant that
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  Speaker 2: the government has given a lot of them, and now
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  Speaker 2: their minds turned to madly trying to get the trade,
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  Speaker 2: the local trades involved, to get the upgrades out there
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  Speaker 2: ahead of hopefully a good dry season drive market. So
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  Speaker 2: that's the positive that heard loud and clear at that
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  Speaker 2: conference yesterday. Top three issues are crime, are staff shortages,
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  Speaker 2: and the real concerns across the territory about BDR affecting
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  Speaker 2: their businesses and their customers. And they do wonder why
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  Speaker 2: and so why.
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  Speaker 1: Is it impacting them so much at the moment the BDR,
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  Speaker 1: Like what's so difficult about it? I would have thought
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  Speaker 1: that once it's all sort of been introduced and people
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  Speaker 1: know that they've got to use it, that it would
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  Speaker 1: have been a little bit smoother. I look.
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  Speaker 2: I think especially for those remote locations that are connected
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  Speaker 2: with tourists coming from interstate, they're often the first bottle
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  Speaker 2: shop where it's faced by the platinum the bona fide tourists,
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  Speaker 2: so that they already deal with that for the takeaway
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  Speaker 2: alcohol in the bottle shops. And you know, we're not
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  Speaker 2: arguing a position on that. It's largely settled. I think
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  Speaker 2: Territorians have largely come used to it getting your idea
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  Speaker 2: out at the bottle shops. But what we heard yesterday
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  Speaker 2: very clearly was they're just not buying the argument that
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  Speaker 2: the Lift Commission or anyone else can target just three
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  Speaker 2: on premise locations in the territory and that we won't
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  Speaker 2: all see that roll out over time across the regions.
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  Speaker 2: So you know, if it gets into Tenant Creek, those
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  Speaker 2: roadhouses and wayside inns, which have just had some good
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  Speaker 2: attention and support from the government are really concerned that
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  Speaker 2: they're next on the hitlist.
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  Speaker 1: Obviously, you I've spoken about this a few times now.
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  Speaker 1: This is probably about the third time, and I know
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  Speaker 1: that you know, there's a few reasons why you've pointed
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  Speaker 1: out this would be such a difficulty for those different establishments.
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  Speaker 1: But for those who don't know, really, why is this
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  Speaker 1: such a you know, why are you guys so opposed
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  Speaker 1: to this happening.
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  Speaker 2: Well, we're asking the community and everyone with their different
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  Speaker 2: views are more than welcome to jump onto our Facebook
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  Speaker 2: page and click through to the survey. Overwhelmingly, we're hearing
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  Speaker 2: from the public right now they don't know why they
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  Speaker 2: have to come up to the bar every time with
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  Speaker 2: their ID and scan it. They don't know why we're
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  Speaker 2: going to see the death of buying inmates around a bier.
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  Speaker 2: And I suggest, whatever the issues are, let's find other
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  Speaker 2: ways to address them. And yes, unfortunately, you know, crime
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  Speaker 2: is a huge issue and that's why you know some
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  Speaker 2: of these other attention this week on bubble bubble issues.
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  Speaker 2: We stand with the community that we want to focus
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  Speaker 2: on crime. B DR is a real issue for us.
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  Speaker 2: They're the things that we want to see Parliament focusing
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  Speaker 2: on going forward.
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  Speaker 1: Now, is there any indication to you guys at this
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  Speaker 1: point in time, aside from Tenant Creek and the potential
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  Speaker 1: that the LIQUE Commission might look at rolling BDR out
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  Speaker 1: further in other establishments in Tenant Creek, is there any
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  Speaker 1: real sort of indication Alex that they are going to
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  Speaker 1: roll it out any further.
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  Speaker 2: Well, we've got to watch this space response from the
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  Speaker 2: Minister Natasha Philes confirming the government doesn't have a policy
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  Speaker 2: one way or the other that's not good enough, that
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  Speaker 2: doesn't give business the certainty it needs. We've also written
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  Speaker 2: to the leader of the Opposition and we're waiting to
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  Speaker 2: hear if where the coorp Lands on this issue as well.
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  Speaker 2: Are you with us or not? Yes or no? It
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  Speaker 2: is that binary.
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  Speaker 1: Hey, I just want to ask you. We were talking
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  Speaker 1: to the member for Solomon Luke Gosling just a few
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  Speaker 1: minutes ago about those in the tourism sector and the
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  Speaker 1: way in which you know, the additional or the job
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  Speaker 1: keeper payments coming to an end are going to impact
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  Speaker 1: that sector. I know that you know, you guys obviously
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  Speaker 1: run across you know quite a number of different types
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  Speaker 1: of businesses. How are people feeling from your perspective?
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  Speaker 2: Look at it is very varied. So you can see
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  Speaker 2: the activity around around Darwin and a lot of our
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  Speaker 2: members are no longer on job keeper and haven't been
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  Speaker 2: for a while. And that's a great thing because the
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  Speaker 2: local consumption has replaced those missing tourists. But again yesterday,
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  Speaker 2: some of those roadhouses that might be end of the line,
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  Speaker 2: especially when they're border closers or curtain springs on the
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  Speaker 2: way to airs Rock. Every time that the National park
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  Speaker 2: around Ularu closes, if you're an end of the line terminal,
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  Speaker 2: you might not be seeing as much local activity to
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  Speaker 2: help offset that loss. So it really is a mixed
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  Speaker 2: bag for us, and we really do feel for all
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  Speaker 2: tour operators and businesses where tourists are such a large
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  Speaker 2: part of their components. We don't have the business travelers
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  Speaker 2: around town. You know, no one really wants to run
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  Speaker 2: the gauntlet at the moment to be dislocated from their
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  Speaker 2: family for fourteen days should I hot the pot declaration change?
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  Speaker 2: So business travel is still missing and there are still
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  Speaker 2: closed accommodation houses even even in Darwin as a result,
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  Speaker 2: you know, we haven't unfortunately seen the convention center and
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  Speaker 2: that it's when it can really ramp up this year.
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  Speaker 2: Peter down there is doing a great job getting everything planned,
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  Speaker 2: but just we still are running with a lot of
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  Speaker 2: COVID uncertainty unfortunately.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, that's for sure. Well, CEO of Hospitality nt Alex Bruce,
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  Speaker 1: we always appreciate your time. Are you still down the
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  Speaker 1: track mate, or are you back in Darwin?
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  Speaker 2: I drove back yesterday. It is lush and beautiful the
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  Speaker 2: whole way. There was some fantastic rain from Timbercreek right
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  Speaker 2: up through to Bachelor.
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  Speaker 1: Oh wonderful. How good is the wet season, hey, especially
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  Speaker 1: when we finally get the rain like we've had this year.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely, and you know, pick your times, but there's a
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  Speaker 2: great time to hit the road and get out and
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  Speaker 2: about and.
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  Speaker 1: See some of this, oh for sure, especially Central Australia
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  Speaker 1: and you know down that way at the moment, so
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  Speaker 1: many wonderful locations to visit, so many wonderful businesses as
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  Speaker 1: you've pointed out. And I'll tell you what, if you've
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  Speaker 1: got the time and you've got a bit of money to,
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  Speaker 1: you know, to go on a road trip, it's well
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  Speaker 1: worth the fish. Absolutely good on you, Alex, thanks for
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  Speaker 1: your time today and that was Hospitality n T CEO there,
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  Speaker 1: Alex Bruce