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

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: A lot of discussion obviously about well about this situation
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: with the lockdown in Brisbane and then these hot spots
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: being declared and what it means. And very often we
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: sort of think about the area that it's impacting, i e.
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: Brisbane and those surrounds, and also are the likes of
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: Byron Bay, particularly in the lead up to the East
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: Long weekend, but it's also going to have an impact
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: on us here in the Northern territory. If there were
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: people planning on traveling to the territory from the likes
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: of Brisbane, well they're probably going to cancel those plans,
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: or if they're already here, they're going to be in isolation.
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: Now joining us on the line, Hospitality NT CEO Alex Bruce,
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: Good morning.
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: Alex, Good morning Katie Alex.
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: How big an impact is this situation in Brisbane going
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: to have on us here in the territory?
• 0:50
  Speaker 3: Simple answer is we don't know yet. Calling around and
• 0:54
  Speaker 3: speaking to some of the accommodation providers around Darwin yesterday
• 0:58
  Speaker 3: and today, Dave get that we were receiving a lot
• 1:01
  Speaker 3: of calls from yesterday from people from Brisbane with booked
• 1:05
  Speaker 3: accommodation only modest to moderate levels of cancelations if they
• 1:11
  Speaker 3: were immediately caught up with with the border changes and
• 1:14
  Speaker 3: the lockdown in Brisbane, but definitely a lot of calls
• 1:19
  Speaker 3: were made to try and reassure people wait and see
• 1:22
  Speaker 3: how the week eventuates, don't cancel your your book. You're
• 1:25
  Speaker 3: booking in a couple of weeks time potentially hopefully things
• 1:28
  Speaker 3: have calmed down over.
• 1:30
  Speaker 4: There by then.
• 1:31
  Speaker 3: So we think more than just the raw numbers that
• 1:35
  Speaker 3: are only small at this stage of cancelations, it's more
• 1:40
  Speaker 3: this just puts the dampner on tourists thinking about wanting
• 1:44
  Speaker 3: to cross domestic borders. It absolutely kills business traveler market
• 1:49
  Speaker 3: again because no one wants to be on the wrong
• 1:51
  Speaker 3: side of one of these border decisions from their family
• 1:54
  Speaker 3: and their loved ones. So the other the other thing
• 1:57
  Speaker 3: to it is, unfortunately we had Health Minister attend our
• 2:02
  Speaker 3: and your Accommodation General Managers conference a couple of weeks
• 2:05
  Speaker 3: ago and talking about the vaccination roll out plan and
• 2:09
  Speaker 3: the target to get to hopefully that eighty percent of
• 2:11
  Speaker 3: all of us vaccinated by the end of the year,
• 2:13
  Speaker 3: and the question was put to, okay, so if we
• 2:15
  Speaker 3: achieve that goal, a hotspots and these border closure are
• 2:19
  Speaker 3: still going to be a thing, and the Minister wasn't.
• 2:21
  Speaker 4: Able to rule it out. So we're just in a bit.
• 2:24
  Speaker 3: Of an environment again where we're lacking that hope. We
• 2:26
  Speaker 3: don't know when these kinds of things can't keep happening
• 2:31
  Speaker 3: for the foreseeable future, and we have to staff up.
• 2:34
  Speaker 4: We're trying to recruit more people right now.
• 2:36
  Speaker 3: As you know, businesses all of the sunk costs and Brisbane,
• 2:41
  Speaker 3: Sydney and Melbourne, if you can wipe them out, you know,
• 2:43
  Speaker 3: the click of a finger, it just sends us back
• 2:46
  Speaker 3: into particularly in that accommodation and the tour guides and
• 2:49
  Speaker 3: the book product space puts us back into the red
• 2:52
  Speaker 3: very quickly. And now we don't get job job seeker support.
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: Yeah, jee's you know, to put it very bluntly, it's
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: been a shit of a week for you guys.
• 3:01
  Speaker 2: Yeah, and it's only tuesdays and then.
• 3:03
  Speaker 3: I feel like it's one step forward, two steps back unfortunately.
• 3:08
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: I mean when you talk about that job, the job
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: keeper payment, obviously that's going to have a big impact.
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: We heard yesterday from the Chief Minister there's still two
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: thousand businesses around seven and a half thousand Territorians that
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: were reliant on that job keeper payment. What are business
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: is saying to you at the moment? Firstly, with that
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: job keeper.
• 3:31
  Speaker 3: Look, a lot of our businesses were already healthily supported
• 3:37
  Speaker 3: by locals, I'll put it that way. And if anything,
• 3:40
  Speaker 3: locals have enjoyed going out, you know, are the Chief
• 3:42
  Speaker 3: Minister decreed that everyone should have more takeaway at the
• 3:45
  Speaker 3: height of the lockdowns and get out and about and
• 3:47
  Speaker 3: see your own backyard. And I think Territorians have done that.
• 3:50
  Speaker 3: So a lot of businesses have recovered. Some of them
• 3:53
  Speaker 3: haven't where they are in missing those business travelers and
• 3:56
  Speaker 3: those international tourists. But what today's shown is unfortunately all
• 4:03
  Speaker 3: of the changes just before Christmas and just after well
• 4:07
  Speaker 3: here we are in Easter, twelve months plus on from
• 4:10
  Speaker 3: COVID being a real thing, and we're still seeing the
• 4:14
  Speaker 3: same response for a handful of cases in populations of
• 4:18
  Speaker 3: two million plus.
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: I mean, Alex, do you think that it's time to
• 4:22
  Speaker 1: forget these border lockdowns?
• 4:24
  Speaker 2: Do we need to look at a new approach?
• 4:27
  Speaker 3: Look? I spoke to the Chief Health Office at Hughhegy
• 4:30
  Speaker 3: last night reiterated he still has our unwavering support. Everything
• 4:36
  Speaker 3: first and foremost is viewed through the health lens, and
• 4:39
  Speaker 3: we appreciate and respect that. But the point I made
• 4:43
  Speaker 3: to him last night was it's not an either all.
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  Speaker 3: I feel like we've said this before, but it's health
• 4:48
  Speaker 3: and the economy together jointly. And we do believe now
• 4:53
  Speaker 3: that the MTG the government should be looking at at
• 4:57
  Speaker 3: least if they're going to keep making these decisions for
• 4:59
  Speaker 3: the the benefit of the health of all Territorians, then
• 5:02
  Speaker 3: now that job keepers ended, they should come into the
• 5:05
  Speaker 3: space as a bit of an insurer's last resort, you know,
• 5:08
  Speaker 3: how we meant to continue to run these large accommodation
• 5:11
  Speaker 3: houses and some of those tour operators out there with
• 5:14
  Speaker 3: bookings that can just evaporate overnight without some level of
• 5:20
  Speaker 3: government support a commensurate to those decisions that the territory government,
• 5:24
  Speaker 3: not the Commonwealth government are making.
• 5:26
  Speaker 2: Yeah, it's so tough.
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: You know, we all understand the health implications and we
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: understand the enormous juggle that every state and territory is
• 5:34
  Speaker 1: gone in terms of, you know, making sure that we
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: don't end up a COVID hot spot ourselves. But at
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: the end of the day, like you said, we're also
• 5:41
  Speaker 1: trying to juggle business and you know as sectors not
• 5:45
  Speaker 1: only hospitality but also aviation and tourism and others you
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: know that have been had an incredibly tough year and
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: a sort of just getting back on their feet, and
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: then something like this happens, I mean just before an
• 5:57
  Speaker 1: easter long weekend.
• 5:58
  Speaker 2: It's tough.
• 6:00
  Speaker 4: Correct Is this.
• 6:02
  Speaker 3: Going to happen the day before Darwin Cup? You know,
• 6:04
  Speaker 3: that's the real question that with the current settings, no
• 6:09
  Speaker 3: one can clearly give us the certainty and the confidence
• 6:13
  Speaker 3: we need.
• 6:14
  Speaker 4: And you know, I'll go back to it.
• 6:15
  Speaker 3: We're trying to staff up, we're trying to.
• 6:17
  Speaker 4: Imploy employ more.
• 6:18
  Speaker 3: We want locals first, but we'll take anyone of skills
• 6:20
  Speaker 3: across Australia to come and work with us. But how
• 6:23
  Speaker 3: do we invest in our businesses right now when we
• 6:26
  Speaker 3: can just lose so much of our market so quickly.
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: Made if something like this were to happen, I mean
• 6:30
  Speaker 1: before the darw And Cup, the dow And Festival, any
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: of our wonderful events that we have during the dry season,
• 6:36
  Speaker 1: what impact.
• 6:36
  Speaker 2: Would it have?
• 6:38
  Speaker 4: Devastating?
• 6:40
  Speaker 3: But you know, a localized outbreak that's sent us under
• 6:43
  Speaker 3: the dourner for three or five days would be more
• 6:47
  Speaker 3: devastating to more businesses and the community.
• 6:49
  Speaker 4: So we understand the juggling that that.
• 6:52
  Speaker 3: We just think, you know, if the health advice is
• 6:55
  Speaker 3: to continue with hotspot declarations and border closures at a
• 7:01
  Speaker 3: territory government level, what level of support can we look
• 7:06
  Speaker 3: to only for those businesses that are really aggrieved you know,
• 7:11
  Speaker 3: not necessarily your suburban pubs that's chugging along with the
• 7:15
  Speaker 3: support of the locals, but your accommodation providers, your tour
• 7:19
  Speaker 3: operators if they're losing mass bookings. Can we find a
• 7:23
  Speaker 3: way to de risk and ultimately ensure us against some
• 7:27
  Speaker 3: of that. We can't go to the market. You can't.
• 7:29
  Speaker 3: It's not like you can get bushfire or blood or
• 7:32
  Speaker 3: cyclone insurance. The private market will not give us pandemic insurance.
• 7:38
  Speaker 4: So we do think the territory government should look at it.
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: So what would that look like, Alex, Just to make
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: it really clear for our listeners, Essentially, you know, what
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: you're wondering is whether the government can actually ensure businesses
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: if they you know, if they've got to go into
• 7:51
  Speaker 1: a lockdown which is called by the government.
• 7:54
  Speaker 3: Yeah, or even just underpin some of their costs. So
• 7:57
  Speaker 3: you know the booking and cancelation police is pre and
• 8:01
  Speaker 3: post COVID look markedly different. So you know, accommodation pretty
• 8:05
  Speaker 3: much you get your refunding full now if you ring
• 8:08
  Speaker 3: up and you're being affected in your close.
• 8:10
  Speaker 4: But there are those that are.
• 8:11
  Speaker 3: Then having to have the discussion where they're not sure
• 8:14
  Speaker 3: about the borders, so they may have booked and they
• 8:15
  Speaker 3: want to cancel. So what support coming forward if these
• 8:19
  Speaker 3: accommodation places particularly keep having to sink money into their
• 8:22
  Speaker 3: businesses trying to recruit skilled and unskilled workers so that
• 8:26
  Speaker 3: we have the capacity we need to fire up the
• 8:29
  Speaker 3: major events and everything else this drive season. If they
• 8:32
  Speaker 3: lose Sydney Overnight or Melbourne, how do we make sure
• 8:36
  Speaker 3: they're still paying the bills?
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: Yeah, well it's certainly an interesting way of looking at
• 8:41
  Speaker 1: things and something, you know, I think we've got to
• 8:43
  Speaker 1: start thinking a bit outside the box here, Hey, Alex,
• 8:46
  Speaker 1: I know there's a bit of other some other stuff
• 8:48
  Speaker 1: happening for the hospitality sector at the moment.
• 8:51
  Speaker 2: We know that we're heading into a long.
• 8:53
  Speaker 1: Weekend and some of those regulations on Good Friday have changed.
• 8:57
  Speaker 3: Yeah, good outcome and sends outcome, and we think both
• 9:02
  Speaker 3: the Chief Minister and Health and Tourism and Hospitality Minister
• 9:06
  Speaker 3: Natasha Files, both officers were involved. It was going down
• 9:11
  Speaker 3: the path where restaurants and pubs and clubs all had
• 9:15
  Speaker 3: to trade as if they were restaurants on the day,
• 9:18
  Speaker 3: a little bit like in the first stage of COVID reopening,
• 9:23
  Speaker 3: and there was a bit of concern from the pubs
• 9:25
  Speaker 3: and clubs. You know, we wanted the ability for people
• 9:27
  Speaker 3: to come in and watch the sports this AFL for
• 9:30
  Speaker 3: the NRL on potentially have a couple of drinks with mates,
• 9:32
  Speaker 3: but they might not necessarily want to have a meal.
• 9:35
  Speaker 4: And so pleasingly late last.
• 9:38
  Speaker 3: Night we got the advice that the government's with us
• 9:40
  Speaker 3: on that one and they've changed the rules pretty quickly.
• 9:43
  Speaker 3: One of those COVID quick announcements that we like to
• 9:46
  Speaker 3: see and hope long after COVID are seeing quick responsive
• 9:50
  Speaker 3: when they're cutting red tape.
• 9:52
  Speaker 1: You know, yeah, for sure, how are we going there
• 9:54
  Speaker 1: with those IDs? Those interstate IDs, you know when it
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: comes to checking them on the BDR. This is something
• 10:01
  Speaker 1: you and I have spoken about on a few occasions.
• 10:04
  Speaker 3: Katie.
• 10:04
  Speaker 4: You've had another whim.
• 10:06
  Speaker 3: I don't know where your chalkboard is that there's many
• 10:08
  Speaker 3: many callied up there.
• 10:09
  Speaker 2: Now, what's happened if they've sort of it?
• 10:12
  Speaker 3: Yes, So Licensing gave us the advice that we're able
• 10:17
  Speaker 3: to tell industry that you can now manually enter in
• 10:20
  Speaker 3: your digital driver's licenses. And this is for the South
• 10:23
  Speaker 3: Austraians and the new South Welshmen that come up. We
• 10:26
  Speaker 3: know that more states across the country are going to
• 10:29
  Speaker 3: do it and you know, ultimately we do advocate and
• 10:32
  Speaker 3: look forward to when territorians get the benefit of digital IDs.
• 10:36
  Speaker 3: This will fundamentally change the way you're already paying with
• 10:39
  Speaker 3: things on your phone or your watch smart Well, once
• 10:43
  Speaker 3: you don't need to take your driver's license around, you'll
• 10:47
  Speaker 3: leave your wallet.
• 10:47
  Speaker 4: In person home a hell of a lot more.
• 10:49
  Speaker 3: So we're going to see that in the next couple
• 10:50
  Speaker 3: of years. So we've just got the outcome we needed
• 10:53
  Speaker 3: to make sure that when we get those tourists bon
• 10:55
  Speaker 3: A Fight up, we can check they're on the not
• 10:57
  Speaker 3: on the BDR and you know, very very little risk
• 11:00
  Speaker 3: that they ever were going to.
• 11:01
  Speaker 4: Be on the video and we can sell them a
• 11:03
  Speaker 4: bottle of wine.
• 11:03
  Speaker 2: Now, well, I.
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: Like to think that they're wins for common sense, Alex.
• 11:10
  Speaker 4: Common sense Katie, there you.
• 11:11
  Speaker 2: Go, so I like to approach life.
• 11:14
  Speaker 1: Alex Bruce, CEO of Hospitality and T Always good to
• 11:18
  Speaker 1: catch up mate.
• 11:18
  Speaker 2: Thanks for your time this morning.
• 11:19
  Speaker 4: Che's Katie.
• 11:20
  Speaker 2: Thank you,