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

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Joining us on the line right now from Hospitality into
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: the CEO Alex Bruce, Good morning to you, alexad Hey Katie, Alex.
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: We got that plan yesterday, certainly a bit more detailed
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: than what we'd heard from the Chief Minister on the
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  Speaker 1: show on Monday. What did you make of it all?
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, a good next step. We, amongst other industry and
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  Speaker 2: business groups, were calling for a bit more of a
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: teared approach where we could understand the different thresholds. So
• 0:28
  Speaker 2: very happy to see, you know, red lights, amber lights,
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  Speaker 2: green lights, a bit more of an explanation of when
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  Speaker 2: we hit that eighty percent vaccination rate, what we might
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  Speaker 2: shift to. We very very much like the discussion around
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  Speaker 2: lockouts versus lockdown, given just how devastating they can be
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  Speaker 2: in an era where we're not getting job keeper, job
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  Speaker 2: seek or any of that support anymore. So you know,
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  Speaker 2: it's another lot of tools in the toolbag for the
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  Speaker 2: health and police that doing a great job, you know,
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  Speaker 2: to keep us all safe as best we can. It's
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  Speaker 2: a good plan heading into Christmas. We very much look
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  Speaker 2: forward to going even further in the new year.
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  Speaker 1: How will those like from your perspective, how big an
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  Speaker 1: impact are those different zones going to have, you know,
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  Speaker 1: like the Green zone obviously is a great one because
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  Speaker 1: it means you can come here and you don't have
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  Speaker 1: to quarantine, but the amber and then definitely you know
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  Speaker 1: the red zone. How big an impact do you think
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  Speaker 1: that will have, if any, for you guys in hospitality.
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  Speaker 2: Look as far as starting to get more tourists coming
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  Speaker 2: back up here, you know, we're already heading into our
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  Speaker 2: traditionally quiet period and the accommodation houses around Dalen unfortunately
• 1:41
  Speaker 2: decanting and they're not being replaced if you look around
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  Speaker 2: the country. So anyone coming from Queensland right, great, that's
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  Speaker 2: fine and we know what those rules are. Chief Health
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  Speaker 2: Officer about a week ago, make Greater Victoria excluding Shepperton
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  Speaker 2: and Melbourne basically an amber zone. You know, up you
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  Speaker 2: can stay in one of our accommodation hotels whilst you
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  Speaker 2: wait for that up to three days for a test.
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  Speaker 2: And I've been told that we were getting some bookings
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  Speaker 2: as a result of that. That these strong advice is
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  Speaker 2: we're not going to get a recovery or a bump
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: of dry season next year unless we can get to
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  Speaker 2: the point where all Australians that are double vaxed can
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  Speaker 2: come up. You know, maybe it's an antigen test at
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  Speaker 2: the airport which is a half hour delay, but then
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  Speaker 2: it's a welcome, Welcome to your holiday and come and
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  Speaker 2: come enjoy it with us.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean that might be a good plan HI
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  Speaker 1: with those with those tests to be able to sort
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  Speaker 1: of ensure that people are COVID free when they arrive,
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  Speaker 1: and then hopefully we can get more people here for
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  Speaker 1: next year.
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  Speaker 2: That's it and the traffic life system. It's a great initiative.
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  Speaker 2: And you know, the fifty Days to Freedom for vaccinated people.
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  Speaker 2: We are in a race. It's good that we've acknowledged
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  Speaker 2: we're in a race. We need to get our VAXX
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  Speaker 2: rates up right across the community. We'll do our bit
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  Speaker 2: in our sector encouraging our workers and customers, and you've
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  Speaker 2: seen that. You know, at some point in the future
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  Speaker 2: they might make it mandatory for all of our workers
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  Speaker 2: or our front facing customer service workers. So you know,
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  Speaker 2: the gauntlet's being thrown down on the ground and it's
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  Speaker 2: up to all of us to do our bit now
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  Speaker 2: and shoulder to the wheel.
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  Speaker 1: Now, what about when you talk about these sort of
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  Speaker 1: mandatory vaccination passports or sort of some businesses potentially being
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  Speaker 1: allowed to refuse people if they haven't been vaccinated. Do
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  Speaker 1: you reckon that's going to be hard to manage? Look, so.
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  Speaker 2: In our industry is very mixed on the subject. I'm
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  Speaker 2: sure the community is as well. So it's good that
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  Speaker 2: the government's led. You know, they're saying very clearly to
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  Speaker 2: businesses right across the specter sectrum that want to do that,
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  Speaker 2: they'll back they'll back them, which is the certainty that
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  Speaker 2: businesses need if they do want to implement that strategy.
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  Speaker 2: But talking to restaurant, cafe, bar owners over the last
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  Speaker 2: twenty four hours or since the announcement, I don't think
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  Speaker 2: you're going to see a lot of uptake of that
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  Speaker 2: in our space. But clearly if we're in a lockout
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  Speaker 2: environment that they're the rules, and the community will know
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  Speaker 2: that the government's enforcing that.
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  Speaker 1: So you reckon that the majority of your businesses probably
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  Speaker 1: won't sort of take up that initiative to you know,
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  Speaker 1: to say to customers, nice, sorry you're not allowed in
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  Speaker 1: unless you've been double vaxed.
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  Speaker 2: Look, there's already a fee bit of pushback with the
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  Speaker 2: please check in stuff. Engaging with a cohort of the
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  Speaker 2: community and quite rightly they throw back, you know, well,
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  Speaker 2: you know we're safe, we don't have COVID, WHDe do
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  Speaker 2: we need these extra rules. So we support the plan
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  Speaker 2: that was announced yesterday, and definitely rather than a lockdown,
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  Speaker 2: if we face ourselves in a lockout situation where we're
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  Speaker 2: wearing masks but otherwise can run our businesses and our
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  Speaker 2: workers can continue to work and get paid, and people
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  Speaker 2: can function their around society if they're vaccinated. I think
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  Speaker 2: that's a pretty strong incentive for all of us to
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  Speaker 2: you know, just go get double jibbed Alex.
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  Speaker 1: Just finally, we spoke to d Little Proud, the Minister
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: for Northern Australia, a bit earlier this morning. He's obviously
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  Speaker 1: been in Central Australia earlier in the week talking to
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  Speaker 1: tourism operators. We know that there are plenty of businesses
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  Speaker 1: that are doing it pretty tough in Central Australia at
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  Speaker 1: the moment, particularly if they rely on that tourism will
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  Speaker 1: visit her. I mean, is it time for the federal
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: government to really look at a job keeper program or
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  Speaker 1: something additional for areas like Central Australia who are struggling
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  Speaker 1: at the moment.
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  Speaker 2: I think particularly those tourism focused businesses, and that does
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  Speaker 2: include some of our shared space in the accommodation sector.
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  Speaker 2: You know, some of them, they're ninety percent down and
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  Speaker 2: unfortunately there was a lot of good will. You know,
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  Speaker 2: crisises always bring out the best in the Australian spirit
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  Speaker 2: and we all do stick together. But some of that
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  Speaker 2: he does seem to be fraying. I'm not sure. If
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  Speaker 2: you look in the tourism space, we can agree that
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  Speaker 2: we are all in this together. So yeah, where the
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  Speaker 2: rules are prohibiting international visitors or really restricting them, that
• 6:02
  Speaker 2: we should be looking for federal support. But you know what,
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  Speaker 2: what what the chief ministers are now yesterday, it's positive.
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  Speaker 2: We'll work on it till Christmas. But if that's the
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  Speaker 2: regime for next next season, next year, then yeah, he's
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  Speaker 2: really going to have to help those struggling businesses out himself. Well.
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  Speaker 1: Hospitality NT CEO Alex Bruce always good to catch up mate,
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  Speaker 1: Thanks for your time this morning, Katie. Thank you you
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  Speaker 1: two