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Katie Woolf spoke with Chief Minister Michael Gunner · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: We are expecting to hear from the Chief Minister in
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: just a couple of moments. I know that a lot
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: of people are feeling quite concerned, obviously as we enter
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: into a three day lockdown and wondering what exactly it
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: means for us all. Now I believe joining me on
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: the line right now is the Chief Minister of the
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: Northern Territory, Michael Gunner.
• 0:16
  Speaker 2: Good morning to you, Good morning Katie.
• 0:18
  Speaker 3: First, may I apologize for not calling in or being
• 0:21
  Speaker 3: in the studio at nine o'clock this morning. I'm very
• 0:23
  Speaker 3: sorry about that. Well, Ladcher build Now.
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: I was going to say, it sounds like there's been
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: much bigger things on the agenda for you this morning.
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: Chief Minister.
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: Firstly, talk us through exactly what the situation is with
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: this bloke who I believe arrived on Friday into the territory.
• 0:39
  Speaker 3: Yes, we had a gentleman arrive who had left quarantine
• 0:44
  Speaker 3: in Sydney. He had tested negative to coronavirus on his
• 0:47
  Speaker 3: day twelfth test in that quarantine in Sydney, so that
• 0:50
  Speaker 3: was on the tenth and he landed in Darwin on
• 0:53
  Speaker 3: the twelfth. He spent three days in Darwn and basically
• 0:56
  Speaker 3: half a day in Catherine, we have a compulsory day
• 0:59
  Speaker 3: three test here in the territory. This journal was asymptomatic,
• 1:03
  Speaker 3: so we've not been required to get a test apart
• 1:05
  Speaker 3: from the fact that we mandated a test. At that
• 1:08
  Speaker 3: test he tested positive. We put him in isolation and
• 1:11
  Speaker 3: we bring him back to Center for National Resilience. But
• 1:14
  Speaker 3: that has given us a number of close contact and
• 1:17
  Speaker 3: casual contact locations. We don't know where he got COVID,
• 1:21
  Speaker 3: so whether it was late in that quarantine, whether it
• 1:23
  Speaker 3: was somewhere in transit. He came through Canberra, but having
• 1:27
  Speaker 3: said that, he just went through the airport when airports
• 1:30
  Speaker 3: are normally considered low risk location. So we're not sure
• 1:33
  Speaker 3: where he got it at this stage, and we're presuming
• 1:36
  Speaker 3: he has delta. We're presuming he was infectious for the
• 1:38
  Speaker 3: whole time he was in Darwin. That's the current clinical
• 1:41
  Speaker 3: advice and so we are we are worried.
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: So Chief Minister, at.
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: This point in time, do we know whether we're dealing
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: with the delta strain or exactly what we are dealing with.
• 1:51
  Speaker 3: No, we don't know for sure it is delta, but
• 1:53
  Speaker 3: we are acting as if it is delta, and basically
• 1:56
  Speaker 3: every strain that we're dealing with in newtap Wales and
• 1:58
  Speaker 3: Canberra is the Delta strains. Unlikely it wasn't Delta, so
• 2:02
  Speaker 3: I think you should always plan for the worst. If
• 2:03
  Speaker 3: it ends up being not Delta, that's great. But we've
• 2:06
  Speaker 3: got to assume it is Delta.
• 2:07
  Speaker 2: Now, Chief Miness.
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: So we know that there are a number of exposure
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: sites we might go through those. I've got the list
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: in front of me. If you don't happen to have
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: that list in front of you. But they start with
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: the Darwin Mini Mars on Smith Street, don't they.
• 2:22
  Speaker 3: That's great, So Daln Mini Mart between six pm and
• 2:25
  Speaker 3: six fifteen on Smith Street, Salvatories for the same time frame,
• 2:29
  Speaker 3: Outbake that's on the that's on the thirteenth. On Saturday
• 2:33
  Speaker 3: the fourteenth, the outbacks they can Curry Restaurant and Mitchell
• 2:36
  Speaker 3: Street between one forty five and three pm, and Daln
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  Speaker 3: Mini Mar again between two forty and two point fifty pm,
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  Speaker 3: and then finally on Sunday and Catherine the Knots Crossing
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  Speaker 3: Resort Reception between one point fifteen pm and two pm.
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  Speaker 3: The casual contact locations are the Avis Rental car at
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  Speaker 3: Darwin Airport between eleven thirty and eleven forty five. We
• 2:57
  Speaker 3: don't have times yet for Smith Street more can doing
• 3:00
  Speaker 3: it casual and we don't have times yet or specific
• 3:03
  Speaker 3: locations in the Hilton Hotel, and we will come out
• 3:05
  Speaker 3: with those at a latter date. They're considered casual. And
• 3:08
  Speaker 3: we've got the wall works and Katherine that between twelve
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  Speaker 3: thirty and one that's currently also considered casual. But right
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  Speaker 3: as to all of that, Katie, we're reviewing all of
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  Speaker 3: THECTV footage. There will be people that we will potentially
• 3:19
  Speaker 3: identify as close contacts. Offer that for example, taxiques, baggage carousels,
• 3:24
  Speaker 3: specific staff in those stores that will identify and contact
• 3:28
  Speaker 3: and treat as close contacts. We also have one Uber
• 3:32
  Speaker 3: driver and one taxi driver that we are considering close
• 3:35
  Speaker 3: contact and securing and testing.
• 3:38
  Speaker 2: Chief.
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: Before I ask some questions about those close contacts, can
• 3:41
  Speaker 1: I just ask? We've got it listed on the Coronavirus
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: NT website right now that on the thirteenth those casual
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: contacts a Ravis car Rental, Smith Street Mall, Darwin, Hilton Hotel,
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  Speaker 1: But then it also says will Worths Catherine Terrace on
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  Speaker 1: that same day, or is that supposed to be a
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: bit later.
• 4:00
  Speaker 2: Is that supposed to be the fifth.
• 4:01
  Speaker 3: Day Saint Catherine is Sunday to fifteenth?
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  Speaker 1: Okay, because there's just a date erar on that website.
• 4:07
  Speaker 2: Yeah, so on the website. Yeah.
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  Speaker 1: So essentially, if at this point in time, if you
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: are a close contact, so as the Darwin Mini mart
• 4:16
  Speaker 1: Salvatare's Outback Steaks and Curry, as well as Nots Crossing,
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  Speaker 1: have they all been notified that they are close contacts.
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  Speaker 3: They have been. We've done a deep clean of Nots
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  Speaker 3: Crossing Resort reception, for example. So we've been in touch,
• 4:28
  Speaker 3: we've been doing work. We're reviewing CCTV footage. Obviously, we
• 4:32
  Speaker 3: haven't completed all those tasks because we thought it was
• 4:35
  Speaker 3: very important to make the decision we have today, get
• 4:37
  Speaker 3: it out public today, and keep working through that. So
• 4:40
  Speaker 3: there are a number of businesses with contacted, a number
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  Speaker 3: of people we've identified as close contacts already, but there's
• 4:45
  Speaker 3: still ongoing work we're doing now in reviewing footage, credit
• 4:49
  Speaker 3: card transactions, et cetera. And like last time, this person's
• 4:52
  Speaker 3: been very cooperative. But the human memory is the human memory.
• 4:55
  Speaker 3: There may be additional exposure sites we need to add
• 4:58
  Speaker 3: as we start reviewing credit cards and CCTV footage, and
• 5:02
  Speaker 3: is that why.
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: At this point we still don't know exactly what times
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: for the likes of the Smith Street wall and also
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: the Hilton Hotel.
• 5:09
  Speaker 3: That's correct, So we want to get those things established
• 5:12
  Speaker 3: very clearly and then come out of the right information.
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  Speaker 3: So we don't have that at this stage. We know
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  Speaker 3: that he walked through them all, I can't gue you
• 5:20
  Speaker 3: the right times yet, and we know that he spent
• 5:22
  Speaker 3: time in various locations in the Hilton Hotel. We haven't
• 5:24
  Speaker 3: got those times yet. We want to be very careful
• 5:26
  Speaker 3: we get the right times. And this is also a
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  Speaker 3: point of your listeners, Katie. If you are a close contact,
• 5:32
  Speaker 3: we want you to call us so isolate. You'll be
• 5:36
  Speaker 3: required that for fourteen days we will arrange your test
• 5:39
  Speaker 3: with you. So for example, if you're in Cathertherine, we
• 5:42
  Speaker 3: don't want you to get tested until tomorrow if you're
• 5:45
  Speaker 3: a close contact, because that will be better information for
• 5:47
  Speaker 3: us than testing you today. So we will work out
• 5:50
  Speaker 3: with you as a close contact exactly how and when
• 5:53
  Speaker 3: we get you tested.
• 5:54
  Speaker 2: Now, Chief Finister, when did you become aware of this case?
• 5:58
  Speaker 3: So I learned last night that we might be dealing
• 6:01
  Speaker 3: with a positive case. At that point in time, the
• 6:03
  Speaker 3: information was too sketchy. People worked all the way through
• 6:08
  Speaker 3: the night to make sure that this morning we actually
• 6:10
  Speaker 3: had information that we could work on and make decisions on.
• 6:13
  Speaker 3: So we had the person isolated. We've got all that
• 6:16
  Speaker 3: information together and we gathered this morning formally. The sense
• 6:19
  Speaker 3: he started meeting at thirty was he working prior to
• 6:21
  Speaker 3: that and we met until ten thirty.
• 6:24
  Speaker 2: Why didn't that meeting happen last night.
• 6:27
  Speaker 3: We didn't have the information last night, Katie, So we
• 6:28
  Speaker 3: didn't know enough last night. So I didn't have exposure
• 6:31
  Speaker 3: sites last night. I didn't I didn't have information last night,
• 6:34
  Speaker 3: Katie to be our make decisions. But digit we had
• 6:36
  Speaker 3: last night was the positive case. And then we spent
• 6:38
  Speaker 3: all night interviewing him and going through all the details
• 6:41
  Speaker 3: so he could make a decision.
• 6:42
  Speaker 1: Now we've got quite a few messages coming through from listeners.
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  Speaker 1: A lot of people quite worried if they have got
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: their kids at school, wondering exactly what the go is
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: for going through them.
• 6:52
  Speaker 3: Yes, yeah, so we've done special arrangements for that because
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  Speaker 3: I understand this the most important thing is that your
• 6:57
  Speaker 3: kids are safe. They are safe at school right now,
• 7:01
  Speaker 3: and while the lockdown starts at midday, we understand that
• 7:05
  Speaker 3: your kid, if need be, can catch the school bus
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  Speaker 3: home at two point thirty. We don't want kids going
• 7:10
  Speaker 3: to empty homes or getting on school buses and having
• 7:13
  Speaker 3: no one there to greet them out of the end.
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  Speaker 3: So we actually understand it. I've put in transitional arrangements
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  Speaker 3: in our direction. No parent is going to be fined.
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  Speaker 3: We're you're going to be shutting our schools at twelve
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  Speaker 3: and putting kids into the streets. Your kids are at school,
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  Speaker 3: they're safe there. Just do what you need to do
• 7:27
  Speaker 3: to be able to get your kids safely home and
• 7:29
  Speaker 3: then stay at home with your kids and be safe.
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  Speaker 3: So we want your kids to be safe. They're safe
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  Speaker 3: at school. They can stay at school till the ordinary
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  Speaker 3: finish time and get home in the ordinary method through
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  Speaker 3: the school bus, or you can go collect them now.
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  Speaker 3: We're putting the responsibility for kids in their journey home
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  Speaker 3: in the hands of parents, so you can go get
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  Speaker 3: them now, or you can do what you would normally
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  Speaker 3: do it close to school.
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  Speaker 1: Chapen us to another message here and us high again
• 7:55
  Speaker 1: can you please ask if the person was vaccinated.
• 8:00
  Speaker 3: He has been extremely cooperative, Katie, except on one thing
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  Speaker 3: he will not disclose to us as vaccination status.
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  Speaker 2: Why.
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  Speaker 3: I don't know, Katie. I've had a chance to talk
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  Speaker 3: to him personally that he has been extremely cooperative in
• 8:13
  Speaker 3: every other aspect, very very good person. Apart from this
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  Speaker 3: one thing. He won't answer his vaccination status question.
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: So we don't actually know whether he's been vaccinated or not. No,
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  Speaker 1: Chief Minister, another one here, and I think that this
• 8:26
  Speaker 1: is a really important one. Is there going to be
• 8:29
  Speaker 1: support for businesses that have to close down?
• 8:32
  Speaker 2: And when can they expect to know more?
• 8:35
  Speaker 3: So we will do again what we did last time,
• 8:38
  Speaker 3: one thousand dollars payment, which I know is not heaps,
• 8:40
  Speaker 3: but it's a little bit. We are already in active
• 8:42
  Speaker 3: conversations with the Australian government about how we might be
• 8:45
  Speaker 3: able to do even more together. So I can't give
• 8:47
  Speaker 3: you that information yet, but we are talking to the
• 8:49
  Speaker 3: Australian government. But I can guarantee the thound dollar payment
• 8:52
  Speaker 3: is happening again.
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  Speaker 1: A lot of people have been in contact with us
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  Speaker 1: so far this morning, saying that supplies are dwindling at
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  Speaker 1: those supermarkets and it's panic.
• 9:02
  Speaker 2: Buying all round.
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  Speaker 3: I'm disappointed to hear that, because, as we know, Kati,
• 9:06
  Speaker 3: we've gone through this once ourselves. That's going to happen
• 9:08
  Speaker 3: other jurisdictions. Grocery stores will not shut. You can get
• 9:11
  Speaker 3: your groceries later. Please don't panic buy there we be
• 9:14
  Speaker 3: plenty of opportunity to buy. We know our woolies and
• 9:17
  Speaker 3: our coals and our local stores have enough groceries to
• 9:20
  Speaker 3: feed the people of the Great Daran Region and the
• 9:22
  Speaker 3: Catherine region. We don't need to panic buy. But if
• 9:26
  Speaker 3: anyone who's worried about supplies, we have got a specific
• 9:31
  Speaker 3: task force in the around and freight logistics, and we
• 9:34
  Speaker 3: work on that to make sure we get the food
• 9:35
  Speaker 3: we need into the territory and they are stood up
• 9:37
  Speaker 3: just to keep an eye on things. But you don't
• 9:39
  Speaker 3: need to panic buy. The grocery stores will stay open.
• 9:42
  Speaker 2: Well.
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: That was a big concern obviously last time round, is
• 9:45
  Speaker 1: that there were some locations in the Greater Darwin region
• 9:48
  Speaker 1: and further beyond who weren't actually able to get their
• 9:52
  Speaker 1: hands on some of those supplies. Are you worried about
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: that or is that a concern in any way for Catherine,
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: and also for some of those there is a bit
• 10:00
  Speaker 1: further down the track.
• 10:02
  Speaker 3: I think that's one of those lessons from last time.
• 10:04
  Speaker 3: So we're going to work our way through that five
• 10:06
  Speaker 3: day lockdown. I think we've got to a good place
• 10:08
  Speaker 3: at the end about how people can come into the
• 10:10
  Speaker 3: bubble to get their supplies and that again, and those
• 10:12
  Speaker 3: arrangements are in place. Obviously this will be a first
• 10:14
  Speaker 3: time for Catherine, but we think we can work our
• 10:16
  Speaker 3: way through that. If you're outside that lockdown area but
• 10:19
  Speaker 3: need supplies, you can come in to get your supplies.
• 10:22
  Speaker 3: And there's a way we've got ways around working through
• 10:25
  Speaker 3: that at those border points, so we can manage that.
• 10:28
  Speaker 3: If it's needed and there's at the police of the checkpoints,
• 10:30
  Speaker 3: we'll be more than happy to talk out with you.
• 10:32
  Speaker 2: Chief Finister.
• 10:34
  Speaker 1: Do you think or do you know at this point
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: in time whether this gentleman, you know, some of these
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: exposure sites obviously the Darwen Mini mart Salvatore's out Backstakes
• 10:43
  Speaker 1: and Curry you know, just for example, do we know
• 10:46
  Speaker 1: if he was at those locations on his own or
• 10:48
  Speaker 1: was he with other people?
• 10:50
  Speaker 3: I know at this stage he was on his own
• 10:52
  Speaker 3: at those locations, but he interacted potentially with other people,
• 10:55
  Speaker 3: ie staff, and so that's one reason why we're reviewing
• 10:58
  Speaker 3: CCTV footage working out who close contacts are. But he
• 11:03
  Speaker 3: traveled to the territory for the purposes of work in
• 11:06
  Speaker 3: Catherine and so his period of time in Darwin, he
• 11:08
  Speaker 3: was actually a fairly model traveler. He had minimal movements.
• 11:12
  Speaker 3: Unfortunately it was over a three day period and he
• 11:15
  Speaker 3: was infectious and obviously he was in both an uber
• 11:19
  Speaker 3: and a taxi. So they're just our general worries and
• 11:22
  Speaker 3: cashum woolies. While it's a casual contact site, maybe the
• 11:25
  Speaker 3: busiest woolies in all Australia. So even though that's casual
• 11:29
  Speaker 3: contact behlf an Hour, I am worried about.
• 11:31
  Speaker 1: The woolies Catherine Well, particularly you know when you think
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: about our indigenous population as well and those that come
• 11:37
  Speaker 1: in from communities to be able to go to that
• 11:39
  Speaker 1: woolwortz and you know the in Darwin as well. I
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: do want to ask because I wasn't aware that if
• 11:45
  Speaker 1: you were traveling from into state that you're actually allowed
• 11:48
  Speaker 1: to quarantine in Sydney, for example, if you're an essential worker.
• 11:52
  Speaker 1: I thought that you had to actually if you're coming
• 11:54
  Speaker 1: from from New South Wales for example, or from wherever
• 11:58
  Speaker 1: that you actually had to go into.
• 11:59
  Speaker 3: Howard's he was an international traveler who ended in Sydney,
• 12:03
  Speaker 3: and he did his fourteen days in quarantine in Sydney,
• 12:06
  Speaker 3: so that's all fine. He was tested while in that quarantine,
• 12:09
  Speaker 3: tested negative in all those with all those tests, including
• 12:13
  Speaker 3: the day twelve test, exited day fourteen, and we have
• 12:16
  Speaker 3: got a rule if you're exiting quarantine that you should
• 12:19
  Speaker 3: be clean fourteen days you should be clean. And it's
• 12:22
  Speaker 3: probably unlikely he developed it in quarantine that we can't
• 12:25
  Speaker 3: rule it out that he got it in the round
• 12:27
  Speaker 3: that day twelve. But then he traveled and again this
• 12:30
  Speaker 3: Warris skad because he traveled, as far as we know
• 12:31
  Speaker 3: at the moment, we can't investigate this, but this hath
• 12:33
  Speaker 3: Wales and Act will look at it. He then traveled
• 12:36
  Speaker 3: per policies essentially airport's airport and in and again they're
• 12:40
  Speaker 3: all considered low risk, well managed locations and you shouldn't
• 12:43
  Speaker 3: develop COVID on that journey. And so it does concern
• 12:47
  Speaker 3: us how he got it, and that's saying that is
• 12:51
  Speaker 3: worrying us is where and how he caught COVID.
• 12:53
  Speaker 1: So the concern here could be that he has actually
• 12:56
  Speaker 1: picked COVID up in one of those airports.
• 13:00
  Speaker 3: Would be a concern. I don't want, I really hope
• 13:02
  Speaker 3: that's not the case because that obviously in fact impacts
• 13:04
  Speaker 3: the whole national movement policy. But that that is a
• 13:08
  Speaker 3: potential at this stage.
• 13:09
  Speaker 1: All right, Chief, and so we will get ready to
• 13:11
  Speaker 1: wrap up. I know your press for time, and we're
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: meant to wrap up in five minutes time. But I've
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: got a message here from another listener. People traveling to
• 13:18
  Speaker 1: the Northern Territory, what should they do?
• 13:21
  Speaker 3: We will prefer you not to travel into dar be
• 13:24
  Speaker 3: traveling into a lockdown. There may be people returning home,
• 13:29
  Speaker 3: et cetera. So that that could happen. But for now,
• 13:32
  Speaker 3: if you don't have to come into a lockdown, areage.
• 13:36
  Speaker 3: Probably should not come into a lockdown, be my advice.
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: Yeah, Parliament obviously canceled and other events that you know,
• 13:43
  Speaker 1: it's it's the busiest time of the year for us
• 13:45
  Speaker 1: here in the top end.
• 13:47
  Speaker 2: Pretty devastating.
• 13:49
  Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean yeah, they're developing the North Conference or
• 13:52
  Speaker 3: Olympian event tomorrow, down Festival, Daln Festival. So not decision
• 13:59
  Speaker 3: that I would like to, Katie, and just so all
• 14:02
  Speaker 3: the businesses out there, Yeah, this is this is not
• 14:06
  Speaker 3: something I'd like to do. But we know the faster
• 14:08
  Speaker 3: in usually means the faster out. So I'm hoping this
• 14:11
  Speaker 3: is as short and sharp as it possibly can be
• 14:13
  Speaker 3: and we just get this dealt with. I will say
• 14:16
  Speaker 3: thank God for our I think we're the only jurisdiction
• 14:19
  Speaker 3: with this rule. This blow was asymptomatic. It's only because
• 14:22
  Speaker 3: of our rules and demanding a test that he got
• 14:25
  Speaker 3: a test and we tested positive and we're able to
• 14:27
  Speaker 3: get ahead of this. So that's the only thing I
• 14:28
  Speaker 3: can say.
• 14:29
  Speaker 1: Do we know at this stage whether you know without
• 14:32
  Speaker 1: I've been without me knowing sort of too much about
• 14:34
  Speaker 1: it scientifically, but whether his load shed is high low
• 14:38
  Speaker 1: otherwise at this point in time, if he was overly
• 14:41
  Speaker 1: contagious while out in the community.
• 14:43
  Speaker 3: It's a very good question, Katie, that I don't know
• 14:45
  Speaker 3: the answer to. Yeah, but as you know, you spawned
• 14:47
  Speaker 3: the money. Some people just are more effectious than others,
• 14:50
  Speaker 3: and we just don't know if this person is one
• 14:51
  Speaker 3: of the people who's more effectious than others or not.
• 14:54
  Speaker 3: That's obviously that's obviously the worry because we've delta. If
• 14:57
  Speaker 3: you are infectious, it can catch and spread quite quickly.
• 15:01
  Speaker 1: Well, Chief Minister Michael Gunner, I do have plenty of
• 15:04
  Speaker 1: other questions for you on lots of other topics and
• 15:06
  Speaker 1: also on the vaccination roll out, but we are going
• 15:08
  Speaker 1: to have to leave it there because we've got a
• 15:09
  Speaker 1: head across to the news. Thank you very much for
• 15:11
  Speaker 1: your time this morning. We appreciate it.
• 15:13
  Speaker 3: Thank you very much, mate.
• 15:15
  Speaker 2: Thank you