The Victorian Liberal Nationals have today renewed calls for a new plan to give Victoria's hospitality and retail sectors a real chance of getting back on their feet.
Under the Andrews Labor Government's current roadmap, locked down hospitality and retail venues are banned from serving indoor customers until early November – still more than a month away.
Furthermore, there remains no clear pathway to get staff back to work, meaning the Melbourne CBD and other commercial centres across Victoria remain ghost towns.
Small businesses don't need more lectures and tighter rules – just a real plan to return confidence and a pathway to successfully reopen and stay open.
Instead of suffocating small business with endless restrictions, let's back patrons and operators to do the right thing and reopen in a sensible, safe manner.
As stated by Leader of the Opposition, Matthew Guy:
"After six yo-yo lockdowns, Victorian small businesses the families they support and jobs they provide have been hard hit.
"The Andrews Government has put a safe re-opening of small business in the too hard basket.
"Locking up small business for another month is not the way forward. We need a new plan to get business back sooner."
As stated by Shadow Minister for Small Business, Jobs & Employment and CBD Recovery, David Southwick:
"Small business don't want handouts, just the opportunity to open their doors, welcome back patrons and get on with it.
"Labor's restrictions are setting small businesses across the state up to fail. Victoria needs a new plan.
"If other states can do it, why can't we? Let's give small business a real path forward and a real chance to rebuild."
