The NSW state government has unleashed an inspection ‘blitz’ with the aim of staving off a second wave of the coronavirus, hitting up pubs and other licensed venues as well as individuals.
Since the beginning of June venues have been required to collect details of customers coming onto the premises, and securely store the details for 28 days.
Last Friday this requirement was stepped up to stipulate venues must digitise the records within 24 hours of collecting them. This further increased the mandate from the previous week that all NSW pubs must implement COVID Safe plans and register them with Services NSW.
Government has dispatched hundreds of officials to spot-check venues, coming from Public Health, NSW Food Authority, Liquor & Gaming, Fair Trading, SafeWork NSW and the police.
On Friday the Royal Hotel at Ryde was fined $5,500 for reputed safety breaches, said to have not produced a safety plan on demand, a COVID safety marshal not on site, and allowing patrons to stand while consuming alcohol.
The Lake Jindabyne Hotel was visited, police reporting patrons waiting in line not physically distancing, more than the permitted 10 people at tables, patrons not seated, and no COVID-Safe marshal. The licensee was warned, but police returned an hour later and observed further breaches, subsequently issuing two $5,000 fines to the licensee and one to a travel company owner who had brought many of those present.
Nearby, police issued $12,000 in fines to eight men and four women in their 20s and 30s at a party in bushland near Lake Jindabyne on Friday night, which had reportedly attracted up to 200 people.
At Redcape’s Figtree Hotel police are said to have observed patrons standing together and drinking in groups on Saturday, in breach of its COVID-19 safety plan. The pub is expected to receive a $5,000 fine.
The NSW south coast saw police issue fines to four out of seven pubs and restaurants visited, officers citing venues as overcrowded and safety marshals not present.
In Newcastle a man who had recently returned from Victoria and was meant to be self-isolating was caught heading to the pub and issued a $1,000 fine, while fines were issued to three venues further north in Port Macquarie, for failing to comply with COVID-19 restrictions.
Customer Service Minister Victor Dominello stresses the responsibility is with everyone.
“Businesses must be part of the solution if they want to stay open and look after their communities.”
Today NSW reported 17 new cases of COVID-19 yesterday, with thankfully only one under investigation. Eight are linked to known clusters and the other eight returned travellers.
This brings the state’s total to 3,496, but the death toll remains at 51.
Still recording hundreds of new cases per day, Victoria had its deadliest day yet, declaring ten new virus-related deaths, bringing its toll to 71.
There has been much debate around how many new daily cases would need to be recorded in NSW to trigger a return to lockdown.
The Berejiklian cabinet has agreed on a figure of 250 daily cases, but final word is likely in the hands of the inherently cautious NSW Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant, whose might opt to set a far lower number.
Mary-Louise McLaws, Professor of Epidemiology at University of NSW, has suggested tighter restrictions would be warranted when contact tracers and hospitals near their rapid-response capacity, which would be when NSW records 100 dreaded community transmissions over a 14-day period.