22 MAY 2020
ISSUE 243
YOUR REAL INDEPENDENT WEEKLY LOCAL NEWS
Editorial
World Bee Day was on May 20 and Member for Gosford and avid apiarist, Liesl Tesch, has renewed calls for the State Government to provide a recovery plan for struggling NSW beekeepers See page 16
Out&About
Back to school Thousands of Central Coast school children are set to return to the classroom from May 25, as all public schools resume full-time face to face teaching. Catholic schools across the Coast are also set to make a full return to school from the 25th, bar MacKillop Catholic College, which will return to full schooling the week after. Parliamentary Secretary for
the Central Coast, Adam Crouch, said a significant amount of work had been done to make sure all schools were COVID-19 ready, with thousands of bottles of hand sanitizer, as well as hygiene and cleaning supplies, distributed to every public school on the Coast and a $250M cleaning program having been undertaken statewide. The move follows the success
of part-time face-to-face teaching, which has been underway since May 11. Crouch said while some activities like assemblies and excursions will not occur, having students back at school full-time means their education can progress. “Each school has unique circumstances and each Principal will communicate the next steps to their school community,” he said.
“I know that this decision comes as a relief to many parents on the Central Coast. “It means they can get back to work and resume a more ‘normal’ daily routine.” Premier Gladys Berejiklian said schools and students were ready for a full return. “Since starting a managed return to the classroom, we have seen a strong degree of confidence from our school communities in managing
COVID-19 and a clear desire for all students to be back at school,” she said. “Over the last two weeks schools have been working hard to support students practise good hygiene and implement new routines at school, which has been successful giving the community confidence that full-time face to face teaching can resume.“
Central Coast Meals on Wheels’ Paula Howard has been crowned Volunteering Central Coast’s Volunteer of the Year for 2020. See page 17
Business
Continued page 10
Monday-itis predicted for Coast commuters The NSW Government’s new COVIDSafe Transport Plan was released on May 18, but it has left Central Coast commuters who rely on public transport wondering how they’ll get to work. And the region’s Labor MPs, spearheaded by Shadow Minister for the Central Coast, David Harris, say it will create “massive issues” for both commuters and schoolchildren. Designed to deter a possible surge of coronavirus cases once commuters return to the public transport network, a cornerstone of the plan is a directive for commuters to avoid travelling during peak times. With upwards of 40,000 workers set to recommence
travelling to and from Sydney from the Coast from this Monday, May 25, the Central Coast Commuters Association has labelled it an unreasonable ask. Association Vice President, Eddie Ellis, said local commuters did not have the job security to simply choose to commute outside of peak times and believes any attempt to enforce that directive will result in chaos. “Not everybody has flexible working hours so commuters can’t just decide when they’ll go to work. “I’m sure many would choose to start later and adhere to social distancing if they could, but it’s not up to them,” Ellis said. Continued page 6
The easing of social restrictions which came into effect on May 15 have seen a slight upturn in business on the Central Coast, but they will have to be eased a whole lot more ... See page 25 Woy Woy Philosophy Society
Woy Woy Philosophers Society Meeting #18. The Complete Kant
“I have to say Joffa, you’re one of the smartest Kants I know.” See page 27
Puzzles page 23
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