The Maryborough Sun, Thursday 4th November 2021
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Maryborough urged to vaccinate to avoid ‘refusal of entry’ JAY FIELDING
favourite restaurant.
MARYBOROUGH locals face being refused entry at businesses if they aren’t vaccinated when Queensland’s borders reopen next month.
“We want to make sure that Queenslanders can continue to support their local economy, so the best way to do that right now is to get vaccinated.”
Energy, Renewables and Hydrogen Minister Mick de Brenni issued the warning during a visit to Maryborough last month to encourage people to get vaccinated.
Time is running out for people to become fully vaccinated ahead of Christmas. “The window of opportunity is closing day by day,” Mr de Brenni said.
“From December 17, venues like your local pub, your tavern, it could be your local community club, it could even be your gym or your hairdresser, will be able to impose a vaccinated-visitors-only rule,” Mr de Brenni said.
The minister said it was important for the local economy to ensure vaccination rates were high in order to avoid snap lockdowns once the borders reopen.
“That means if you haven’t had your double dose by that time, you might find yourself unable to attend the things that you love,” he said. “You might not be able to go to a pub or your
“We can prevent that by getting ourselves vaccinated.” The Queensland Human Rights Commission says that being opposed to vaccination was unlikely to be a sufficient basis
for a discrimination complaint. However, if people who cannot be vaccinated due to a protected attribute such as disability or medical conditions are refused entry because they are unvaccinated, that could represent unlawful discrimination. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland says business owners must be able to make their own decisions about who they serve. “They don’t need ambiguous rules to follow, especially if it’s not clear how it helps them or the wider economy’s recovery,” CCIQ policy manager Cherie Josephson said. “If refusing entry to unvaccinated customers is the right thing to do for the business and the wider economy’s COVID recovery, they need to be given resources to implement that change.”
The Queensland Hotels Association says some venues might see the value in locking out unvaccinated patrons in return for being able to operate at full capacity. Chief executive Bernie Hogan said it was possible for licensed venues to check the vaccination status of patrons. “We have been asking people for ID for decades. We have the ability to refuse service on virtually any grounds that would make other patrons unsafe,” he said. “So this is not a huge change from the rights licensed venue holders already have.” As of October 25, 59.6 per cent of people living in the Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service region, which includes Maryborough, are fully vaccinated.
You may be refused entry to shops and other venues from December 17 if you remain unvaccinated. (Supplied)
Youth justice taskforce to target repeat offenders QUEENSLAND Police have announced a new strategy to case manage every serious repeat youth offender in Queensland as part of the next phase of the Youth Justice Taskforce reform agenda. The Youth Justice Taskforce is focused on building intensive multiagency case management of high-risk repeat youth offenders in the top 10 per cent cohort across the state. Assistant Commissioner Cheryl Scanlon said intervening and rehabilitating young offenders was crucial in breaking the cycle of crime and delivering longterm change.
“The task force is now six months on from operationalising the legislative reforms to tackle youth crime and while the preliminary indications are delivering the much-needed response to protect the community, there is a lot more work to be done,” Assistant Commissioner Scanlon said. “We need to do everything we can to reduce reoffending by ramping up interventions and support beyond detention. “We know this group of young people have very complex social and family dysfunction which will require a more tailored approach to ensure the
intervention is effective. “Our holistic approach is to have all relevant government and nongovernment agencies involved in a timely and coordinated intervention strategy which can be sustained long term.” Senior Executive Director of Youth Detention Operations and Reform at the Department of Children, Youth Justice and Multicultural Affairs, Michael Drane, said that repeat youth offenders must be held accountable, but they must also be given the opportunity to turn their lives around. “We know this is a difficult task which
requires extensive intervention and is only effective after the very basic underlying causes of offending are addressed.” He said. The Youth Justice Taskforce began operations on February 15, 2021, while reforms targeting serious repeat offenders commenced on April 30 through changes to the Youth Justice and Other Legislation Act. The reforms included new laws enabling a presumption against bail for serious repeat offenders and the ability for a court to seek assurances from parents or guardians before an offender is released.
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LLEW O’BRIEN MP
Federal Member for Wide Bay Strong Representation. Achieving Results. 319 Kent Street, Maryborough QLD 4650 PO Box 283 Maryborough QLD 4650 07 4121 2936 Tollfree 1300 301 968 Llew.Obrien.MP@aph.gov.au llewobrien.com.au f /llewobrienLNP
Authorised by L. O’Brien, Liberal National Party of Queensland, 319 Kent St, Maryborough QLD 4650
