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Speaker 1: Well, we know Catherine was released from its lockdown yesterday

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Speaker 1: at midday. There are now no restrictions on the reasons

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Speaker 1: to leave home for people who are vaccinated and also

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Speaker 1: those who are unvaccinated. We do know though, a mask

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Speaker 1: mandate's going to remain in place until midday on Wednesday,

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Speaker 1: December fifteenth. Joining me on the line right now is

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Speaker 1: the local member for Catherine, Joe Hersey.

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Speaker 2: Good morning to you, Joe.

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Speaker 3: Good morning Katie, and good morning listeners.

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Speaker 2: Joe. How are people feeling in Catherine today?

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Speaker 3: Yeah, I think everyone's pretty excited. We've also had rain overnight,

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Speaker 3: so that's been great to wake up till beautiful morning.

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Speaker 3: And I think business is keen to get back and

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Speaker 3: get all the customers in and get ready for Christmas

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Speaker 3: as well as I'm sure there was probably a steady

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Speaker 3: stream of people that had things to do in Darwin

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Speaker 3: and now I'll go and do that.

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Speaker 1: It'd been almost a month of restrictions, hadn't it correct?

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Speaker 3: And I can absolutely appreciate the people from Victoria of

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Speaker 3: two hundred and forty two days, which my sister did. Seriously,

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Speaker 3: I don't know how they did it because most people

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Speaker 3: that I spoke to in Catherine really were, you know,

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Speaker 3: champion at the bit to get out and just get

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Speaker 3: back to normal, and we just did two weeks lockdown

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Speaker 3: and two weeks of lockout.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, gives you a bit of perspective, doesn't it, in

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Speaker 1: terms of the way that some of the other locations

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Speaker 1: around Australia, our fellow Aussies have been going. And I

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Speaker 1: don't think that for us in the territory we really

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Speaker 1: had much of an idea and for us in Darwin

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Speaker 1: we probably still don't. Whereas for you guys in Catherine,

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Speaker 1: it certainly gives you that perspective.

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Speaker 3: It sure does. And the reality of how free and

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Speaker 3: easy our life style has been certainly made you reassess

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Speaker 3: that while we were in only just that two week lockdown,

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Speaker 3: but I can tell you people are very glad to

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Speaker 3: be out of that. And you know, the home straight

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Speaker 3: to Christmas, you know, not long now, and businesses really

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Speaker 3: need the community get behind them and get in and

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Speaker 3: support them in the lead up to Christmas.

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Speaker 1: Joe, how are those businesses feeling this morning, you know,

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Speaker 1: just a couple of weeks out from Christmas, but obviously

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Speaker 1: following on from what has been a big four weeks,

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Speaker 1: how are they feeling today.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, so yesterday afternoon I did a bit of a

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Speaker 3: wander up and down the street and spoke to a

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Speaker 3: few business people, and people were certainly glad to be

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Speaker 3: back to normal. You know, apart from just wearing the masks,

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Speaker 3: businesses have been doing it tough. The lockdown time really

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Speaker 3: did affect you know, people's cash flow. But I think

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Speaker 3: most people now that I spoke to yesterday, they are

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Speaker 3: really glad to be getting back to normal and having

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Speaker 3: people come in the doors again, which is great.

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Speaker 2: It is great.

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Speaker 1: How are people feeling about there still being that positive

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Speaker 1: in the wastewater and you know the statement by the

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Speaker 1: Health Minister yesterday that we are potentially going to see

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Speaker 1: all cases but you know, I'm lifting that lockout anyway.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, it's certainly been interesting the transition to the next phase,

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Speaker 3: and people are definitely still a bit nervous about the

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Speaker 3: fact that you know, there's just you know, the positive wastewater.

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Speaker 3: Potentially there could be people in the community. You know,

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Speaker 3: we're just urging everyone to go and get tested. But

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Speaker 3: that's another issue. This weekend, there is no testing sites.

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Speaker 3: I have raised this issue. There are no testing sites opening. Catherine,

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Speaker 3: this weekend. So for the people that want to travel

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Speaker 3: that have been stuck in Catherine and they want to

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Speaker 3: travel back down South or to home on Monday or Tuesday,

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Speaker 3: you need a seventy two hour PCR test before you go.

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Speaker 3: There's actually no testing sites open, which we're hoping for

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Speaker 3: that to be rectified today and someone give us an

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Speaker 3: answer on that.

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Speaker 1: Jo That's actually a pretty big issue. So what you're

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Speaker 1: saying is that there's there are going to be no

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Speaker 1: testing sites whatsoever in Catherine this weekend.

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Speaker 3: No, so the Joels Street ones closed down. I spoke

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Speaker 3: to Katherine East. Today's there last day and they've been

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Speaker 3: the people from Darwin that have come down and they've

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Speaker 3: done a fantastic job and they still continue to be

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Speaker 3: testing up until this afternoon and then they close down

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Speaker 3: and that only leaves the pandemic clinic at the hospital.

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Speaker 3: But my understanding is when you go on the site,

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Speaker 3: there is no appointments available this weekend. It's actually blocked out, so.

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Speaker 2: Well, what are people there to do?

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Speaker 3: An email through about that, so hopefully you know someone

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Speaker 3: will see that testing still needs to go on, and

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Speaker 3: you know, if you're urging people to still get tested,

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Speaker 3: a testing facility still does need to be open here

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Speaker 3: in Catherine.

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Speaker 2: One hundred percent.

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Speaker 1: But also, you know, you would suspect that, like we've

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Speaker 1: discussed just a moment ago, if there is still positive wastewater,

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Speaker 1: if we have the Health Minister and the Chief Minister

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Speaker 1: saying that they are expecting that there's going to be

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Speaker 1: more cases, we've got to make sure that there's places

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Speaker 1: for people to go and get tested.

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Speaker 3: Correct.

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Speaker 2: It's quite I'm finding that quite unbelievable.

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Speaker 1: I know you'd said that you asked a lable to

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Speaker 1: go to the pandemic clinic clinic at the hospital, but

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Speaker 1: you've got to book that online. And from what you're saying,

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Speaker 1: there isn't anywhere or there aren't any appointments available on

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Speaker 1: the weekend.

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Speaker 3: Not it's blocked out over the weekend. So it shows

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Speaker 3: that you can't make an appointment.

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Speaker 2: Well, that is a worry, Joe.

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Speaker 1: You've written to the Health Minister or you've emailed the

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Speaker 1: Health Minister and the Health department.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, the Health Minister is aware of that and I'm

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Speaker 3: waiting to hear back from someone today about that. So

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Speaker 3: you know, I'll let you know what the outcome of

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Speaker 3: that is.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, i'd be really interested to know and really keen

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Speaker 1: to make sure that all of our listeners know. Joe,

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Speaker 1: in terms of that mask mandate and people checking in,

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Speaker 1: do you think that that's going to be something that

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Speaker 1: happens fairly seamlessly.

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Speaker 3: I do think it is. People are used to wearing

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Speaker 3: their masks now, and people are certainly used to checking in.

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Speaker 3: I've certainly been into businesses yesterday and you know some

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Speaker 3: I just checked into and obviously I'm fully vaccinated. Some

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Speaker 3: did actually asked to see that vaccination status, so you

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Speaker 3: know that's good. I don't think there's any there won't

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Speaker 3: be any problems in that.

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Speaker 2: Well, that is good to hear.

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Speaker 1: I'm pleased that things sound as so they're getting back

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Speaker 1: to normal. Joe Hersey, It's been good to catch up

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Speaker 1: with you a lot more often over the last couple

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Speaker 1: of weeks. I know that that obviously hasn't been so

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Speaker 1: great for the residents of Catherine, but we really appreciate

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Speaker 1: all the time that you've given us on the Shy.

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Speaker 3: No thanks, Katie, And just before I go, I just

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Speaker 3: want to give a plug to the National Trust O

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Speaker 3: Chief Christmas lights on again this Friday as well, and

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Speaker 3: also road Tree will be doing the barbecue at the

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Speaker 3: community markets, which I heard you talk to Frent yesterday.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, thank you so much.

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Speaker 3: A barbecue there. So we've got a good selection of

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Speaker 3: lights and lights in the community for people to go

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Speaker 3: drive around and have a lookout this weekend and in

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Speaker 3: the week's leading up weekends leading up to Christmas as well.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, good stuff, and thank you for making us aware

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Speaker 1: of those lights as well that Trent and and some

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Speaker 1: of his mates are putting on.

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Speaker 2: It sounds like it's going to be fantastic.

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Speaker 3: I think it will be good. And yeah, like Trent said,

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Speaker 3: he loves Christmas. I love Christmas and there's nothing nicer

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Speaker 3: the council. This year we've got a Christmas tree up

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Speaker 3: in the town square, so that's lovely to see. That's

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Speaker 3: the first time I think I've been here thirty three years.

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Speaker 3: I think that's the first time we've actually had a

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Speaker 3: tree and a beautiful tree. It is so well done

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Speaker 3: to the council for getting a tree up and the

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Speaker 3: Christmas lights in the at Oke's house and that the

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Speaker 3: community tick market will be fantastic in the weekends leading

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Speaker 3: up to Christmas.

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Speaker 2: All good stuff.

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Speaker 1: Well, Joe, thank you very much for your time and

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Speaker 1: well to everybody in Catherine as well.

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Speaker 2: I'm really glad that.

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Speaker 1: You guys are out of that, you know, those restrictions,

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Speaker 1: and able to get back to that normality.

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Speaker 3: No worries.

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Speaker 2: Thanks Katie, thank you. We'll talk to you again soon