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Speaker 1: We learned a little bit earlier this morning that the

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Speaker 1: vaccine pass has been dropped in the Northern Territory. It

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Speaker 1: is something that my next guest has been advocating for

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Speaker 1: quite some time. Alex Bruce, the CEO of Hospitality here

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Speaker 1: in the territory, joins me on the line. Good morning

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Speaker 1: to you, Alex.

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Speaker 2: Good morning Katie Alex.

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Speaker 1: This seems as though it's good news for the hospitality industry.

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Speaker 1: Did it come out of nowhere for you guys this morning?

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Speaker 2: Look, you hit the nail on the head. We've been

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Speaker 2: asking the government, David look at this for a while now,

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Speaker 2: and I think previously I've said the time for it

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Speaker 2: to be lifted was yesterday. We're getting a lot of

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Speaker 2: feedback into our office from our members today though you

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Speaker 2: know they would have liked it sooner, but at least,

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Speaker 2: you know, sanity's prevailed a common sense approach. So yeah,

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Speaker 2: moving forward, very positive on this one. We understand Queen

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Speaker 2: flann maybe making a similar announcement later today, so you

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Speaker 2: know that was probably weighing into it as well. Got

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Speaker 2: to be truthful about that.

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Speaker 3: So you know, New South Wales has already lifted Tazzy's

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Speaker 3: already lifted. If Queensland's going today, we needed to do it.

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Speaker 3: South Australia never had it in the first place. We

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Speaker 3: still think the government's holding on a bit too tight

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Speaker 3: with some of these other measures up here, as is

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Speaker 3: their want. We don't like any language this morning where

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Speaker 3: they're starting to get the community prepped for a potential

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Speaker 3: masked mandate reintroduction into Darwin.

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Speaker 2: You know, cases of this new strain aren't linked to

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Speaker 2: increasing hospitalizations anywhere near what a lot of these things

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Speaker 2: that were modeled for Delta were about. The community is

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Speaker 2: getting jack of it. We're looking forward to a busy

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Speaker 2: dry season and we want to be positive and strive

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Speaker 2: for freedom and to be at the top of the charts. Again.

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Speaker 2: That was a very keen marketing tool of our industry

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Speaker 2: last year with domestic tourists. We don't want to be lagging.

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Speaker 2: We don't want to be going back into more measures.

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Speaker 3: No, thank you.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, I think everybody's feeling a bit that way, Like

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Speaker 1: we understand that these numbers are on the rise to

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Speaker 1: some degree. Five hundred odd, the Health Minister had said

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Speaker 1: on the show, and you know they have said that

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Speaker 1: these chow the chow extension of powers will mean that

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Speaker 1: there is a situation where they're able to reintroduce a

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Speaker 1: mask mandate if required. But I think people are at

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Speaker 1: the point where they're a bit iver USh.

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Speaker 2: There's been epidemiologists, you know, the health science saying that

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Speaker 2: this mandate when it comes to masks on off, have

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Speaker 2: your mask off moment, everyone be happy and drop all

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Speaker 2: their other COVID principles is actually damaging for public health advice.

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Speaker 2: And there is a growing school of thought that there

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Speaker 2: should never have been mandates. But leaving the past in

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Speaker 2: the past, going forward, we don't need mandates. We need

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Speaker 2: public health to issue strong recommendations and lay a clear

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Speaker 2: picture and boosting cases that aren't leading to anything more

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Speaker 2: than the vast, vast majority of people being on the

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Speaker 2: couch popping panadol for two days and then feeling a

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Speaker 2: lot better within that forty out our period. We need

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Speaker 2: to normalize that. You know, I've said this in other areas,

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Speaker 2: But we can cherry pick data all we want if

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Speaker 2: we want to continue to profligate fear, but our industry

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Speaker 2: at least we're over that.

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Speaker 1: I mean Alex to play, you know, Devil's advocate, though

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Speaker 1: we are looking at there being a new variant making

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Speaker 1: its way through the territory, which is dominant apparently in

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Speaker 1: Eastern States at the moment where those cases are quite high.

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Speaker 1: Is this change potentially creating more risk for people indoors?

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Speaker 3: Well?

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Speaker 2: So, how many do we have in hospital in today's

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Speaker 2: update at fourteen or seventeen? How many total hospitalizations are

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Speaker 2: there in the territory right now? What are the main causes?

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Speaker 2: We've heard from the teachers' union, sorry, the nurse union

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Speaker 2: that you know, a significant chunk and it could be

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Speaker 2: up to half the people that are presenting at hospital

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Speaker 2: for broken legs or for other issues are then testing

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Speaker 2: positive and that's getting added to the data. You know,

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Speaker 2: if we're not going to be honest and interrogate the

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Speaker 2: information at this point in the pandemic slash endemic cycle,

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Speaker 2: then no, we don't support the fixation on indoor settings,

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Speaker 2: the fixation on hospitality. Everybody now knows it's ripped through

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Speaker 2: the schools and the whole time a COVID positive household

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Speaker 2: was allowed to send little Jimmy off to school to

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Speaker 2: pay it forward to the next family. So this is

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Speaker 2: going on enough enough. We're very positive about today's announcement

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Speaker 2: because we're looking forward to a cracking dry season.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, I know last week you and I spoke, I

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Speaker 1: think on two occasions last week. After firstly the Chief

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Speaker 1: Minister had flagged that this change was going to happen,

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Speaker 1: we spoke to you. You knew nothing about it. You

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Speaker 1: also had already caught up with the Chief Health Officer

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Speaker 1: I understand, or at least those health staff, and it

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Speaker 1: hadn't been confirmed at that point. Then a bit later

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Speaker 1: in the week we learned that the mandate was got

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Speaker 1: all the vaccine pass was going to be lifted in

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Speaker 1: sporting venues, but not so for licensed venues. It just

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Speaker 1: seems like it's all been quite boody, confusing to put

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Speaker 1: it mildly.

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Speaker 2: Look, we definitely did do a lot of engagement with

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Speaker 2: the government, the Health Minister, the Chief Minister and doctor

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Speaker 2: Hugh Higgin, doctor Charles Paying last week, you know, and

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Speaker 2: the engagement was very strong, but very respectful. We do

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Speaker 2: appreciate that, you know, for the whole time they have

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Speaker 2: been looking at competing juggling interests and it is always

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Speaker 2: just about how they can try and achieve that balance.

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Speaker 2: We think today, especially if Queensland's lifting to that list

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Speaker 2: that has you know the shift of the curd today

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Speaker 2: as it needed to put the path behind us and

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Speaker 2: be positive welcome people back. Now, you know, it wasn't

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Speaker 2: that long ago we could we had masks on, you

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Speaker 2: couldn't see the smile from the hospitality. The first question

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Speaker 2: you're asked with have you checked in? And have we

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Speaker 2: seen your vax status. We're looking forward to removing all

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Speaker 2: of that. Welcoming tourists and locals in our venues and

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Speaker 2: the first two questions it should be today, how are

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Speaker 2: you and what can I get you?

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Speaker 1: Yeah, well, I'm pleased that it is going to be

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Speaker 1: a positive thing for our hospitality venues. I know that

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Speaker 1: you guys have gone through lots of ups and downs

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Speaker 1: and there are still some of those different battles to face,

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Speaker 1: particularly when it comes to staffing levels and that kind

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Speaker 1: of thing. How are our venues going at the moment

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Speaker 1: when you talk about staffing levels.

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Speaker 2: Look, that is now the number one challenge again and

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Speaker 2: there's many different leavers. And credit to the Territory government

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Speaker 2: they did come into the space earlier this year with

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Speaker 2: some of the programs that assist businesses in our sectorund

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Speaker 2: in others to try and match workers and get those

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Speaker 2: shortages field as much as it is, the reality is

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Speaker 2: some of our businesses are going to have to shape

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Speaker 2: their product and their services available this year like they

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Speaker 2: did last year. It's already happening worse down the track

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Speaker 2: and in Central Australia and up here. It is what

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Speaker 2: it is again. The whole two years we've been relatively

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Speaker 2: fortunate and there's been a lot of work to achieve

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Speaker 2: that from everybody, but the last three months really have

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Speaker 2: hit a lot of our smaller operators for six So

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Speaker 2: this is the time, you know, the tourists are coming,

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Speaker 2: the caravan convoys are on their way. We really need

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Speaker 2: to just have as many workers as possible, put on

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Speaker 2: a brave face and get through and try and get

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Speaker 2: enough money to see through the next quiet period.

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Speaker 1: Alex. Are things like those close contacts and some of

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Speaker 1: those rules having an impact on hospitality still or are

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Speaker 1: things easing up a little bit in that area?

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Speaker 2: Look, they are. We would like to see all workers

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Speaker 2: determined essential. You know, a job is essential for that

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Speaker 2: worker and that business. And you know that's not anything

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Speaker 2: negative against frontline emergency service personnel that do critical things

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Speaker 2: on our behalf. We appreciate that, but if you look

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Speaker 2: at the essential services list as it is at the moment,

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Speaker 2: I think bottleshop attendants are essential. I think delivery drivers

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Speaker 2: and Uber drivers are essential, but our broader hospitality staff aren't.

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Speaker 2: We would very much welcome the alignment of the policies

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Speaker 2: between essential and non essential workers. That would basically mean,

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Speaker 2: you know, occupient Gavid positive, you're staying home, but if

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Speaker 2: you're in a household with someone that's positive, but you

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Speaker 2: keep testing negative, you can potentially come back to work.

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Speaker 2: That would be an immediate assistance for some of these

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Speaker 2: workforce shortages we're facing.

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Speaker 1: Well, Alex Bruce, let's focus on the win for today, mate,

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Speaker 1: and we know that this vaccine past being lifted. It

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Speaker 1: does seem as it's common sense at this point after

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Speaker 1: those changes last week, and I'm sure it's something that

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Speaker 1: those hospitality venues are going to be pleased about today.

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Speaker 2: A lot of happy, unmarked smiles in our industry, Katie, Good.

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Speaker 1: On you, Alex, Thanks so much for your time this morning.

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Speaker 2: Cheers all the best.

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Speaker 1: Thank you,