The peak body for businesses in New South Wales has hit out at the government’s lockdown decision, describing it as “a crushing blow” for SMEs in the state.
Premier Glady Berejiklian extended the lockdown in Greater Sydney for a week at a press conference this morning, without announcing further support for small business.
Daniel Hunter, chief executive of Business NSW, released a public statement immediately after the announcement that reflected the dismay in the small business community at the extension.
“While the NSW Government has always balanced the health and economic outcomes of this pandemic, there’s no hiding that this will be a huge blow for business, big and small, right across the NSW economy,” he said.
“Business NSW has been working with our members since the start of the lockdown, and initial analysis of survey data shows that 48% of those surveyed believe the revenue impact of this current 2-week lockdown is already somewhat equivalent to the revenue impact of 2 months after the first major lockdown last year.”
“And this time around there’s no JobKeeper to help cushion the fall. Concerningly, around 1 in 5 businesses say they only have enough cashflow to get them through the next month of operations – so an extended lockdown will see businesses close down, and unlikely to reopen.”
“That will have a huge impact on our society – not only in the loss of jobs but the mental health of those business owners and their employees who’ve dedicated their lives to their business.
“Balancing the health and economic pressures of this pandemic is a very difficult assignment for the Government, and business understands the importance of community safety above all else.
“There is going to be extra pressure placed on business owners next week with employees needing to supervise children who are learning from home, so at a time when they are doing it tough, they’ll have to be even more accommodating which adds even more pressure.
“It’s more important than ever that as a community we do the right thing when it comes to obeying the rules, always check in and out with QR codes, and get vaccinated when possible,” M
