IS there any end in sight of the turmoil wreaked upon small business by the deliberations of our State Government?
Those of us not in the construction industry or on the public payroll must be feeling as though they’ve been put in a barrel and rolled down a hill backwards.
The latest state wide lockdown, the sixth, has again taken a huge toll on small business.
First, the State decrees a snap lockdown of every region of Victoria – COVID or no COVID – and gives a few hours’ notice to shut up shop from 8pm Thursday last week.
Then there are media leaks over last weekend that the Victoria-wide lockdown will be extended beyond seven days from this Thursday.
Next minute regional Victoria is freed from the sixth lockdown as of 11.59 pm last Monday night – a belatedly welcome backflip on a decree that ought not to have been made in the first place.
A big thing any business needs to function properly is certainty and consistency of rules, but this seems to be sorely lacking as we lurch from lockdown to lockdown.
Uncertainty, poor communication, mixed messages, and shock announcements by the State Government are taking a massive toll on people’s lives both economically and mentally. It breeds a lack of confidence in the system and those running it, whether it’s the government or bureaucrats or both.
Mental health help lines are receiving a large increase in call-outs for help. Mental anguish is the silent and deadly side-effect of COVID-19.
Victoria has suffered amongst the toughest COVID-19 lockdown regimes in the world with six attempts to “run the virus to ground.”
It appears the virus cannot be run to ground as it continuously mutates. It also appears the State Government’s strategy is flawed. Despite small numbers of COVID break-outs, the State Government prescribes rolling lockdowns for the entire state, destroying business confidence and threatening the survival of 1000s of enterprises.
It is time for a new strategy – one which targets the hot spots and makes lockdowns area-specific, so that most of regional Victoria which has never seen a COVID-19 case can continue to function.
There are many twists and turns ahead of us and The Adviser invites readers for their suggestions on how best we can get out of the COVID coma.
Comments are welcome by emailing: editorial@sheppartonadviser.com.au
