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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2020-06-16 Daily Xml
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Coronavirus Restrictions

The Hon. J.S. LEE (14:55): My question is to the Minister for Health and Wellbeing about COVID-19. Would the minister update the council about South Australia's response to COVID-19 and community cooperation with public health advice?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (14:55): I would like to thank the honourable member for her question. One of the cornerstones of South Australia's success so far in combating the COVID-19 pandemic has been the adherence of the community to the public health advice that has been given. We have world-class public health clinicians, but if their advice is ignored, their skills cannot be translated into success. Fortunately, we continue to see high levels of compliance with this advice through the pandemic.

The much anticipated AFL Showdown on Saturday night demonstrated that spirit of cooperation is continuing, even as we move out of the first stage of the pandemic. On 9 June 2020, the State Coordinator, Commissioner Grant Stevens, announced that after consideration the Transition Committee was granting approval for 2,000 people to attend Adelaide Oval's public areas for the Showdown on 13 June. A further 240 people were allowed in function rooms at the stadium.

This exemption was only granted after rigorous public health evaluation of the plan put forward by the Stadium Management Authority. The plan included physical distancing across the board, from viewing the match to entering and exiting the stadium. This event was historic. It was the first AFL match in Australia in 2020 to have crowds. Not only that, it was one of the first mass gathering sports events in the world. It was a concrete example of the way in which South Australians' hard work in combating the pandemic has paid off.

South Australian health officials, led by Chief Public Health Officer Professor Nicola Spurrier, attended the match and took extensive notes about how the stadium was able to adhere to public health guidance. In particular, she was joined by Chris Lease, the Deputy Chief Public Health Officer, who has particular responsibility for broader community strategies. I would like to pay tribute to Dr Lease. Everybody knows Professor Nicola Spurrier is a star of the public health realm. Dr Chris Lease is another in a constellation of stars in our public health team.

The SA Health team did notice opportunities for improvement in terms of public health, and they also are looking forward to working with the Stadium Management Authority and other organisations to look forward to incremental increases in crowd numbers. Whilst one need not reflect on the score at the final siren, from a public health perspective the event was a roaring success. The Stadium Management Authority team, led by chief executive Andrew Daniels, is to be commended for their work—and with the two AFL clubs—on the logistics of the night.

I thank South Australians for their cooperation with public health advice so far. As the Showdown demonstrated, this brings with it real economic and social rewards. However, as the economy opens up again we, again, must remember that the virus is still out there and we need to maintain our efforts to keep it at bay.

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