Queensland's Restaurants, Cafes and Bars Might Be Able to Reopen in June

If you're a Brisbanite missing your regular pub meal, weekly date night out with your partner, or just having a bite to eat or a few drinks somewhere other than home, then good news might be on the horizon — with Queensland restaurants, cafes and bars possibly reopening in June.

Speaking to media today, Monday, May 4, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk revealed that the Queensland Government is currently considering allowing the hospitality industry to start welcoming customers again as early as next month. "I think June is a good ambitious target... I can't say whether it's early June or late June, but I'm going to have those discussions," the Premier commented.

Other details haven't been announced at this early point, with the Premier set to speak with industry bodies and figures before anything is finalised. Currently, restaurants, cafes and bars are only allowed to provide takeaway and delivery options — so scaling that back, and allowing people to sit down to have a meal or a beverage, is the obvious next step. That said, with social distancing measures unlikely to be phased out any time soon, Queenslanders shouldn't expect an immediate return to pre-coronavirus business as usual. At the very least, it's likely that sitting 1.5 metres apart from your fellow diners will be required.

Grace Smith

Reopening restaurants, cafes and bars would form the next step of state's gradual move out of its current COVID-19 lockdowns. The first set of stay-at-home restrictions were eased late on Friday, May 1, allowing Queenslanders to leave home for more than just essential activities — and to travel within 50 kilometres of their residences. Today, the Premier revealed the next stage, which involves the return of students to schools over the course of this month.

At the time of writing, Queensland has 52 active cases of COVID-19, from a total of 1038 cases to date. Since mid-April, new daily diagnoses have been falling, with fewer than eight new cases confirmed daily since April 15 — and the state experiencing five single days with zero new cases.

To find out more about the status of COVID-19 in Australia and how to protect yourself, head to the Australian Government Department of Health's website.

Top image: Grace Smith