The early transition to Phase 3 of the ‘COVID-19 WA Roadmap’ is strongly welcomed by the business community. It enacts the approach that CCIWA urged the State Government to adopt as soon as Phase 2 was announced, delivering a huge win for WA businesses who have been struggling to get back on track.

The State Government’s decision is the most significant step so far to ease the tight constraints on local enterprise, get the circulation going again, and get back to business.

The changes will enable health and wellbeing services and leisure and recreation businesses to resume operations and changes to patronage limits will enable many large accommodation and food and dining businesses to re-open.

Retail and accommodation and food services businesses in WA had reported an average 2 to 3 month window of survival under previous conditions. Based on responses to CCIWA’s Business Impacts Survey, nearly all accommodation and food services businesses (84 per cent) and one third of WA retail businesses (31 per cent) lost more than half of their customers.

In addition to survival measures like JobKeeper, our States early emergence from the Phase 2 restrictions will help to alleviate job losses anticipated in 84 per cent of retail businesses, and 71 per cent of accommodation and food services outlets.

WA still faces the deepest economic contraction in modern times, with Treasury indicating a $12 billion blow to our economy, close to CCIWA’s $15 billion prediction at the beginning of the pandemic. But CCIWA is encouraged by the decision today to further open the economy and deliver another key priority of the business community. Building on our early success against COVID-19, our coming recovery can be bolstered by shifting to broad-based taxes, continuing to improve regulation, strengthening WA’s skills and infrastructure and reengaging with global markets

Chris Rodwell

CCIWA CEO