Amid talk of COVID-19 restrictions being wound back in an effort to kick-start the economy, a Hunter cafe owner says gyms should be among those at the top of the priority list for re-opening.
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Lorraine Turner has owned The Coffee Bean Cafe at Dungog for more than 11 years.
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has meant her store - which already predominantly served takeaway coffee and made-in-house baked goods - had to reduce trading hours.
While she has been able to keep two staff members in work - albeit on fewer hours - she has had to let two others go.
But increasing speculation about which virus-related restrictions will be wound back and when has given Ms Turner some food for thought.
She says gyms should be among the businesses that take priority to re-open first given the role she believes they play in some people's mental health - as well as the fact that her business and others like it have been able to continue trading to some degree during the lockdown.
"My opinion, I think gyms need to be open because there's a lot of mental health issues out there," she said.
"If people want to, they still can do takeaway and get takeaway."
Australian Community Media reported on Wednesday that Prime Minister Scott Morrison launched a major push for businesses to re-open and signalled that he wanted cafes and restaurants to be up and running again soon.
The National Cabinet on Tuesday settled on re-opening Australia to a "sustainable" level by July and is expected to announce on Friday which businesses would be the first to start-up again.
ACM reported that Mr Morrison said after Tuesday's National Cabinet meeting there had been good reasons for keeping restaurants and cafes closed, "but the longer that goes on, it is not just the waiter and the chef that is affected, it is the food producer, it is the supply chain".
Speaking on Wednesday, Ms Turner said the past few months had been a tough road but she was confident her business would get through the pandemic.
"I'm fairly fortunate in that I cook my own stuff. Yes, it's taxing on me - I have to get there earlier because I can't cook during the day," the Dungog business owner said.
"There are some very bumpy days but the town has been very supportive, the community has been very supportive.
"We've managed to bump along this far, I don't want to be doing it for too much longer, but if they said we have to do it for another month then so be it. I think we can survive.
"We're not making a whole lot [of money]. I'm paying my bills, covering costs, the girls are getting paid for working - I can't do much more than that."
The National Cabinet will meet again on Friday.
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