Victorians get a taste of beer as restrictions unwind

As pubs across Victorians reopen, Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said easing of restrictions in three stages would put 850,000 people back at work and contribute almost $10 billion to the economy every month.

Frydenberg was on hand Hawthorn’s Glenferrie Hotel to pull a beer, saying there is still a way to go.

“Now we’re not out of it, there’s still a long way to go,” he said. “But Victorians and, indeed, Australians can be proud of what we have achieved on the health front. We have avoided the fate of the United Kingdom, we have avoided the fate of the United States, we have avoided the fate of many other countries. But we have to continue to be vigilant and to be patient.

“That means more people at the front bar, more people working in the kitchen, more tradies coming to have a drink and to socialise after a hard day at work.”

The Mount Erica Hotel in Prahran has changed its layout to create five separate enclosed spaces, each of which permitted 20 people according to the social distancing rules.

“It’s really good to start hearing phones ring as well,” manager Scott Glover told The Australian.

“Everyone’s really happy to be back. We’ve a really lovely local clientele and they’re supporting us.”

Sheridan Randall, 2^nd June 2020