CRICKET CROWDS POSE A COVID RISK & IT SHOULDN’T BE UP TO FANS TO DECIDE IF IT’S SAFE TO ATTEND

Sydney (Tribune International, NSW Labor Release, 3 Jan 2021): NSW Labor is ramping up calls for the Government to ban spectators at the Third Test in Sydney, after confirmation thousands of people in Western Sydney may have been exposed to COVID-19 as the Berala cluster grows.

Sydney Cricket Ground (Source; SCG)

The NSW Labor Leader Jodi McKay said it makes no sense to allow 24,000 cricket fans to attend the Sydney test during a COVID outbreak.

“John Barilaro said he’s ‘almost encouraging’ people from the Cumberland area to ‘rethink going to the Test.’ This is absurd. Public safety is at risk and the decision to ban crowds should rest with the Government, not spectators.

“It’s important the cricket goes ahead but it must happen safely. We have growing clusters, long lists of exposure alerts and potentially thousands of people being forced into self-isolation.

“NSW is on a knife-edge and we can’t afford to allow a possible super-spreader event like the cricket to go ahead with a large crowd.”

The Shadow Minister for Health Ryan Park added: “It’s been a tough year and we all want life to return to normal. But the reality is, we are still in the midst of global pandemic and we need to make tough decisions and sacrifices to contain the spread.

“In the interest of public health, we need to enjoy this cricket match from the safety of our lounge rooms.

“The Government needs to ban spectators to keep NSW safe. Watching the cricket from home is the only sensible option,” Mr Park said.

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