Riverina MP and Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack has welcomed the National Cabinet’s endorsement of measures for the resumption of sport and recreation activities across the Riverina and Central West.
Mr McCormack said a set of National Principles in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Sport’s Framework for Rebooting Sport in a COVID-19 Environment will be used as a guide to conduct the staged return of activities whilst maintaining efforts to suppress the spread of the virus.
“The resumption of sporting and recreational activities must not undo the hard work and efforts of all Australians to put our nation in the enviable position it is in at this stage,” Mr McCormack said.
“I must stress the importance of sporting and recreational club members to download the COVIDSafe app to help ensure our local communities are as well prepared as possible for any potential outbreak of COVID-19 so we can stamp it out before it gets out of control.
“These measures are not taken lightly. We need to return to a level of normalcy and sport and recreational activities play a vital role in the ongoing wellbeing – both mental and physical – of residents across the Riverina and Central West.”
The National Principles make clear how sporting and recreational activities can only happen where stringent, public and personal health measures are observed and required standards met.
The Framework for Rebooting Sport in a COVID-19 Environment was developed by the AIS after extensive consultation with sports organisations. It guides the staged resumption of sport and recreation at high performance, community, and individual levels.
The National Cabinet also agreed to establish a specialist COVID-19 Sports and Health Committee, which will be chaired by Commonwealth Deputy Chief Medical Officer Professor Paul Kelly and will include relevant sports medicine and health experts from the AIS, sports, and governments to monitor and support the resumption process.
It will report to the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee.
Mr McCormack said local factors would determine some variation in the rate at which activities would resume.
“We must remain vigilant and play our part to keep ourselves, our families and our local communities safe from COVID-19,” Mr McCormack said.
The Framework for Rebooting Sport in a COVID-19 Environment can be found here.