In internal emails seen by The Daily Telegraph, Dr Chant told the government on January 3 that she recommended density restrictions be moved to 1 per 4 square metres, alcohol should only be consumed sitting down and singing and dancing should be banned.She also recommended household gatherings should be limited to 10 people and capacity limits should be imposed on large indoor gatherings.Five days later Premier Dominic Perrottet agreed to ban singing and dancing and also placed some restrictions on major events but did not put in place any formal rules around household gatherings or seating drinking. The telling emails also reveal that on December 15, Health Minister Brad Hazzard signed a NSW Health briefing on vaccination updates which said that “vaccination coverage is lower in some vulnerable populations, such as Aboriginal peoples, and a vaccine is not yet approved for children under 5 years. It therefore remains necessary to take appropriate steps to minimise the risk of further introduction and spread of Covid”.On the same day Mr Perrottet eased mask restrictions across a large number of settings.Labor health spokesman Ryan Park said the Premier’s decision had devastating impacts.“The Premier’s decision to essentially ignore the health advice coming from the experts has had devastating impacts on our community both in terms of our health system and the economy,” he said.“The Premier thought he could outsmart a global pandemic, unfortunately for the people of NSW that didn’t happen and we had summer that was devastating both on jobs and the economy and our health and hospital system.”A spokesman for Mr Perrottet said the government has balanced “the health and economic outcomes” in its response to the pandemic.“Our number one priority is keeping our people safe and ensuring our world-leading health system remains strong to provide care to those when they need it,” the spokesman said.”The NSW Government has adapted and will continue to adapt its response to the pandemic as needed depending on the circumstances we face, taking into account advice regarding impacts on a range of matters, including our health system, the mental health of the community and the economy.”
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