CAPALABA MP Don Brown has criticised Redland City Council for not moving next week's Ekka public holiday amid the latest south-east Queensland Covid lockdown.
It comes after deputy premier Steven Miles announced yesterday that Brisbane's exhibition holiday next Wednesday had been cancelled and was to be rescheduled.
Mr Brown said he had been advised that council had decided against changing the Redlands Ekka holiday from Monday, August 9.
A council spokeswoman confirmed that the holiday would go ahead as planned.
It comes amid the latest south-east Queensland Covid lockdown sparked by an outbreak of the Delta strain.
The Indooroopilly cluster has grown to 63 cases, making it the state's biggest outbreak since the pandemic's first wave last year.
Mr Brown said the holiday remaining on Monday would have significant consequences for families and businesses.
"Again we'll have a situation where students and their working parents have different holidays," he said.
"Businesses will miss out on a long weekend trading opportunity.
"Redland City Council should be doing everything in its power to help businesses out at the moment."
Brisbane, Scenic Rim and Moreton Bay councils have announced their public holidays would be rescheduled.
Mayor Karen Williams said the state government had not given Redlands and other areas enough time to consider a change.
"Yesterday council was provided only a few hours to make a decision and, with no general meeting scheduled, formally agreeing on a change to the gazetted public holiday within the state's timeframe was practically impossible," she said.
"To change our show holiday, council would need to vote on a new resolution to override its 2013 decision to set all our future show holidays on the Monday of Brisbane Ekka week.
"It is disappointing that affected councils in the region didn't have time to consider bringing their own local government areas in line with Brisbane, which will have its public holiday postponed."
Council has asked the state government for Redlands, and the other local government areas affected by the lockdown, to be given an extra public holiday later this year.
Cr Williams said they had asked for it to coincide with the postponed Brisbane show holiday.
"The addition of a public holiday would be a decision for the state government and I have also requested that they, in conjunction with local State MPs, consult fully with the community, local business and council and decide on an appropriate date that provides the most benefit to all."
Redlands Chamber of Commerce president Rebecca Young said Redlands businesses had indicated they were satisfied with the holiday staying on Monday.
"Industry sectors which strongly expressed this view are construction and trades, health and beauty, early childhood, professional services and retail," she said.
"The reasons provided were staffing agility, impacts around changing existing business plans to accommodate a public holiday ... and rules in relation to industry awards would mean penalty rates may apply whether it was a public holiday or not," she said.
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