LARGE retail businesses such as Kmart are allowed to open in Mount Isa on the Monday after Christmas.
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These businesses were restricted from opening on Sundays, despite efforts by the National Retailers Association last year to make it happen.
Christmas Day on the Friday, Boxing Day on the Saturday, and a gazetted public holiday on the Monday would have meant shoppers would have had to wait four days, or rely on smaller grocery stores, to buy supplies.
The association successfully made a bid to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission to shorten the four day closure.
The decision affects 19 communities across Queensland including Cloncurry, Charters Towers, Roma, Chinchilla, Longreach and Ayr.
State Member for Mount Isa Rob Katter spoke against the association’s application to allow big businesses to open on another public holiday.
“The corner stores in town are running tight businesses and Christmas trading could compromise their viability by taking away access to one of their best trading days of the year,” Mr Katter said.
Mr Katter said allowing the large businesses to open on the Monday after Christmas might support the “appetites of short-term consumers” who may not realise the impacts on the small business community.
Mount Isa councillors decided in a council meeting on Wednesday to speak against the association’s bid to allow shopping on the Monday holiday, not realising the commission already made its decision.
Councillor George Fortune’s motion that the council object to large shops in Mount Isa opening on Sunday and Monday, the 27th and 28th of December was backed by Cr Kim Coghlan.
Mayor Tony McGrady said the council’s general view on the Monday holiday opening was that “in our current economic climate we do what we can to protect small businesses”.
But Deputy Mayor Brett Peterson endorsed shortening the length of time the chain stores would have to remain closed.
“Thursday to Tuesday is a long time to go without anything,” he said, referring to Mount Isa residents.
Last year when the commission considered allowing seven day trading in Mount Isa the council decided it would take no official stance.
The commission decided not to allow it.