Hotels across Orange will be limited to a maximum 300 people at a time from Friday as tougher coronavirus restrictions return.
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And the size of group bookings will be cut from 20 people to 10.
Metropolitan Hotel publican and head of the Orange Liquor Accord, Mark Murphy, said it was a "temporary setback" for the pubs.
Mr Murphy has called on patrons of pubs across the city to respect coronavirus restrictions including making sure they sign in with their correct name and phone number.
We are all doing the best we can.
- Mark Murphy, president Orange Liquor Accord
He said there had been cases of people writing a "fictional name and a dodgy number" on pub registers when entering.
Mr Murphy said there had also been cases of people refusing to sign-in claiming they only wanted to use the toilet.
He said everyone who entered a hotel needed to sign in correctly.
"We're trying to police this but some people aren't respecting us. We're not police officers," he said.
"We are all doing the best we can. This is just a temporary setback."
Mr Murphy said the Australian Hotels Association was leading the way in talking to the government to suggest changes to avoid the virus situation getting worse.
"It is better for an industry to be pro-active than not to be pro-active," he said.
Mr Murphy said the 300-person limit would affect few premises in Orange as most hotels were smaller.
The new restrictions do not include clubs or restaurants.
Under the new rules every pub in NSW must download and register their COVID safety plan by Friday morning.
The hotel industry will be requiring every customer's details be taken.
Where possible this will be done electronically to provide a record for contact tracing.
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