Millions of Australians will be given $100 to spend at pubs, restaurants, cinemas and art galleries to haul struggling small businesses back from the brink
Sydneysiders will be given four $25 vouchers to spend on dining out and entertainment to push $500million into the state economy.
The handouts, called 'Out & About vouchers', will be available via the Services NSW app by early next year to every adult, after a trial in December in the CBD.
Two vouchers must be used at food retailers, and the remaining $50 is for use at cinemas, theatres, amusement parts and general entertainment.
The vouchers cannot be spent on alcohol, cigarettes, or gambling.
Two vouchers must be used at food retailers, and the remaining $50 is for use at cinemas, theatres, amusement parts and general entertainment. Pictured: People in Sydney eatinf pizza during the coronavirus pandemic
If the trial is successful, the NSW Government plans to expand it across Sydney and the entire state later in 2021.
Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the government hoped residents would spend more than $25 per transaction, boosting the economy even further.
'We want to encourage people to shop and spend with businesses multiple times, to get Out & About and support their local community safely,' he told The Daily Telegraph.
'The dining and entertainment industries were among the hardest hit by the pandemic and I would encourage people to utilise this scheme once it is up and running and to make sure they spend a bit extra on the way through too.'
Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the government are hoping residents will spend more than $25 per transaction, boosting the economy further. Pictured: Customers at a cafe in Bondi in June
The vouchers cannot be spent on alcohol, cigarettes or gambling. Pictured: A woman smoking in Sydney
Customers will not get change if the amount spent is less than $25.
Participating businesses must be registered as Covid-safe, but the government was yet to say whether the vouchers could only be used during off-peak times like Monday to Thursday.
Mr Perrottet acknowledged it was not a permanent solution, but that it would 'generate momentum' in the short-term.
The vouchers are part of a state budget to be handed down on Tuesday detailing how NSW will chart its way out of a deficit worth tens of billions of dollars by 2024.
The state budget will also lift the payroll tax threshold from $1million to $1.2million.
The tax break will mean 30,000 companies will pay less tax and 3,500 businesses will no longer pay the charge at all.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the plan, which will be formally revealed on Tuesday, will focus on job creation to help the state power through the Covid-19 pandemic. Pictured: People social distancing at Opera Bar for the first weekend re-opened on September 13
About $10million will also be allocated to help find employment for women of all ages, and $46.8million will be given to deliver 100 new school nurses to assist the wellbeing of students.
Mr Perrottet said the state should see unemployment rates drop from 7.5 per cent to 5.25 per cent in four years.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the plan, which will be formally revealed on Tuesday, will focus on job creation to help the state power through the Covid-19 pandemic.
'We know the next 12 months will be tough, but the NSW government has a plan. Our plan is about job creation, about stimulating the economy,' she said.
'The battle against the pandemic is daily, but NSW should be proud of what we have done so far.'