[ad_1]
Travelers from New Zealand who take advantage of the trans-Tasman bubble to reach Victoria are within their rights, as long as they do not have symptoms associated with Covid-19, according to a Victoria state government website.
The prime ministers of Victoria and Western Australia have complained after some trans-Tasmanian bubble travelers arrived in their states, which are not part of the bubble deal, after landing for the first time in New South Wales, which Yes it is.
Have you traveled to Australia under the trans-Tasmania bubble deal? Contact Stuff at [email protected].
The one-way bubble started on Friday, allowing New Zealand travelers to reach New South Wales and the Northern Territory without having to enter controlled isolation.
PAUL ROVERE / The age
Friday was the first day of “travel bubble” deals between New South Wales and Australia’s New Zealand.
And the Victoria Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) website indicates that bubble travelers have the right to continue to Victoria without having to isolate themselves once they arrive in that state. The site points to the existence of the one-way trans-Tasmanian bubble, which only started operating on Friday.
READ MORE:
* Covid-19: Five big problems with the proposed travel bubble to Trans-Tasmania
* Qantas and Jetstar quickly begin selling flights from New Zealand following news of the trans-Tasman bubble
* Coronavirus: PM says the trans-Tasmania bubble could move quickly if state by state, not Australia as a whole
“The borders of Victoria are currently open. If you are traveling from New Zealand and have passed all relevant immigration and biosecurity requirements set out by the Federal Government, the Government of New South Wales and the Government of the Northern Territory, then you can travel to Victoria. You do not need to quarantine for 14 days upon arrival in Victoria, “the DHHS website said.
People who had traveled from New Zealand and who had symptoms associated with Covid-19 should not travel to Victoria. Anyone who has done so can be detained upon arrival in the state, the website said.
Darrian Traynor / Getty Images
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has attacked the Australian federal government for allowing New Zealand travelers who arrived in Sydney to enter the state of Victoria.
Victorian authorities have said that 52 travelers from New Zealand continued to Victoria, which has no restrictions for travelers from other Australian states. State officials say most bubble travelers stay in private homes.
Another 23 of the bubble travelers flew to Perth, which does have restrictions for visitors from other Australian states, so the 22 adults involved are in hotel isolation in Perth, and one child is with a family member in Perth.
Five travelers from New Zealand also moved to Tasmania, which also has interstate travel rules, so they are also in mandatory isolation.
Australian state officials are now scrambling to get hold of airline passenger lists to identify travelers who have arrived from New Zealand under the bubble deal, news.com.au reported.
9News
There were tearful meetings at Sydney International Airport as the first flight of the new trans-Tasman bubble arrived from New Zealand.
Victoria officials had reportedly asked the Australian Border Force to speed up the release of passenger lists to avoid a repeat of the surprise arrival when more flights from New Zealand land, he said.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison was letting state officials contact airlines by virtue of a decision made by the national cabinet on September 18.
Over the weekend, a Morrison government spokesman noted that the Sept. 18 decision required airlines to provide passenger records to state authorities, if requested for contact tracing.
Victorian Prime Minister Daniel Andrews said Victoria never agreed to be part of the trans-Tasmanian bubble. If that wasn’t possible, he wanted to look at other options, he said.
He acknowledged that he could not control people entering Victoria and that he did not want to close the state border.
“We are disappointed that this happened, given that I had written to the Prime Minister on this very issue the day before, saying that at some point we will join the New Zealand / Australia travel bubble, but it is not appropriate now,” Andrews said.
Chris McKeen
The Trans-Tasman bubble opens as hundreds fly from Auckland to New South Wales.
Western Australian Prime Minister Mark McGowan said he would like help from the federal government to manage bubble travelers continuing to his state.
“We would like more help from the Commonwealth, in particular to make sure that people who fly into WA get the right manifests and advice so that we can manage these people,” said WA Today.
“We have been asking for years, in fact, that airlines provide manifestos about people arriving in Western Australia, so that we can properly monitor and control organized crime,” he said.
“Those manifestos now would be much more useful to monitor and control people who come from abroad and who can be positive for Covid. We can’t control what the airlines do. “
Western Australia has a limit on how many people from abroad can be isolated at any one time, and McGowan said arrivals from New Zealand were taking up space that Western Australians from more vulnerable locations could be using.
But WA Opposition Leader Liza Harvey said the cap could easily be increased, as Perth hotels have many vacancies that could be used to accommodate more returning travelers.
