Australian state border restrictions

[MARTINE]

Yeah - exactly - once the Delta strain hits QLD they will be frantically flying in medical staff from interstate and overseas into QLD to cope.

Think we will find the health bank of goodwill is not only empty but overdrawn …

 

[antycbr]

Think we will find the health bank of goodwill is not only empty but overdrawn …

Won't all of the staff have to stay in Wellcamp? That sure sounds attractive.

Toowoomba resents having the facility as well, according to their mayor.

 

[antycbr]

Looks like it’s on if you watched The Project tonight. Was basically an open invitation to anyone who has standing to challenge the border closures. The below article is a summary of the segment.

It basically sounded like an open call for anyone with standing to challenge. Go read the judgement Palmer v Western Australia [2021] HCA 5 and you’ll see the case hinges on proportionality of restrictions.

Looming problem for states that won’t open up

Both states are in no hurry to open their borders, but Queensland and Western Australia could find themselves vulnerable to unprecedented legal issues as the rest of Australia embraces ‘Covid normal’ in the coming months.

www.news.com.au

 

[JohnM]

Vaccine complacency is writ large in WA.

Reported on tonight's WA ABC TV news:

Perth Royal Show (started yesterday), a facility that can handle c. 2K walk-ins/day: 120 takers.

(The Showgrounds facility has been the major PER vaccination site since the vaccine rolldribble-out began).

Perth Stadium; Grand Final yesterday: Pop-up centre can handle a lot (can't recall exact number quoted): 2 takers.

FFS!

(One wonders how many vaccine doses are wasted through being tossed out because of expiry issues... )

For the record: I'm in PER and have been fully vaccinated since July.

From the outset of the pandemic, I've said that Australia has painted itself into a corner; now WA is in the very last bit of that corner.

Sure, life is (superficially) grand here - no lockdowns, no masks, no capacity limits, no intrastate travel restrictions... And I'm OK in not having relatives, deaths, weddings, births etc. interstate.

But there is also no 'roadmap' (what a stupid BS term that is - what have roads and maps (geography) got to do with a public health plan? ) way to get out of the ever-shrinking corner?

But - backing self-interest (it's the only horse that's trying - a la one P J Keating ), let me do, uninterrupted, my 2-week BME-PER voyage starting in a month (BTW, the neuroticism surrounding that voyage is astounding - not once in Coral Expeditions' lengthy (and confusing) documentation and 'Sailsafe Plans' have they asked the obvious question: 'Have you been vaccinated?' . The moronic drones in HR/PR departments who write this bilge constantly trump science and rationality these days. ), then it will be time to let it rip over here, I say!

\rant.

 

[oz_mark]

From the outset of the pandemic, I've said that Australia has painted itself into a corner; now WA is in the very last bit of that corner.

I don't know. I think Queensland and New Zealand are also in their respective corners, with no clue about how they are going to get out of the corner.

Anyway, I think the corner WA is in is one that was stumbled into, rather than planned from the outset. Perhaps we'll stumble out of the corner.

 

[Must...Fly!]

None of the state politicians are smart enough to have purposely painted themselves in to this corner.

 

[MARTINE]

None of the state politicians are smart enough to have purposely painted themselves in to this corner.…

… they have unwittingly found themselves in the position of refusing to let their child learn to swim because mum will hold onto their hand at the beach so they don’t drown… only to find their arms are getting tired, the kids grown up and a giant wave is approaching…

 

[Bundy Bear]

I would think that Queensland will start opening the borders from 1 December. It may be a gradual thing, so country NSW but not those in areas where case numbers are high.

You would need to be double jabbed, and not been to a Tier 1 exposure site.

WA who knows what they will do, they are acting like their own country.

 

[drron]

None of the state politicians are smart enough to have purposely painted themselves in to this corner.

Tasmania is trying.After Fridays hiccup with the Spirit of Tasmania and cancelling 2 days services due to a positive contractor in Melbourne
Premier Gutwein has come out stating that Tasmania won't reopen borders until 90% of >12s are doubly vaccinated.

"We won't open up to the high-risk areas until we are confident that all eligible Tasmanians over the age of 12 have had the opportunity to be vaccinated.
"It is a race. We need to ensure that we can provide that opportunity and that we can have over 90 per cent of Tasmanians that have received the vaccine, but importantly, we won't open up until we are confident that 100 per cent of Tasmanians that are eligible have had the opportunity [to be vaccinated]."

'We don't want to go back there': Tasmanian Premier defends COVID vaccine mandate for health workers

Premier Peter Gutwein defends the state's COVID vaccination mandate for healthcare workers in light of the north-west outbreak last year, after a Launceston doctor wrote to Members of Parliament concerned about the requirement.

www.abc.net.au

 

[antycbr]

Tasmania is trying.After Fridays hiccup with the Spirit of Tasmania and cancelling 2 days services due to a positive contractor in Melbourne
Premier Gutwein has come out stating that Tasmania won't reopen borders until 90% of >12s are doubly vaccinated.

'We don't want to go back there': Tasmanian Premier defends COVID vaccine mandate for health workers

Premier Peter Gutwein defends the state's COVID vaccination mandate for healthcare workers in light of the north-west outbreak last year, after a Launceston doctor wrote to Members of Parliament concerned about the requirement.

www.abc.net.au

Have/Had the opportunity is a bit different to a hard 90 percent. If it stalls they won’t have a choice. But I think they’ll get there.

 

[MARTINE]

Tasmania is trying.After Fridays hiccup with the Spirit of Tasmania and cancelling 2 days services due to a positive contractor in Melbourne
Premier Gutwein has come out stating that Tasmania won't reopen borders until 90% of >12s are doubly vaccinated.

'We don't want to go back there': Tasmanian Premier defends COVID vaccine mandate for health workers

Premier Peter Gutwein defends the state's COVID vaccination mandate for healthcare workers in light of the north-west outbreak last year, after a Launceston doctor wrote to Members of Parliament concerned about the requirement.

www.abc.net.au

Nobody forces the vaccine into our arms
Don't want it?
Plenty of other careers to choose from.
Surgeons dont have to give consent to mask/wash hands when operating

 

[jakeseven7]

Have/Had the opportunity is a bit different to a hard 90 percent. If it stalls they won’t have a choice. But I think they’ll get there.

They have slowed down a lot…

I would think that Queensland will start opening the borders from 1 December. It may be a gradual thing, so country NSW but not those in areas where case numbers are high.

You would need to be double jabbed, and not been to a Tier 1 exposure site.

WA who knows what they will do, they are acting like their own country.

Case numbers in NSW will be high everywhere… as soon as Freedom Day hits, things open and people start living and moving again… so then what…?

 

[antycbr]

They have slowed down a lot…



Case numbers in NSW will be high everywhere… as soon as Freedom Day hits, things open and people start living and moving again… so then what…?

Queensland needs to provide travellers from NSW and VIC certainty and the model proposed by BundyBear does anything but.

In summary, Queensland is high risk. Book elsewhere.

 

[mviy]

Once vaccination levels are high and we open up lots of cases for a period of time is probably a good thing. For those who are vaccinated, if they unfortunately get infected it will hopefully act a bit like having a booster shot. For those who have refused to get vaccinated, if they survive they'll get some level of natural immunity getting us closer to what seems like an elusive dream of herd immunity. This will hopefully reduce the chance that we will head back into lockdown and also reduce the chances of international travel restrictions returning next winter.

 

[kamchatsky]

Queensland needs to provide travellers from NSW and VIC certainty and the model proposed by BundyBear does anything but.

In summary, Queensland is high risk. Book elsewhere.

I have a booking to HTI from SYD just after Christmas for 5 days. I think I have more chances to go to LHR than to HTI at this stage.

 

[jakeseven7]

There is a positive for keeping everyone locked in Queensland I guess (I think we all need a good laugh today!)

 

[JessicaTam]

[mod hat]
Ahem. This is the state borders thread, not the international gateway thread.

Back to the topic at hand please.
[/mod hat]

 

[justinbrett]

Tourism industry being slightly untruthful there. School holidays atm and most tourist places are nearly or fully booked out.
Slightly tounge in cheek but Queensland holiday locations are for Queenslanders

Nine Brisbane reported tonight that the Gold Coast was only booked at 40% over the school holidays.

I think the government might have been pushing out an alternative message to take the heat off the situation.

I think at this rate, if QLD doesn't open up soon it will be the Gold Coast demanding the border is moved north of them.

 

[antycbr]

Nine Brisbane reported tonight that the Gold Coast was only booked at 40% over the school holidays.

I think the government might have been pushing out an alternative message to take the heat off the situation.

I think at this rate, if QLD doesn't open up soon it will be the Gold Coast demanding the border is moved north of them.

Tourism forum in the GC was shown on Sunrise this morning. They said losses in the September quarter were $1 billion.

You only need to have a quick search on any booking aggregator to see how bad it is. Port Douglas wide open, with discounts and incentives during Queensland school holidays.

Many of the Christmas bookings will immediately be cancelled if there’s no confidence in being able to go so the availability at that time is in no way reflective of reality in terms of firm bookings with deposits or prepayments.

 

[jakeseven7]

Tourism forum in the GC was shown on Sunrise this morning. They said losses in the September quarter were $1 billion.

You only need to have a quick search on any booking aggregator to see how bad it is. Port Douglas wide open, with discounts and incentives during Queensland school holidays.

Many of the Christmas bookings will immediately be cancelled if there’s no confidence in being able to go so the availability at that time is in no way reflective of reality in terms of firm bookings with deposits or prepayments.

Yup, what I’ve been saying for months and months. But we seem not to care anymore about tourism anymore in QLD clearly…