Premier Gladys Berejiklian has accused states with closed borders of "lumping" NSW in with Victoria during the coronavirus pandemic, warning the two jurisdictions were in "vastly different" positions.
Key points:
- Gladys Berejiklian says people are suffering because of border closures
- The Premier says NSW is 'on top of the virus'
- WA and Queensland are urged to take in more returning Australians
A frustrated Ms Berejiklian fired a broadside at WA Premier Mark McGowan and Queensland Premier Annastasia Palaszczuk as health authorities in NSW confirmed one new locally acquired COVID-19 infection.
"There is no reason why NSW residents shouldn't be welcomed into other states," she said.
"It has been, for myself and our agencies in New South Wales, an acute sense of frustration that a vast number of state premiers have chosen to lump New South Wales and Victoria in the same category over the course of the last few months.
"That is an incorrect assumption and I'm disappointed that has occurred and I would ask those state premiers to acknowledge was is occurring in New South Wales and the situation we're in and how vastly different that is from Victoria."
While South Australia and the Northern Territory have opened their borders to people from NSW, Queensland, Tasmania and Western Australia remain closed — although the Apple Isle's border to NSW will reopen on November 6.
Ms Berejiklian said she welcomed the decision of the Tasmanian Government to allow NSW residents into the state without quarantining.
But she slammed the Queensland Government's decision to keep its borders shut as causing undue "suffering" for Australians and urged it to reopen.
"I say to Queensland … residents in your state, in Queensland, in NSW and across the nation are suffering as a consequence," Ms Berejiklian said.
"I also urge the WA Premier to do likewise."
The NSW-Victoria border remains closed and Ms Berejiklian said she was monitoring Victoria's situation closely but had decided to "maintaining her status quo position at this stage".
"We don't want to run the risk of any seeding from Victoria while we are concerned about existing cases that may be lurking throughout south-western Sydney," she said.
Ms Berejiklian said NSW was "on top of the virus" and "in a good position" after also confirming seven new cases among returned travellers in hotel quarantine.
But she said the rising number of hotel quarantine cases was reflective of NSW carrying the "nation's load", with about 45 per cent of all international arrivals at Sydney heralding from other states.
Ms Berejiklian said she was calling upon other states to "do their fair share to increasing the number of Australians they're receiving so NSW doesn't have to carry the load for whole nation — which is essentially what we're doing at the moment".
"I get really frustrated and annoyed when WA and Queensland expect us to process all of their citizens, which we do gladly, but then think of all these excuses as to why New South Wales residents can't move freely into their states.
"You can't have it both ways."
Ms Berejiklian said she normally thought of herself as a "tolerant and patient person" but that "enough is enough" and that other states must pay NSW for putting their residents in hotel quarantine.
"We will be issuing those invoices, and it's not for the dollars, it's because of the principal," she said
"The other states aren't lifting their weight. I mean, why can't Queensland and WA take on more Aussies coming home?"
Chief health officer Kerry Chant said that there were hidden dangers in NSW welcoming home large swaths of infected people from overseas.
About 3,000 people a week can arrive at Sydney Airport from overseas — a total of 250 a day.
"In Sydney it's more complicated because we are welcoming returning overseas travellers — they are going back to home and they can shed for a time even when they are not infectious in their stools … so that adds complexity," she said.
Dr Chant said there had been 14,382 tests done yesterday, more than double Monday's total of just over 6,400.
It has been 14 days since NSW recorded a mystery case, where the source of the infection could not be determined.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiXGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmFiYy5uZXQuYXUvbmV3cy8yMDIwLTEwLTI4L25zdy1jb3JvbmF2aXJ1cy1vbmUtbmV3LWxvY2FsLWNhc2UtY29uZmlybWVkLzEyODIxMjgw0gEnaHR0cHM6Ly9hbXAuYWJjLm5ldC5hdS9hcnRpY2xlLzEyODIxMjgw?oc=5
2020-10-28 00:09:00Z
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