NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says she was not briefed by her Queensland counterpart over Sydneysiders being banned from entering the state due to COVID-19.
Key points:
- Gladys Berejiklian was not aware of the Queensland Premier's announcement until after it was made
- The ban extends a previous ban on the City of Fairfield declared last week
- 34 local government areas in Greater Sydney are now affected by a ban on entering QLD
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk today declared 31 new local government areas in Sydney as COVID-19 hotspots for people from her state.
From 1:00am on Saturday "no one from Sydney will be allowed into Queensland", Ms Palaszczuk tweeted.
The ban comes as two women from Queensland who returned after travelling interstate were found to be infected with coronavirus and are now being cared for in hospital.
Ms Palaszczuk said there would be a "thorough police investigation" into how the two 19-year-old women returned to Queensland from Melbourne via Sydney.
"I'm absolutely furious that this has happened. That these two people have gone to Victoria, have come back and have given misleading information to authorities," she said.
Ms Berejiklian said she was unaware of the decision to declare Greater Sydney a COVID hotspot before it was announced.
"That's a matter for the Queensland Premier, but it would have been nice if she told me," she said.
"I note that the cases they've announced today are all from Victoria, and the case from South Australia is from Victoria," Ms Berejiklian said.
"In the end, it hurts the smaller states if you don't interact with NSW, it hurts us less if you talk about the economy."
The tightening of restrictions means Queensland residents returning from COVID-19 hotspots in the past 14 days will be forced into hotel quarantine at their own expense.
Anyone else will be turned around at the border.
Ms Palaszczuk admitted the ban would be inconvenient for families who might have events planned in the next few days, but Queenslanders "should not be travelling to Sydney", she said.
"We must protect Queenslanders. Your safety comes first and we are in extraordinary times at the moment," she said.
"We have to do everything we can."
Travellers at Sydney Airport today reacted to the border ban.
Sydneysider, Rod, said he had been "bracing" for the news.
"We booked this trip the very day Queensland opened. We thought right let's book it, let's do it as soon as possible," he said.
"For the last two weeks we've been crossing our toes, crossing everything.
"We knew [the border closure] was going to come, I could tell it was going to come."
Meanwhile, Ms Berejiklian said she would be further tightening current restrictions if NSW cases continued to increase.
The state has 19 new cases amid a growing cluster in Potts Point restaurants, and the Premier wants more businesses to register as COVID-safe.
However she said NSW was in "the strongest position in the nation".
"It's always finding that right balance — making sure that the virus is in check but that we're also providing sufficient freedoms for our residents," she said.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMibmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmFiYy5uZXQuYXUvbmV3cy8yMDIwLTA3LTI5L25zdy1wcmVtaWVyLWRpc2FwcG9pbnRlZC1ieS1xdWVlbnNsYW5kLWNvcm9uYXZpcnVzLWhvdHNwb3QtYmFuLzEyNTAyNjkw0gEnaHR0cHM6Ly9hbXAuYWJjLm5ldC5hdS9hcnRpY2xlLzEyNTAyNjkw?oc=5
2020-07-29 03:51:00Z
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