Seven out of eight states and territories want domestic borders in Australia broken down by December as part of a new “road map” to recovery from coronavirus restrictions.
The Prime Minister and seven state and territory leaders have agreed to reunite the country at a national cabinet meeting.
Western Australia is the only state refusing to take part as the state has had no community transmission for 146 days.
“There will be further discussion on how that can be more specifically defined,” Scott Morrison said.
“This will take some time to get that right.”
The current idea is to use a “hotspot” model where state borders are open everywhere except specific areas that have high rates of community transmission.
Mr Morrison said he wants a “sustainable set of arrangements where Australians could move around, using a hot spot model by Christmas.”
“And whether that’s achieved in Western Australia or not, well, that will be up to Western Australia.”
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Western Australia’s Premier Mark McGowan has flat out refused to open the borders of WA.
“I made it clear that Western Australia will not be agreeing to a hot spot model or a hot spot definition which replaces our successful border controls,” he explained.
“Western Australia has always avoided setting an arbitrary deadline on borders. A date will be set when our health advice recommends it, but that might be some time away.
“The Prime Minister and other states respect and understand our decision given the unique factors for Western Australia and the very positive direction our economy is heading.
“Unlike the rest of the country, WA is not currently in a recession. If we went too soon it could be deadly, and there would be economic devastation.”
He explained that the position he was taking was “eminently sensible”.
“WA does not have border communities so we don’t face the associated social disruption seen on the eastern coast. Our position is eminently sensible. It’s just eminently sensible,” McGowan said.
“If the virus came in, if we brought our border down, adopted some alternative regime that was less effective, which it would be, and virus came in via some FIFO worker out of Melbourne, infected a major mining company and then huge numbers of the mines had to close – as has happened in Brazil – it would be catastrophic for the rest of the country, and for Western Australia.”
Morrison also wants New Zealand to be included in the hotspot before Christmas, which would allow for international travel from Australia for the first time since March.
The Prime Minister spoke to New Zealand leader Jacinda Ardern to discuss a travel bubble.
“What I advised her was that Australia will be looking to apply the same hot spot approach to New Zealand,’ he said.
“So, that means, when we’re in a position to do so, and when the Acting Chief Medical Officer has come to a set of arrangements with New Zealand, then we would be able to have New Zealanders come to Australia.
“That doesn’t mean Australians can go to New Zealand. That’s a matter for Prime Minister Ardern.
“But if there’s no COVID in Christchurch, and there’s no COVID in Queensland, then there’s no reason both of them can’t come to Sydney. And that will mean, I think, an important boost for our tourist economy.”
