SA’s home quarantine app promises new hope to Australians locked out of country

A tracking-app trial designed so travellers can skip mandatory hotel stays in favour of phone tracking using facial recognition is set to be expanded to international SA arrivals.

The landmark home quarantine app trial could be expanded to selected foreign travellers as early as next month, as authorities raise hopes it could soon help repatriate stranded Australians overseas.

National cabinet has authorised the state government to operate the pilot for dozens of specially selected interstate or overseas arrivals to avoid isolating in medi-hotels.

The home quarantine app, which if successful will be rolled out across Australia in coming months, uses pioneering geolocation and live facial recognition technology through a person’s Wi-Fi.

The scheme sparked headlines when respected US magazine, The Atlantic, accused the Marshall government of developing a tracking app “as Orwellian as any in the free world”. The accusation was labelled “absurd” by SA’s police commissioner Grant Stevens.

The second stage launched on Monday when 90 Australian Defence Force personnel returned from various undisclosed “lower-risk” Covid-19 countries.

After landing at Edinburgh RAAF base they travelled by police escort to their residence for a fortnight of quarantine.

Another 18 interstate travellers have completed the first stage while 32 more are due to leave quarantine this week.

SA Health will assess the trial’s first stages and review how to extend the pilot to other cohorts. This could include selected South Australian travellers, essential workers or government officials.

Premier Steven Marshall, who will update national cabinet on Friday, said the app had “received great feedback from users”.

Premier Steven Marshall. Picture: Keryn Stevens

“What we learn from the domestic and international … trials could help the entire nation to safely repatriate more Australians coming home from overseas,” he said.

A traveller using the app is subject to three random daily check-ins using the sophisticated electronic monitoring technology.

They have 15 minutes to respond while police conduct at least one random physical compliance check between 8pm and 8am during the trial.

All participants are preselected and must be fully vaccinated with two Covid shots.

They must have a self-contained home without shared corridors, lifts or other facilities. All trial participants, who cannot apply to be part of the pilot, must have a negative Covid test result 72 hours before departing for Australia.

They must have further tests upon arrival and then on days 3, 5, 7, 9 and 13.

While officials say the technology does not track a person at all times, the phone app records their location at each random check-in request.

Deputy chief public health officer Emily Kirkpatrick said daily checks also occurred.

“If the trial is successful, the app could add another solution to safely quarantine returning Australians,” she said.

Health Minister Stephen Wade said the trial had “strict measures” to prevent Covid, especially the Delta strain, spreading through SA. “As we further increase vaccination rates, it is hoped that expanding international quarantine to home isolation will become more prevalent,” he said.

Jason Size and Tim Grieger from Summerfruit SA in Tim's Renmark apricot orchard. Picture: Tom Huntley

Growers’ SOS for harvest workers

By Michelle Etheridge and Gabriel Polychronis

Riverland growers fear their produce will rot on the ground because of a predicted labour shortage due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The state and federal governments are pursuing options to bring in more Pacific Island workers in time for harvest beginning in late October.

It’s understood the state government is considering leasing the Paringa Resort, at Renmark, as a quarantine facility. In March, the resort was previously celebrated as a “gold standard” solution to addressing a critical shortage of workers.

Another option still being pursued, six months after it was endorsed by national cabinet, is a system where workers would quarantine in their home countries before arriving in South Australia.

However, it is understood this has faced pushback from officials in Van­uatu and Fiji.

Summerfruit SA chairman Jason Size, who last year did not harvest some of the fruit at his Bookpurnong property because of staff shortages, said wastage could “absolutely” be a major issue this season.

Stone fruit harvest in the Riverland begins in late October and about 50 per cent of workers usually come from overseas.

“I’m worried about the orchards that I’m involved in that won’t have enough labour,” Mr Size, pictured, said.

“It’s a challenging time for growers when suddenly we have to bid for our labour force rather than having plenty of labour to choose from.”

It’s estimated there will be demand for up to 3000 Pacific Island workers by May next year, when the citrus harvest begins.

Latest figures show 1234 Pacific Island workers are employed in SA.

Primary Industries and Regional Development Minister David Basham said the state government was “working closely with industry” to fill seasonal worker shortages.

“We are continuing to work with the commonwealth to explore other options to bring in seasonal workers,” he said.

Mr Basham said his preference would be for fruit-picking jobs to be filled by South Australians, who can receive up to $6000 to relocate for short-term seasonal work.

The federal government has committed to bringing in an extra 12,500 workers to Australia by March.