Senator Alex Antic won’t say if he’s been vaccinated and doesn’t know why he was taken to hotel quarantine

The Prime Minister has denied he misled the nation over the vaccination status of Senator Alex Antic, who has been escorted by police to a medi-hotel for quarantine.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has denied he misled the public by claiming rebel Liberal Senator Alex Antic was double vaccinated, after Senator Antic was granted an exemption typically reserved for unvaccinated travellers.

Mr Morrison said he had been advised of the Senator’s vaccination status before he made comments in a radio interview last week.

“I was advised that he was double vaccinated and in our conversation I said to him that I understand you’ve been double vaccinated,” he said on Friday. “He didn’t correct me.”

Mr Morrison said he was “disappointed” Senator Antic’s status was unclear, but did not answer questions about whether there would be any consequences for his colleague.

Senator Antic, who flew into Adelaide on a Virgin Airways flight on Thursday night, refused to answer questions from the Advertiser about his vaccination status.

When asked, his only comment was “it’s none of your business”.

Senator Alex Antic in Adelaide Airport on Thursday night. Picture: Dean Martin

The anti-vaccine mandate campaigner’s exemption means he will be required to spend 14 days in a medi-hotel, a requirement for entry into SA for people who have not received two doses of an approved Covid-19 vaccine.

In a Facebook video, Senator Antic says he’s been “detained” in an Adelaide medi-hotel room for reasons that are “unclear”.

“At a time when I’ve been very outspoken about ... mandates and government overreach, bureaucratic overreach as well ... it’s very curious, I’ve had a Covid test, I’m completely fine.”

He said normally when he returns from Canberra he quarantines at home.

“But unfortunately, the bureaucratic powers-that-be now run this state and they have indicated otherwise.”

He said it was time to fight back against the bureaucrats..

“We have to fight back ... we have to. Each of us is doing our part in our own way – they’re not really after me, they’re after all of us.”

Quizzed on Adelaide radio on Friday morning, Senator Antic again refused to say what his vaccination status was.

Asked why he had been escorted to a medi-hotel, he said “no idea’ before adding he was being singled out over his well-known opposition to vaccine mandates and that it was a “premeditated political stunt”.

Senator Alex Antic is escorted out of Adelaide Airport on Thursday night. Picture: Dean Martin

He said questions should be directed to the “bureaucratic overlords” at SA Health.

“All of a sudden I’ve been singled out in what appears to be a political stunt, and the only inference you can draw from this is that it’s been quite premeditated,” Senator Antic said on Friday morning.

He travelled to Canberra for two weeks, and tested negative to Covid-19 on Wednesday.

There is no current vaccination mandate for federal parliament in Canberra, although presiding officers issued mask and check-in requirements for entry into the building.

It is understood there was a motion on the notice paper to ask presiding officers to consider measures on transparency on who was vaccinated, but that was never brought to a vote.

“I don’t understand the science of this, we are letting people in all the time who are vaccinated who are bringing in Covid,” Senator Antic said.

He said questions about why Mr Morrison said he had been fully vaccinated last week should be directed to the PM.

“My conversations with the Prime Minister are, as you would believe, private. I don’t believe I’d ever misled the Prime Minister about anything,” he said.

“I’ve been very clear about my medical history, my medical care, it’s a matter for myself, my family, my wife.”

Mr Morrison said on radio last week that Senator Antic was vaccinated but the basis for the PM’s knowledge about his Liberal colleague is not known.

“Alex is vaccinated and double dose vaccinated, and of course I’ve spoken to him over the course of this last week and been working with him,” Mr Morrison said.

SA Senator Alex Antic being escorted out of Adelaide Airport. Picture: Dean Martin

Senator Alex Antic is escorted out of Adelaide Airport by police. Picture: Dean Martin

The Advertiser understands Senator Antic applied for an exemption to return to SA, but was initially denied.

On appeal, he was granted entry on the condition he complete 14 days quarantine in a medi-hotel.

Labor member for Cheltenham, Joe Szakacs, said he had helped many vaccinated people escalate lengthy exemption processes through SA Health in the past 18 months.

“If you’ve been double vaxxed and you’ve been waiting five weeks for an application to be processed, you’d be looking at someone who may not be vaccinated at all, returning back to SA as somewhat ironic,” Mr Szakacs said.

“I think people are pretty annoyed at just the arrogance of Senator Antic, and the word games he’s playing now, he’s not even telling us why he’s been escorted by the cops, which is pretty crazy.”

He said Mr Antic’s recent behaviour at freedom rallies was irresponsible.

“I’ve seen a lot of footage recently of the Senator grandstanding at quite significantly attended rallies with a lot of other people who are saying they are not vaccinated, not wearing a mask, not social distancing,” he said. “That makes me concerned.”

Mr Szakacs said the vaccination question was “at ten paces from Senator Antic”, after the Prime Minister declared he was double jabbed.

“Someone’s lying, and it’s not for me to provide commentary on who is,” he said. “But one of them has to be.”

Senator Antic on November 23 said he voted for One Nation’s anti-Covid vaccination mandate bill, which was rejected despite five Coalition senators crossing the floor to support it, because there was no alternative “to provide some form of protection for people from discrimination”.

The Advertiser on November 12 revealed Senator Antic was threatening to frustrate the federal government’s agenda by withholding his vote until people were given protections from discrimination based upon their Covid-19 vaccine status and choice to refuse a jab.

The conservative South Australian senator was understood to have written to Prime Minister Scott Morrison to issue the ultimatum, which followed a similar move earlier in November by Queensland LNP Senator Gerard Rennick.

Without their votes, the Coalition needs support from the entire five-strong crossbench to pass bills, including One Nation – also opposed to vaccine mandates.

At the time, Senator Antic told The Advertiser people were “being coerced into taking Covid vaccinations against their will” and federal parliament must act.

“In South Australia, thousands of people are being stood down from their employment because they have elected to exercise their right to refuse the vaccine,” he said.

“Furthermore, people across the country will soon be compelled to produce documentation to prove their vaccination status using so-called vaccine passports to access basic services.”