‘It’s ridiculous, insane’: Fury as Qld border opens for NRL WAGs
The Queensland Government has caused outrage after allowing a plane load of NRL players’ families to fly into the state, while other interstate Queenslanders remain locked out. VOTE IN OUR POLL
Peter Gleeson
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The Palaszczuk Government has ignored its own health protocols and granted a special exemption to allow a plane load of NRL players’ wives, girlfriends, kids and officials to jet into Brisbane yesterday and spend 14-days in hotel quarantine.
This is despite announcing last Wednesday a two week pause on hotel quarantine because the system was being “overwhelmed’’ and Queensland was being “loved to death’’.
It’s understood the government has set aside a quarantine hotel to use for multiple sporting codes, not just the NRL.
The move is certain to anger thousands of people stuck in Victoria, NSW and the ACT, many of whom were blindsided by last Wednesday’s decision to stop anybody entering Queensland for two weeks.
Many have expressed frustration and anger that they can’t attend funerals, weddings and special events because of the two-week pause.
Others can’t get back to see their families or even do their job. The economic and mental health impact on the border community of Tweed-Coolangatta is incalculable.
The relaxation was confirmed by an NRL spokesman, who said the charter plane carrying 100 people had arrived late yesterday, travelling from Sydney, a known “hotspot’’, to Brisbane.
Some of those stranded in Covid-19 “hotspots’’ include Queensland-based Cabinet Ministers Peter Dutton, Stuart Robert, Keith Pitt and Karen Andrews.
The Premier's office was approached for comment but had not responded by deadline.
However, Ms Palaszczuk had earlier yesterday defended allowing Australian and Indian cricketers into Queensland to quarantine ahead of a women’s series.
“I didn’t grant the exemptions, the Chief Health Officer did,’’ she said.
Ms Palaszczuk said the players were operating outside the hotel quarantine program and therefore weren’t taking up the program’s precious rooms.
“It’s outside the cap so it’s not to do with the cap which is used for domestic (travellers),” she said.
The exemptions are in stark contrast to the 14 Army Reservists from Queensland who completed their training at Kapooka earlier this month and were left stranded interstate.
They are now undergoing hotel quarantine in Melbourne and will still have to do a few days home isolation while they await a negative Covid test.
Federal MP for Leichardt Warren Entsch said one of the Army reservists was an urologist, who had urgent surgery commitments.
The Kapooka Reservists had been vaccinated and all Covid-19 tests had been negative.
“Their five-week training course is now eight weeks and more,’’ he said.
“They still don’t know what happens when they get home. It’s ridiculous, insane.
“These poor buggers are training as reservists to help us.’’
Former Queensland Opposition leader John-Paul Langbroek has been in Victoria for his father’s funeral and is not allowed back into Queensland until September 9.
The MP will then have to undergo 14 days hotel quarantine.
“It’s very hard to cop for my constituents who have been affected (as I have) by being excluded from their own State, their homes, and loved ones,” he said.
“The Premier’s double standards are having real impacts on real people during the most difficult times in their lives, and from what I’ve seen I’m not sure the Premier understands that.”
Opposition health spokeswoman Ros Bates said she was all for getting on with life as normal.
“But I think Queenslanders who cross the border for business or a funeral should also be allowed to safely return home,’’ she said.
“It’s as if the premier is losing her ability to comprehend how much of an impact her decisions are having on everyday Queenslanders.
“It’s just more of the same from this government with one set of rules for the rich and famous and another set of rules for the rest of us.
“Queenslanders deserve better.’’
Last week, Ms Palaszczuk said the hotel quarantine system in Queensland could not cope with the influx of arrivals.
“It’s putting our workers at risk and it’s putting our community at risk, and we simply do not have any room at the moment,’’ she said.
A day after announcing the 14-day pause, she said the Queensland Government would go it alone and build a 1000-bed quarantine facility at Toowoomba.
The cost, she said, was commercial in confidence.