Lockdown decision: Will restrictions ease on Saturday?

A North Coast politician has slammed the NSW Government’s refusal to move the border checkpoint south, saying, “a NSW Northern checkpoint is legal, practical and workable”.

The hard border and long Queues return to the Qld NSW border on the Gold Coast. Long Queues on the Gold Coast highway at Coolangatta. Picture Glenn Hampson

A Northern NSW politician has accused the State Government of turning its back on people of the region as they prepare for another week of lockdown.

Richmond MP Justine Elliot said the Deputy Premier, John Barilaro, flatly refused to take up the QLD Government’s offer to establish a border zone and checkpoint in northern NSW.

“The NSW Liberal-Nationals’ arrogance is costing lives, jobs and businesses in our region.

“Always remember this time: 12 noon, Thursday 19th August 2021 – the exact moment that the NSW Liberals & Nationals turned their backs on the people of the NSW North Coast.

“The fact is that governments can do anything if they have the will to do it, but the NSW Liberal-Nationals have deliberately chosen not to do this.

“As a former police officer, I can assure you that a NSW Northern checkpoint is legal, practical and workable. If anyone else tells you differently, they’re wilfully and blatantly lying.

“Our community petition is now at 13,000 signatures – please keep signing and sharing and let’s send a message to the NSW Government.

“Unlike the Liberals and the Nationals, I’m always on your side, fighting for you,” Justine said.

Earlier however, the QLD conceded that “it may be too late” to take up the offer as the Covid outbreak spread to regional areas.

The continued outbreaks in areas such as western NSW and the Hunter Valley meant the NSW Government was reluctant to ease any restrictions in NSW, so lockdown on the Northern Rivers will not end on the weekend.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian said as there were continuing outbreaks in some regional areas, the lockdown would remain across all of NSW until Saturday, August 28.

Ms Berejiklian confirmed the news on Thursday morning at a press conference in Sydney.

“Given the outbreak in Western NSW and a few cases elsewhere, until the 28 of August, all of regional NSW will remain in lockdown,” she said.

In NSW, 681 cases of community transmission were recorded by 8pm Wednesday.

Ms Berejiklian said 110,000 people received a vaccine dose in NSW on Wednesday.

The Northern Rivers areas of Byron Shire, Ballina, Lismore and Richmond Valley council went into lockdown on August 9 after a man from Sydney was admitted to Lismore Base Hospital with Covid-19.

The man was later charged for allegedly contravening the Public Health Order, and remains in the area.

The rest of Northern NSW and the state went into lockdown on Saturday, August 14.

NSW deputy chief medical officer, Dr Marianne Gale, did not mention any new cases were recorded in Northern NSW by Wednesday.

She confirmed positive sewer testing in Yamba.

The Queensland Premier said there will be a “very narrow list” of people who will be allowed to cross the QLD border.

“The more people who cross the border, the greater the risk … and with Delta, all bets are off,” Annastacia Palaszczuk said.

She said while stay-at-home orders were in place for people in NSW, border restrictions would remain in place to protect Queenslanders.

Ms Palaszczuk said a letter had been sent to the NSW Government asking to move the border checkpoint further south to ease the pressure on border residents.

But she said that “it may be too late”.

“Time’s ticking. There’s been an escalation in cases (in NSW), and that’s very concerning.”

Ms Palaszczuk made “no apologies” for taking the strict measures, and said they would be considered when the NSW outbreak was contained.

NSW deputy premier John Barilaro responded by saying the border checkpoints currently in place with Queensland would not be moving into NSW.

“Can I say to the communities of the Northern Rivers, and especially the Tweed – if you move the border, that cliff edge becomes another border for another community,” he said.

“When you start dividing up NSW, you cause more problems than offer solutions.

“The cross border commissioner James McTavish has worked with our Queensland counterparts for easy access across the border, especially for critical supply chains, particularly around food, and essential workers.

“The border cannot move and should not move, because there will be unintended consequences that will have adverse outcomes for the broader part of the Northern Rivers area.”

She said NSW residents needed to heed their stay-at-home orders to help make that happen.

QLD chief health officer Dr Jeanette Young said the Director General was looking at whether farmers could cross the border to access their properties and to transport produce.

She said he would look at every case individually to determine if they were a risk.

QLD Health confirmed essential workers from NSW could get vaccinated at a QLD clinic.

“Essential workers who live in the New South Wales border zone are permitted to enter Queensland, however, they must hold an X pass and will be required to have at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccination by Friday, August 20,” QLD Health said.

NSW border zone residents and Queensland residents providing essential services across the border who hold an X pass can walk in to the below Queensland Health vaccination locations to receive a priority vaccination

• Broadbeach Community Clinic

• Ipswich CBD Community Clinic

• Logan Entertainment Centre

• Baillie Henderson Hospital

• Texas Memorial Hall

• Inglewood MacIntyre Sports Complex

• Goondiwindi Hospital.

The army will help police patrol the border in next week to prevent Covid crossing the border as the state records no new Covid cases.

“There is a clear and present threat to Queensland, and that is why we have those resources there,” Ms Palaszczuk said.

Dr Young said it could take “just one case” to undo that hard work in urging people to get vaccinated as soon as possible.

“The Premier has welcomed the Federal Government’s agreement to Queensland’s request, providing 100 soldiers to reinforce our border,” a spokeswoman from the Premier’s department said in a statement.

A spokeswoman from the office of Defence Minister Peter Dutton said troops would strategically located across the NSW-Qld border.

“Defence has received a request to assist Queensland Police Service with maintenance of Vehicle Control Points to restrict non-essential travel at strategic border locations,” she said.

The news comes after Ms Palaszczuk earlier warned that just one case in the state would lead to a snap lockdown, as they further tightened border restrictions with NSW.

The NSW Crisis Committee met yesterday to discuss lockdown restrictions in regional NSW.

They considered Covid numbers, vaccination rates, and compliance in making the decision.

Deputy Premier John Barilaro said however, that vaccination was the key to ending restrictions and urged people to get vaccinated.

He said vaccination rates will be very important in determining how outbreaks were managed in different areas of the state.