Coronavirus NSW: Premier Gladys Berejiklian says suppression ‘only option’

Suppression of coronavirus is “the only option” for NSW, with the population too large to effectively eliminate the virus, Premier Gladys Berejiklian says.

Suppressing the spread of coronavirus is “the only option” for NSW, Premier Gladys Berejiklian says, claiming it is “unrealistic” to consider we could eliminate the virus from the state.

Speaking at the Committee for the Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) on Wednesday, Ms Berejiklian said there would always be an element of risk because of the state’s large population and its obligation to welcome home returned travellers.

“I think suppression is our only option, especially when you’re welcoming Australians coming home,” she said.

“There’s always an element of risk.”

Ms Berejiklian said the disease was “insidious and virulent” and could be “bubbling away without detection” as some people never exhibit symptoms.

“Suppression is the right strategy, especially for a state the size of ours,” she said.

“You might be able to do it if you have a small population, but we don’t have that.”

Premier Gladys Berejiklian says the NSW population is too large for the concept of coronavirus ‘elimination’ to be realistic. Picture: Brook Mitchell/Getty Images

While the Premier believes elimination is an “unrealistic strategy”, she believes the virus can be managed through the actions of individual people.

“Our next round of success or failure relies on people and their behaviour,” she said. “We know the rules and we know it works.”

Ms Berejiklian also announced NSW’s “road to recovery” plan, which intends to re-energise the economy through massive infrastructure projects, streamlined planning processes and a boost to local supply chains.

About $100 billion will be committed to infrastructure projects over the next four years, and a bigger emphasis will be placed on developing a local supply chain.

Ms Berejiklian said the pandemic had revealed the state’s previously untapped manufacturing capabilities, with many businesses “turning angst into innovation”.

The telehealth program is also here to stay, with the Premier claiming 89 per cent of people preferred their telehealth appointment to a physical appointment.

During the course of lockdown, the use of telehealth spiked by 700 per cent.