Qantas hits back at Daniel Andrews after Victorian Premier criticised airlines

Qantas has hit back at some snarky remarks made by Dan Andrews when he came out and publicly criticised Australian airlines.

Qantas has hit back at Daniel Andrews after the Victorian Premier criticised Australian airlines over refusing to check travellers’ border permits and letting infected passengers take the virus into other states.

It comes after two women had flown on a Qantas flight from Sydney into Victoria on “bogus permits” earlier this week, and later tested positive for coronavirus.

Mr Andrews said officials asked airline staff to check permits at interstate and red zone airports but they had refused to do so.

“I would have thought airlines might be able to play that role for us,” he said.

Qantas has hit back at comments made by Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Christian Gilles

Qantas hit back at the comments, suggesting that responsibility was beyond the capacity of airline workers.

“We agree this shouldn’t be happening but trained officials should decide who can and can’t cross state borders, not airline workers,” a spokeswoman for the national carrier said.

“Particularly as travel restrictions vary so much between states and territories that we fly to and are constantly changing.

“It is not possible for airline workers to check whether passengers are telling the truth in their declarations, as was the case this week.”

Qantas said they pitched an idea for a “national approach to border compliance” a year ago.

The suggestion involved health officials screening people leaving hot spots rather than when travellers arrived at their destinations.

“This suggested approach has not been taken up,” Qantas said.

On Thursday, the Victorian Premier hinted at tougher border controls following the incident with the two Sydney travellers.

“I‘m not here today to have a crack at airlines. But I think airlines have been pretty generously supported by taxpayers and it wouldn’t be too much to ask them to check whether someone has a permit or not,” Mr Andrews said.

“We can’t have people who have no valid documents, that don’t have that permit, to come to Victoria.”

Daniel Andrews says border measures need to be tougher, after two women on bogus permits entered the state from NSW. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Christian Gilles

Victoria has strengthened its border to NSW in recent weeks as the neighbouring state battles a Delta outbreak that has reached crisis levels.

The state recorded 466 new locally acquired Covid-19 infections on Saturday and four more deaths.

With cases in NSW showing no signs of decreasing anytime soon, Mr Andrews said his state may consider border measures tougher than the ones currently in place.

Only people who have an exemption or need to provide or receive emergency medical care can travel from NSW into Victoria.

Only people who have an exemption or need to provide or receive emergency medical care can travel from NSW into Victoria. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Geraghty

Cross border residents travelling for a permitted reason can also cross the border, but only for six essential reasons and with a permit.

State lines are being heavily patrolled by police on the ground, but air travel continues to remain a point of contention.

Mr Andrews said the permit system had been working effectively so far.

“It’s served us well to the point where we have found people who are actually positive with this virus travelling on bogus permits,” he said.

“If we need to go further than that we will, and that might just be us having to do even more.”