Scott Morrison suspends flights from India amid COVID crisis
Aussies will now be prevented from flying to India for weddings and funerals as the nation reels from an escalating COVID-19 crisis.
Australia will bar citizens from flying to India for weddings and funerals in the wake of a “tsunami” of COVID-19 cases and fury over outbreaks in hotel quarantine facilities at home.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirmed the tough new rules on outbound travel today as he confirmed a snap ban on incoming flights until May 15.
The decision reflects demands from the states for much tougher rules for outbound travel to COVID-19 hot spots. Travel will be restricted to essential travel only including national interest, medical exemption and COVID purposes.
Government sources confirmed the new rules will ban travel to India for weddings and funerals.
It follows revelations that a man who went to India for his own wedding before returning to Australia and sparking a COVID-19 outbreak in Western Australia was able to prove “profound” reasons for travel, according to Health Minister Greg Hunt.
Perth was plunged into a three-day lockdown on Friday after community transmission was linked to a man who returned from India, which is in the middle of a destructive spike in COVID-19 cases and deaths.
RELATED: Plan revealed to bring international students back
The man arrived in Perth from India on April 10 with his new bride. He tested positive at the Mercure Hotel three days later.
The virus then spread to his wife and seeped into other rooms across the corridor, infecting three people including a child.
As COVID-cases surged to 350,000 a day in India, the Prime Minister confirmed the national security committee had taken decisive action – but the dramatic move could leave some Australian cricketers stranded.
“Today we agreed to pause flights,’’ the Prime Minister said.
Cricketers who did not join an early exodus from the Indian Premier League will not be prioritised over other citizens.
There are currently 9000 Australians registered in India who want to come home with 600 regarded as “vulnerable”.
Those numbers are expected to grow in coming days as some families rush to get out.
When questioned about the cricketers in particular, Mr Morrison said they had travelled to India “privately”.
“It’s done on vulnerability and they’ve travelled there privately, under those arrangements - this wasn’t part of an Australia tour and they are under their own resources and they will be using those resources to I’m sure see them return to Australia,” he said.
REALTED: Flight delays leads to 14 day quarentine
Last week the Prime Minister announced a 30 per cent reduction in both commercial flights and repatriation flights as a result of discussions in national cabinet but today’s announcement of a flight ban renders those reductions moot.
Foreign Affairs minister Marise Payne said eight DFAT repatriation flights planned to return from India in May would now be paused.
“We know this is a very difficult time,’’ she said.
The snap ban will affect around 500 travellers immediately and is likely to remain in place until May 15.
Australia will also rush a massive humanitarian package including oxygen, masks and surgical gowns to India to help fight the pandemic.
Australia’s High Commissioner to India Barry O’Farrell has described the new COVID-19 crisis as a “tsunami” after India grappled with the first wave.
“Then bang, along comes a second wave which is more tsunami than ripple,’’ he said.
WA Premier Mark McGowan flagged the likely flight ban this morning, describing the decision as the right call.
RELATED: Three more blood clots linked to vaccine
“Well, I think the Commonwealth is looking at suspending flights out of India, which is a good thing for this period,’’ he said.
“It’s very sad and very difficult to say because people in India are no doubt not happy about being there and it’s obviously a risk for them but it’s also a risk to our hotel quarantine system and you can see the consequences when there’s a problem because we just had the consequence over the course of the last three days.”
The big concern now is people flying to another country to beat the Indian flight ban.
“If someone leaves India and gets on a flight in Singapore, Doha, London or wherever it might be back to Australia, that suspension of flights from India clearly doesn’t apply to them,’’ Mr McGowan said.
“That’s why we need to ensure that the integrity of our testing regime – that is, people getting tested with verifiable and accurate tests in those other locations – is put in place.”
Mr McGowan raised concerns on Tuesday over “dodgy” tests in India declaring travellers COVID-free.
“If the test is not accurate or a bit dodgy that is impinging the integrity of the system,” he said.
“It’s obviously a diabolic situation that is going on in India at the moment, but it does put extreme pressure on our systems here in Western Australia and indeed in other states,” he said. “I’m advised that other states are going through exactly the same experience.”
Mr McGowan has warned said he expects the number of infections in hotel quarantine to “grow significantly” after confirmation 78 of the 79 passengers on a flight to Perth on Saturday had been in India recently.
Four people on that flight have already tested positive and are in hotel quarantine.
“This case and the other four confirmed cases in hotel quarantine all originate from flight MH125 that arrived from Kuala Lumpur into Perth on Saturday, 24 April,” he said.
“Our expectation is the number of positive cases from this group of people will grow and potentially grow significantly.”
‘Underestimated’ Albo’s race to finish line
The Prime Minister’s confidence on the election trail seems to remain unshaken as a key date fast approaches before Australia decides on May 3.
PM intervenes in Vegemite fight
Anthony Albanese has shared an update on an international spat centred around the use of Vegemite at a Canadian cafe.
Massive change set for penalty rates
Labor will unveil a new legal push to protect the working rights of about three million Australians.