Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard sent to hotel quarantine in Adelaide

Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard was among the overseas arrivals who were sent to hotel quarantine after landing in Adelaide.

Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard and professional golfer Wade Ormsby were among a number of overseas arrivals sent to hotel quarantine in Adelaide despite having approval to isolate at home.

The ABC reports that Ms Gillard has now been released after returning a negative test result.

Ormsby was directed to hotel quarantine after returning from Singapore. It is unclear if Ormsby has been forced to stay in hotel quarantine.

Welcome home to South Australia this morning from Singapore. Jammed on a bus, sent to hotel quarantine. Pre approved for home quarantine as I’m double vaxxed and qualify via criteria set by our government. Completed entry check SA and approved. Zero information. @SAHealth 🤷🏽‍♂️

— Wade Ormsby (@wadeormsby) December 6, 2021

Gillard, who has been working at King’s College in London, said in July that she would return to Australia for Christmas and hoped to be able to do home quarantine as she is fully vaccinated.

Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard receives her Astrazenica vaccine at the Carrum Downs Respiratory Clinic. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

“Plan A: I was going to go home in August or September and then come back here but I decided when they announced the limitations on hotel quarantine places, I wouldn’t displace someone who needed that place more than me. “But I would obviously still very much like to get home for Christmas. My plan B – I’m on plan B now – [is that] I’d like to go back in November when I hope that vaccination rates are up in a way which means that the government can make some other arrangements.

Julia Gillard.

Australia's Wade Ormsby.

An SA Health spokeswoman said international arrivals, including those transiting from interstate, “may be taken to a medi-hotel upon arrival even if they have approval for home quarantine”, in a change to previous practice due to the Omicron variant.

The Omicron variant has been detected in 38 countries but no deaths have yet been reported.

South Australian Premier Steven Marshall has brought in new “speed bumps”, to try and detect the Omicron variant before it spreads into the community.

Arrivals from the three eastern states now need to be tested for coronavirus when they get to SA, isolate until they return a negative result and have another swab on their sixth day if they are still in the state.

South Australian Premier Steven Marshall.

The changes come less than a fortnight after the state’s borders reopened.

Mr Marshall is scheduled to face an election on March 19.

“There will not be any immediate change to our state borders in South Australia but we remain extraordinarily concerned about the Omicron threat,” Mr Marshall said. “If we have to close the border, I emphasise we will do.”