Border paranoia risks jobs revival and national unity

A Queensland police officer stops a motorist at a checkpoint at Coolangatta on the Queensland-New South Wales border. Picture: AAP

It’s often said Perth is the most isolated city in the world. But last year Western Australia’s tourism minister declared the perception was “outdated” and asked residents to brag about the state’s appeal. Yet, amid the coronavirus pandemic, Premier Mark McGowan keeps talking down WA’s prospects. “Isolation is Western Australia’s greatest strength. Isolation from the rest of the country, isolation from the rest of the world,” he said, vowing to defend the ramparts from Canberra or the NSW government. This is a fearful man’s perspective; it undersells WA’s virtues and puts citizens and employers in a defensive mindset. Such thinking will keep its economy in suspended animation, relegating WA to slower growth and tens of thousands of people to longer stints of unemployment.

As Australia winds back restrictions in a three-stage process, there will be differences of approach, guided by medical and other advice, balancing competing needs. But the aim is to have a COVID-safe operating environment in place by July, with state borders reopened and possibly a trans-Tasman travel zone. Scott Morrison has been first among equals in national cabinet, conveying consensus decisions and the relative harmony between jurisdictions. Shutting down the economy to flatten the curve of infections was relatively easy compared with the current phase of bespoke reanimation. WA and Queensland, and to a lesser extent South Australia and Tasmania, have become strident on border closures. The Prime Minister correctly called them out on Wednesday, warning that they were hurting the economy and tourism businesses, especially with the looming school holiday season.

As leaders know, closing internal borders was not the advice of the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee, the key medical adviser to national cabinet. That point has been made often by Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy and his deputies. But there are acute sensitivities to new outbreaks of COVID-19. A sheep ship carrying ill crew members was allowed to dock in Fremantle, leading to finger-pointing at Canberra from a riled Mr McGowan. The death of a Queensland man will again raise the political heat over borders — but it shouldn’t. As restrictions are lifted, and people return to school, work, sport and social life, it’s inevitable there will be spikes in case numbers. We are not going to eradicate the virus for some time, if ever.

Our strategy has been to suppress the spread of COVID-19, while building capability to deal with any outbreaks. We’ve succeeded in boosting intensive-care capacity, are broadening testing and have put in place a tracing regime that will help officials track the contacts of infected people. NSW, with Sydney as the gateway for visitors, has been the caseload epicentre. But progress in reducing community transmission is giving officials confidence, as long as there is not complacency on strict social distancing and good hygiene practices. Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant told NSW MPs the state was unlikely to face another major wave of COVID-19 infections this year, with the virus effectively contained and transmission rates reduced to nearly zero. This will underpin the easing of restrictions, allowing NSW to emerge faster from the economic calamity of shutdown.

There is a risk the nation could become a two-speed, even three-speed, economy in recovery. It may even be a matter of choice, due to border closures. WA is exposed to the resources cycle, but still attracts out-of-state tourists. Queensland relies heavily on tourism, especially in winter. As we report on Thursday, states could lose $45bn in revenue and see a 40 per cent spike in debt over the next two years, putting pressure on credit ratings. Queensland could lose $2bn in tourism spending from now to September; it is the most reliant on interstate visitors, accounting for almost half of its market. Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham demands states with closed borders must release their scientific advice and explain why.

Senator Birmingham argues it is now clear the lifting of restrictions had not caused a spike in COVID-19 cases. Instead of engaging on the substance of his argument, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk reflexively took a cheap shot at the South Australian. Ms Palaszczuk runs a state with one of the highest rates of people employed in tourism, while South Australia has one of the lowest. “Queensland clearly has the most to lose from any delays to the reopening of domestic tourism,” the Tourism Minister said. We have a national economy, where movement of goods and people should be seamless. As we look for ways to revive and retool our economy out of hibernation, there’s nothing at all splendid about isolation.