Build Queensland quarantine ‘or face chaos’: Wagner

The billionaire family, behind a proposed quarantine centre in Queensland, calls for an end to ‘politicisation’ of the project.

John Wagner on the area at his Wellcamp Airport where he wants to build a COVID quarantine centre at Toowoomba, west of Brisbane. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen

The billionaire family behind a proposed purpose-built quarantine centre in regional Queensland has called for an end to the “politicisation” of the project, as university chiefs predicted it could prove to be a lifeline to the lucrative foreign student market.

Businessman John Wagner, whose property and infrastructure company wants to build the centre beside its privately owned Wellcamp airport outside Toowoomba, said the federal and state governments needed to put aside their differences and assess the project.

Mr Wagner has said the 1000-bed camp could be built within 14-weeks, and run by the state government, and would be modelled on the Howard Springs quarantine centre outside Darwin.

But since first flagging the proposal more than six weeks ago, the state and federal governments have been at loggerheads.

The Wagners have said they would pay for the construction of the accommodation, which would be modified to limit the risk of spreading COVID-19 from travellers to staff, and charge the government for each traveller. The traveller would then reimburse the government.

Last Friday Scott Morrison tried to blame the Palaszczuk government for ongoing delays in the assessment of the project, saying the federal government had yet to receive a “firm costed proposal” to consider.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk responded by saying the Wagner Corporation had provided “all the details” for the project and that the federal government had refused to give any indication of whether it would consider or fund the centre.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk. Picture: Peter Wallis

Mr Wagner said the proposal was “beyond politics” and that a meeting should be held as soon as possible with state and federal ­officials to make a decision.

“We just don’t need any more politicisation of this,’’ he said. “I strongly urge that the state and federal governments sit down with us and work through it.

“I think it’s gone on long enough, people are looking for certainty on whether it’s going to happen or if it’s not.’’

Mr Wagner said the federal and state governments had done well in keeping Australians safe from the pandemic, but that more virulent forms of COVID-19 and the fact that the virus had escaped hotel quarantine showed a new system was needed.

He said governments had to look at replicating centres like Howard Springs — with staff living on site — so that they can, first, repatriated the thousands of stranded Australians before looking to bring in foreign students and farm workers on flights to be quarantined in Toowoomba.

“We are looking at organising charter flights from a central hub in Asia and bringing in international students directly to Wellcamp for quarantine and then loading up the aircraft with freight and sending it back to Asia,’’ he said.

“We have to start helping to crank up these industries, they need certainty otherwise there is going to be chaos after COVID.’’

Queensland Vice-Chancellors Committee chair Sandra Harding on Sunday said the Wagners’ proposed centre could provide a lifeline for the state’s universities.

Professor Harding said there was growing concern that some international students — who had returned to their home country during the pandemic or were considering studying in Australia — would go elsewhere while there was a general ban on coming into Australia.

“It’s important that Australians have priority in coming home,” she said. “We think this proposed facility could play an important role in a revamped (quarantine) system and allow for a graduated and safe return of international students.

“Our concern is that if students can’t come to Australia they are looking to go elsewhere, to the United States or Europe. Every encouragement should be given to have this proposal looked at, and if it stacks up, move ahead with it.’’