Coronavirus: Apple Isle’s selective reopening would shut out tourists from ‘sick’ states

Some Australians craving a long-promised Tasmanian getaway may have to wait longer than others.

‘l think looking at ways we could potentially open our borders but ensure that Tasmanians are safe will be something we’ll pay real attention to’: Peter Gutwein. Picture: Peter Mathew

Some Australians craving a long-promised Tasmanian getaway may have to wait longer than others­, with the holiday isle’s Premier considering a selective border relaxation favouring states most on top of COVID-19.

Premier Peter Gutwein told The Weekend Australian he would examine ways to reopen the state’s borders and kickstart the island­’s stalled $1.5bn tourism trade without risking fresh virus outbreaks.

Options included restoring direct­ flights to cities in jurisdictions that had the virus under control, such as Adelaide and Perth, or even New Zealand.

This would avoid the need for tourists to travel via Sydney or Melbourne, cities still experiencing multiple new daily coronavirus cases.

“We’ve had direct flights into both Adelaide and Perth in the past (so) in terms of looking at how our interstate tourism market might reinvigorate itself, then obvious­ly those matters will be considered,” Mr Gutwein said.

“Border controls are a major inhibito­r on our economies, but all of us have an eye to ensuring that we put the health and safety of those people that we are entrusted with leading at the forefront of our thinking.

“So l think looking at ways we could potentially open our borders but ensure that Tasmanians are safe will be something we’ll pay real attention to.”

As of Friday afternoon, Tasman­ia had not recorded a new coronav­irus case for seven days. Mr Gutwein said COVID-19 “elimination” was “a real possibil­ity” in the state that has suffered 225 cases and 13 deaths. With NZ also tracking well, the Premier did not rule out resurrecting direct flights to Aotearoa before some Australian capitals, if the proposed “trans-Tasman bubble” proceeded.

“If Tasmania maintains its … moves towards eradication, I think it will be a very attractive destin­ation for New Zealanders,” he said.

Mr Gutwein, thrust into the crisis­ shortly after his sudden elevation as Premier in January after Will Hodgman stepped down, said jurisdictions would need at least a month of no new cases in order for Tasmania to drop its 14-day quarantine requirement for arrivals.

“The broad rule of thumb is that you need at least two cycles of COVID to have any real confid­ence, so that’s at least 28 days,” he said. “I would hope that we would be in a position later this year that we’d be able to consider removing the border restrictions.”

Mr Gutwein flagged a push to extend the JobKeeper package beyond­ September for industries unable to fully reopen.

And as a revised budget outlook pointed to recession, a $1bn 2020-21 budget deficit, $2.35bn net debt and 12.25 per cent jobless rate, Mr Gutwein ruled out hiking taxes, instead flagging cuts to business red tape and fast-tracking a $3.7bn infrastructure program.

The Liberal Premier, who has clashed with Canberra on school closures and support for foreign visa workers, nevertheless praised Scott Morrison’s “extraordinary” leadership during the crisis.

“The steps that were taken in Australia, especially with the international border controls that were put in place early in the piece, have stood this country in good stead,” he said.