Coronavirus: Glitter Strip lockdown: confusion on the NSW-Queensland border

Tens of thousands of people who daily cross the Qld-NSW border for work may be left hanging when Queensland shuts its border.

A man is seen walking past an empty baggage carousel at the Brisbane domestic airport terminal on Monday. Picture: AAP

Police checkpoints could be set up between the Gold Coast and northern NSW to enforce Queensland’s move to close its borders in a bid to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

Premier Annastacia Palas­zczuk announced the lockdown of Queensland via Twitter on Monday, but left the state hanging as to how it would operate on the ­heavily populated southern border with NSW.

The state government will on Tuesday announce a $4bn health and stimulus package to protect jobs and help businesses through the economic downturn.

Cabinet made the decision to shut the borders from midnight on Wednesday, joining West­ern Australia, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory in quarantining their ­populations.

People arriving in Queensland would be required to self-isolate for 14 days, regardless of whether they are ill or not. However, there was scant detail about how the closure would be policed, what exemptions there would be, and how the decision would impact on the Gold Coast and other towns close to the NSW border.

Tens of thousands of people cross the border every day in their daily commute to work, and the lockdown is set to severely disrupt already desperate businesses.

The combined impact of states shutting their borders has severely affected transport services, with Australia’s major airline groups set to scratch even more flights from their schedule in coming days and the Ghan train service between Darwin and Adelaide suspended until May 31.

Ms Palaszczuk tweeted: “BREAKING: Cabinet has decided to close Queensland’s borders. I’ll bring you more detail soon. #coronavirus.”

She said more details would be announced on Tuesday after a meeting of the Queensland Disaster Management Committee.

It followed Queensland’s largest surge in coronavirus cases since the outbreak began, with 60 more people diagnosed between Sunday and Monday with COVID-19, bringing the state’s total number of cases to 319.

The Palaszczuk cabinet also signed off on the largest stimulus package of any state, with $4bn in measures, including payroll tax breaks, that target business and workers. “Combined with the payroll tax deferrals we’ve already announced, it means no Queensland business will need to make a payroll tax payment this year,’’ ­Treasurer Jackie Trad said about the package to be detailed on Tuesday.

Ms Palaszczuk had already announced on Friday that Queensland would effectively close its western border to the Northern Territory, after the NT decided to restrict border crossings.

Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate said the move would hit the glitter strip, Queensland’s second-­largest city, but he supported the cabinet decision and the need to take “all steps” to combat the virus. Mr Tate, a member of the disaster management committee, said police checkpoints would be considered to enforce the lockdown on the Pacific Motorway, as well as closing smaller roads.

“There is likely to be checkpoints, and communications between the two police services on this is essential — there is no point putting up border controls without enforcing it,” he said.

“Extraordinary times require extraordinary action.”

Mr Tate said thousands of ­people commuted both ways across the border to work and it would have an impact on business.

“People who are providing ­essential services, the health workers, need to be able to cross the border,” he said.

Arrangements needed to be ­organised so that they could work from home and earn a living.

The chair of the Tweed Chamber of Commerce, Warren Pol­glase, who is also a Tweed Shire councillor in northern NSW, said Ms Palaszczuk’s border-closure announcement via Twitter had caused “chaos”.

He said nearly 10,000 people who lived on the Tweed coast and drove to the Gold Coast every day to work had been left confused and anxious by the decision.

“I’ve had phone calls from tradies who say they’ve got two jobs in Queensland at the moment, but they live in Banoora Point (in NSW),” Mr Polglase said. “Are their jobs essential? … They’re essential to their ­families.”