Coronavirus: Scott Morrison hopeful on a Pacific travel bubble but wary of risks

Scott Morrison says the federal government is working with Pacific countries on their COVID testing regimes.

Scott Morrison says the government was working with ­Pacific countries such as Vanuatu, Tonga, Solomon Islands and Fiji to bring extra seasonal workers to regional Australia. Picture: Getty Images

Scott Morrison is hopeful Australia can establish a Pacific travel bubble, but says there is a risk the virus could spread to the islands’ vulnerable populations.

Last month at national cabinet, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said there was no reason a travel bubble could not be established with Pacific countries and New Zealand within 12 months.

The Prime Minister said the government was working with ­Pacific countries such as Vanuatu, Tonga, Solomon Islands and Fiji to bring extra seasonal workers to regional Australia to fill agricultural worker shortages there.

He said the government was assisting the countries with their testing regimes but did not have “full confidence” to implement a green lane system, currently in place in New Zealand where there is a one-way, quarantine-free travel bubble.

“We‘re working with them to ensure we can just lift that con­fidence,” he told 2SM radio.

“We’ll be seeking to support them with their testing over there and I hope we can make some real progress on that soon. I’d love to see a Pacific bubble.”

The federal government has committed to supporting the delivery of COVID jabs in the Pacific and Southeast Asia as part of its vaccine rollout, which includes 150 million doses.

Mr Morrison said the risk of Australians travelling to Pacific nations and infecting their populations had decreased in the past months because of a low rate of community transmission, but he said if Australians infected Pacific Island countries, it would have a “devastating” impact on their fragile healthcare systems and Indigenous populations.

“I think one of the great successes of COVID in our part of the world is … we’re all very concerned about our own Indigenous populations here in Australia, our First Nation’s people,” he said.

“We’ve been very effective in keeping COVID out of those communities. And in the Pacific, we’ve been very effective there in Papua New Guinea. They’ve had more of a challenge.”

Health Minister Greg Hunt has previously flagged that Australia could expand its quarantine-free regional corridor to the Pacific if countries in the region were at the lowest risk level.

Last month, the Victorian state government announced 15,000 Pacific Islander seasonal workers would be allowed into the state via Tasmania as part of a deal struck between the two states.

Agriculture Minister David Littleproud slammed the Victorian government for being the last state to recruit Pacific Islander workers. He had previously accused the state of ignoring an industry proposal to bring in thousands of seasonal workers.

Trade and Tourism Minister Dan Tehan has flagged that international tourism in Australia could be open by early 2022.