Gladstone mayor Matt Burnett backs quarantine expansion

Gladstone mayor Matt Burnett believes there is a need to expand Australia’s quarantine cap­acity — just not in his region.

Gladstone mayor and Labor candidate for Flynn Matt Burnett.

Gladstone mayor Matt Burnett, the newly endorsed Labor candidate for the Nationals-held seat of Flynn, believes there is a need to expand Australia’s quarantine cap­acity — just not in his region.

As Labor leader Anthony Albanese attacked Scott Morrison on Monday over his rejection of a proposed quarantine camp outside Toowoomba, Mr Burnett said he was still against a plan for a similar camp near Gladstone.

In January, the Palaszczuk government had proposed converting an existing 1400-room worker’s camp into a quarantine facility, with overseas flights ­arriving in Rockhampton.

Senior health department officials and police had inspected the camp and backed the proposals, with a disused, private Gladstone hospital bought out by the state government flagged as a possible COVID-dedicated hospital.

Mr Burnett, regarded by Labor as its best chance in years to win Flynn with the retirement of Nat­ionals MP Ken O’Dowd, wrote to Mr Morrison and Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk in February opposing the plan.

It was then abandoned, with the state government championing a private sector proposal by the Wagner family for their Wellcamp airport, outside Toowoomba, in the Liberal seat of Groom.

Mr Burnett said while he believed improvements were needed in Australia’s quarantine regime, his community was against a quarantine camp in the region. “Hotel quarantine has sort of worked and it hasn’t worked, (and) I agree they need to do something,’’ he said.

“But I don’t think Gladstone is the answer … I represent my community and their view is that they didn’t want it then and I believe that is still the case.’’

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister on Monday said the 1000-bed Wellcamp proposal was too far from a major hospital and the state had provided too little information about the proposal.

He said the federal government was assessing Victoria’s proposal to construct a 500-bed quarantine facility at Mickleham north of Melbourne.

“The problem with it is, we’ve never actually had a proposal and the details, when you compare what’s been put forward by the Victorian government, is chalk and cheese,” he said.

“Victoria has put a very comprehensive proposal to us, something we can actually work with, and we are.”

Labor is hoping Mr Burnett’s personal vote could secure a critical win in the seat after he won almost three-quarters of the vote at last year’s local government election in a two-horse race.

Meanwhile, state LNP MP Colin Boyce has nominated to contest the seat for the Nationals.