Race to settle bill as Victorian quarantine resumes

More than 250 people landed in Melbourne on Monday as ­Victoria quarantined international travellers for the first time since June.

International passengers arrive at Melbourne Airport on Monday. Picture: Ian Currie

More than 250 people landed in Melbourne on Monday as ­Victoria quarantined international travellers for the first time since June after the original program’s failure sparked a deadly coronavirus second wave.

Legislation allowing the government to charge travellers for their stay in the rebooted hotel quarantine program will be introduced in state parliament on Tuesday.

Police Minister Lisa Neville, now directly responsible for the program, said there were currently no provisions that allowed returned travellers to be charged for detention.

“As soon as we get it through (parliament) and get royal assent that’s when we can commence charging people,” she said.

“We just don’t have any of the provisions in any of the legislation to do that, so we do need legislation to give it legal certainty.”

A Victorian government spokeswoman said returning travellers who arrived before the legislation passed would be charged retrospectively, receiving a bill at the completion of their stay. Opposition police spokesman David Southwick said the state government’s failure to set up a payment model ahead of the program’s reboot set off alarm bells.

“They’ve had since July to get this thing sorted and the fact that they’re scrambling last minute to put the legislation together to charge people is just an absolute joke,” he said.

It is expected returned travellers will be charged about $3000 for their quarantine stay.

A 160-person daily “cap” is flexible across a seven-day period, with the number of arrivals fluctuating daily.

A German woman, 45, and her son, 15, who slipped past security to travel to Melbourne without quarantining after landing in Sydney tested negative for the coronavirus. The dual-nationals were to be tested a second time on Monday afternoon and will undergo a third test on the 11th day of their quarantine period.

Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley said there was “no capacity” for the virus to escape into the community from travellers arriving from overseas, with passengers to be assessed on ­arrival for coronavirus symptoms. “So people will be divided into small groups, their health will be checked and those that are well will go straight to the airside into hotel quarantine,” he told the ABC. “If you show any symptoms you’ll be taken to a hospital hotel straight away.”

Ms Neville said she was disappointed the Australian Defence Force knocked back the state government’s request for troops to guard floors in quarantine ­hotels. But she said the ADF would still be providing assistance similar to what was already being provided in other states and territories.

“I was disappointed by that but at the same time they will play a really critical role,” she said. “We just rejigged a little bit about what they will do and what police will do, but police will be the lead on security and enforcement.”

She said the ADF made the ­decision after inspecting the ­hotels and speaking with the state’s public health team.

All except one passenger were taken to the Pan Pacific and the Park Royal on Monday. The other passenger, who is suffering from a serious non-coronavirus medical condition, will instead quarantine at the Novotel.