NRL officials, families jet to Queensland despite pause on hotel quarantine

Despite the pause on hotel quarantine, a plane filled with officials and players’ families has been given permission to enter the state.

Annastacia Palaszczuk says Queensland's chief health officer approved the entry of NRL officials and players' families to the state. Picture: Dan Peled/Getty Images

A plane filled with NRL officials and players’ families has been given permission to jet into Queensland despite thousands of residents banned from returning home and others being blocked from attending funerals of loved ones.

About 100 people arrived from Sydney on a chartered plane on Monday afternoon, despite the Palaszczuk Government’s two-week pause on hotel quarantine.

An NRL spokesman confirmed the group would spend two weeks quarantining in a Brisbane hotel.

NRL officials and players’ families have been granted permission to fly to Queensland despite the pause on hotel quarantine. Picture: Jonathan Ng

Annastacia Palaszczuk last week ordered the ban on interstate arrivals, warning the Queensland’s quarantine system was being overwhelmed by people moving to the state from Victoria, NSW and the ACT.

“We simply do not have any room at the moment,” she said. “Queensland is being loved to death.”

A spokesman for Ms Palaszczuk said NRL officials and families were not included in the hotel quarantine cap and their travel had been approved by the chief health officer not the Premier.

Twelve NRL teams relocated to southeast Queensland in July as the Covid-19 situation in NSW deteriorated. They are spread across hotels in Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast which the NRL has exclusive use of.

Cricket players from NSW, Victoria and the Indian national team also began quarantine on Monday ahead of three international women’s matches.

Players from declared hot spots were given exemptions to travel to Queensland despite teachers in northern NSW being banned from crossing the border for work.

Ms Palaszczuk accepted people would be upset that sports stars were allowed into the state but said her government was “trying our hardest”.

“I didn’t grant the exemptions, the chief health officer granted the exemptions,” she said.

“What I say to Queenslanders that are in other parts of the nation that want to come home is we are doing everything we can to look at alternative accommodation to make sure you can come home safely.

“We are looking very closely at what is happening in South Australia with their trial (of home quarantine) as well, we are looking at a whole range of options to make it easier for Queenslanders to come back home.”