John Wagner’s plan to home 1000 international returnees

Deputy Premier Steven Miles has thrown his support behind a 1000-person quarantine hub near Toowoomba, telling the Prime Minister it’s time to ‘take more responsibility’.

Steven Miles says it’s up to the Morrison Government whether it wants to “keep communities safe” and stop the need for rolling city lockdowns by agreeing to establish national quarantine facilities in mining-style camps.

The Deputy Premier this morning joined John Wagner, who is proposing to establish a national quarantine camp at Toowoomba Wellcamp, to ramp up the pressure on the Commonwealth.

“The ball is largely in the federal government’s court now,” Mr Miles said as he confirmed it received a Wellcamp proposal on Friday.

“We’ve put forward a lot of information, we’ve answered a lot of questions and now it’s really up to the federal government to decide whether they will act to keep communities safe.”

Wagner Corporation chairman John Wagner is hoping to build a quarantine facility in Toowoomba. Picture: Kevin Farmer

Mr Miles, whose government previously floated the idea of a similar facility in central Queensland, said the mutated virus meant it was now time for the Prime Minister to “take more responsibility” now that hotel quarantine was becoming less safe.

“We’ve put this forward this as a proposal to avoid having to shut down whole cities for four or five days like we’ve seen in Perth and Brisbane and Melbourne and Scott Morrison really needs to consider how many times he wants to see that happen before we put in place a more effective quarantine regime that’s able to deal with these new, more infectious strains,” he said.

Asked whether the state wanted defence support to operate the facility, Mr Miles said there were different options around staffing it.

The proposed quarantine hub would be located near the Wellcamp Airport. Picture: Kevin Farmer

Mr Wagner said he wasn’t asking any government for any funds to build the facility.

Instead, returned travellers would pay what they are paying now to stay in quarantine hotels, he said.

The Toowoomba business-man said he could get 400 to 500 rooms set up in six weeks and have the total complex finished in 12 to 14 weeks.

It would accommodate 1000 repatriated travellers and 300 staff, but the cost is being kept secret because it was commercial in confidence.

“We will build it and maintain it, do the food and beverage, Queensland will be involved in how the health side of things works and every room will have its own air conditioner system,” he said.

“There’ll be no corridors for airborne particles to be transmitted and ... Lindsay Fox has thought of the same thing in Victoria.

“So obviously they’ve had a look at it (in Victoria) and it would appear it’s got a lot of merit.”

It was envisioned workers would work two days on, two days off and would be remunerated appropriately, ceasing the need for casual workers to work across quarantine facilities and other casual jobs, Mr Wagner said.

Other details were yet to be worked out, including how Queensland Health would treat and transport people.

While the Airport would be used mostly for charter flights, Mr Wagner said it could easily home commercial flights.

“They can actually land commercial flights at Wellcamp, they don’t need to go to Brisbane or the Gold Coast,” John Wagner told the Australian.

“I’d certainly like it to happen.

“The passengers would disembark the aircraft and get on buses waiting on the tarmac and get transferred to the quarantine accommodation facility, approximately four minutes away,” he wrote.

“The passengers would have no interaction with the public or our staff (and they) would not go into the Wellcamp terminal.

“They would be bussed to the quarantine facility and be cleared for customs and immigration by Border Force officials and then go straight to their rooms.”

The airport would mainly be used for charter flights. Picture: Bev Lacey

Mr Wagner said every facility would have its own airconditioning system to preventing the spread of the virus, and rooms would be cleaned regularly to Queensland Health standards.

“Every room will have it’s own airconditioning system to reduce the risk of airborne interaction between the passengers,” he said.

“Queensland Health will administer the facility from a health perspective and Queensland Police will look after all security.

“There will be extensive CCTV cameras and also on the perimeter fence, Wellcamp roads and there will be only one entry and exit.

“(Our) role in this facility will be to construct the facility, maintain it, and look after the food and beverage.

“The cleaning, which is overseen by Queensland Health, will be done by a local COVID-approved organisation.”

Mr Wagner, who took aim in the same post at critics of the proposal, said no passengers would pass through the airport terminal, and would instead jump from a chartered flight and onto buses.

John Wagner has taken aim at critics of his quarantine hub proposal. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen

It comes as a Victorian billionaire Lindsay Fox, who’s company Linfox owns Avalon Airport in Geelong, is proposing a similar facility.

The businessman is negotiating with the Victorian Government around a facility that would also house 1000 people 55km southwest of Melbourne.

Originally published as John Wagner’s plan to home 1000 international returnees