A Burnie councillor says city should ban ships this season

Community safety fears are behind a council motion to keep cruise ships away from Tasmania’s coronavirus epicentre this season.

AN AMBITIOUS councillor wants a complete ban on next year’s cruise ship season in the name of community safety.

Alderman Ken Dorsey at the Burnie City Council has put a motion to be debated on April 28’s meeting for visits from cruise ships to be banned for the entire 2020-21 season.

But the state’s tourism peak body has said it is up to the Tasmanian Government to lift restrictions.

“Cruise ships are known to be a petri dish for communicable diseases,” Ald Dorsey said this week.

Ald Dorsey said he was confident cruise companies would take drastic action to address concerns but it was best to err on the side of caution in terms of the upcoming season.

In the meantime Ald Dorsey has asked for a detailed cost analysis to be carried out to determine just how much economic stimulus the cruise ships bring to Burnie.

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In early March, the North-West city hosted six cruise ships in as many days.

Within days the State Government banned cruise ships from docking in Tasmania.

That ban is in place until June 30 when it will be reviewed.

Burnie Mayor Steve Kons was quick to joke about the pandemic in its early stages.

On March 10, Burnie’s Mayor Steve Kons said he was more worried about catching a disease from a local than any of the cruise ship passengers who docked and explored the city in the weeks before the coronavirus pandemic hit Australia’s shores.

Three Tasmanians who travelled on the embattled Ruby Princess have since died.

Today he said he would wait to read the motion in Thursday’s agenda before commenting.

CEO of the Tourism Industry Council of Tasmania Luke Martin said any decision on lifting restrictions on cruise ship arrivals rested with the State Government.

“That decision will be made on the basis of expert medical advice, not by Burnie City Councillors after a cheap headline in the middle of a health crisis,” Mr Martin said.

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“But given the restrictions on international travel to Australia are likely to be in place well into next year, we can assume any cruise ships that do resume activity and may want to come to Tasmania next summer will be exclusively filled with Australian domestic travellers, not international visitors.

“So the risks to be managed will be essentially the same as when we welcome back domestic visitors whether they arrive by air or sea.”

Ald Dorsey said that when the cruise ship industry was again deemed safe the city would “welcome the ships with open arms.”

“But how do we define safe and will the cruise industry return to its heyday or will they be the Hindenburg of 2020?” he said.