❓ Mr Catania asks the Premier for a firm date to ease intrastate travel restrictions to support regional businesses. The Premier acknowledges the pressure and states the government is working on a solution based on health advice, aiming for a timeframe of around a month.
AnsweredQoN 314Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
CORONAVIRUS — INTRASTATE TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS
314. Mr V.A. CATANIA to the Premier:
Before I ask my question, I pay my condolences to Carnarvon
Community College and Carnarvon School of the Air for the loss of a teacher
over the weekend.
I refer to the ongoing uncertainty plaguing regional communities
that remain in the dark about when they will again be able to open to host
visitors within Western Australia. Will the Premier give regional Western Australian
businesses, families and industry a hard date for when the next phase of
internal travel restrictions will be eased so they can prepare themselves for
the tourism onslaught?
314. Mr V.A. CATANIA to the Premier:
Before I ask my question, I pay my condolences to Carnarvon
Community College and Carnarvon School of the Air for the loss of a teacher
over the weekend.
I refer to the ongoing uncertainty plaguing regional communities
that remain in the dark about when they will again be able to open to host
visitors within Western Australia. Will the Premier give regional Western Australian
businesses, families and industry a hard date for when the next phase of
internal travel restrictions will be eased so they can prepare themselves for
the tourism onslaught?
AnswerView source ↗
It is a reasonable question. The government is working to
provide that as we speak. Obviously, as time goes by, we have to make decisions based upon the best medical advice, and the
Chief Health Officer has been a very busy person, along with his team.
We have already made decisions that have to a greater degree opened up the Western
Australian economy more than any other state in the country. Perhaps the
Northern Territory might have gone further than Western Australia, but
certainly no other state has. We have provided more opportunities for business
within the hard border with the east than one may have expected had we not put
up the hard border.
We are working on the question the member raised to come up
with a solution as soon as we can. As I indicated on Sunday, we are looking at
around a month, perhaps three weeks, before we are able to do things, but we
are currently continuing to have discussions with the Chief Health Officer and
other officials about what is possible. I understand
there is a lot of pressure out there in regional communities and a lot of
businesses are doing it tough, but we do not want to risk the spread of
any of the virus that we are unaware of that may be in existence—admittedly
we have very low rates in WA—into vulnerable communities. As I have
explained to the house a few times, we had to make some difficult decisions
about what we did with the intrastate borders. The arrangement we came to,
which was implemented yesterday, is the most liberalised within the borders of Western
Australia that is possible within the health advice. The other option available
to us was to leave it as it was. Clearly, whatever we do, we get criticism, but
we went as far as we could, and we will provide further advice on the question
the member asked as soon as it is possible to do so.
provide that as we speak. Obviously, as time goes by, we have to make decisions based upon the best medical advice, and the
Chief Health Officer has been a very busy person, along with his team.
We have already made decisions that have to a greater degree opened up the Western
Australian economy more than any other state in the country. Perhaps the
Northern Territory might have gone further than Western Australia, but
certainly no other state has. We have provided more opportunities for business
within the hard border with the east than one may have expected had we not put
up the hard border.
We are working on the question the member raised to come up
with a solution as soon as we can. As I indicated on Sunday, we are looking at
around a month, perhaps three weeks, before we are able to do things, but we
are currently continuing to have discussions with the Chief Health Officer and
other officials about what is possible. I understand
there is a lot of pressure out there in regional communities and a lot of
businesses are doing it tough, but we do not want to risk the spread of
any of the virus that we are unaware of that may be in existence—admittedly
we have very low rates in WA—into vulnerable communities. As I have
explained to the house a few times, we had to make some difficult decisions
about what we did with the intrastate borders. The arrangement we came to,
which was implemented yesterday, is the most liberalised within the borders of Western
Australia that is possible within the health advice. The other option available
to us was to leave it as it was. Clearly, whatever we do, we get criticism, but
we went as far as we could, and we will provide further advice on the question
the member asked as soon as it is possible to do so.
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