Western Australia’s decision to keep itself cut off from the rest of the nation indefinitely ignores the reality that Australia must live with the virus, Business Council President Tim Reed said today.
“The virus is here to stay and the longer restrictions stay in place the bigger the damage to the economy and to peoples’ mental health and well-being,” Mr Reed (pictured) said.
“Every day we remain a collection of divided states damages our reputation as a good place to invest and create jobs. Not to mention the incredible toll it is taking on families divided by state lines and businesses dependent on inbound travel.
“This delay will only compound the critical skills shortages that are already making it difficult to get new job-creating projects off the ground.
“The last two years of stop-start closures and restrictions were supposed to be about preparing for higher case numbers, building up health systems and getting Australians vaccinated to manage living alongside the virus.”
He said Australians had sacrificed so much and done the right thing by getting vaccinated in world-leading numbers.
“Once and for all, it’s time to end arbitrary border closures and get serious about giving Australians the certainty to plan no matter where they are in the country,” Mr Reed said.
Yesterday, WA Premier, Mark McGowan announced a delay to the state’s full border opening.
“The updated plan means the full border opening will be delayed given the full impacts of Omicron in Australia are still unknown, with the peak of infections not yet reached in jurisdictions with widespread transmission,” the Premier said.
He said a further review of border controls will be considered over the course of the next month.
“Unfortunately, the world changed in December when Omicron arrived,” Premier McGowan said.
“It would be irresponsible and reckless for the State Government to ignore the facts and ignore the reality of the situation playing out on the east coast.
“Allowing a wave of Omicron cases to fly straight into Perth from February 5, with no testing, no quarantine and no public health measures would cause a flood of the disease across our State.
“Under the interim border settings, approved travellers will be permitted to enter WA with testing and quarantine under the new expanded exemption criteria.
“The expanded criteria includes allowances for returning Western Australians, compassionate grounds, family members, and those entering for urgent or essential medical treatment.
“A decision on further easing of the new hard border controls will be made in the near future – once the east coast has reached the peak of infection, and we have a better understanding of the true impact of Omicron.”
