States and territories agree to develop plan for Christmas reopening

Nearly all of Australia’s states and territories have agreed in principle to develop a new plan to reopen the country by Christmas, following discussions at Friday’s National Cabinet meeting.

According to a media release circulated on Friday from Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Western Australia is the only jurisdiction not to agree to the plan, which would see states and territories use the hotspot concept for travel between jurisdictions.

WA Premier Mark McGowan told the press he had made it clear his state would not be agreeing to a hotspot model or a hotspot definition which replaces “our successful border controls”. “Western Australia has always avoided setting an arbitrary deadline on borders,” McGowan said. “A date will be set when our health advice recommends it, but that might be some time away.”

The news comes after the Prime Minister last week told Parliament that Australia’s states and territories should aim for COVID-19 restrictions to be eased in time for Christmas.

and for some good news for returning Australians.....

International arrivals cap to be increased....

National Cabinet conducted its fortnightly review of international air arrival passenger caps on Friday and agreed to boost the capacity for international arrivals where possible, supporting more Australians to come home from overseas.

It is unclear how high the cap will be raised. However, the national cap currently sits at just 4,000 arrivals per week – a figure established to ease pressure on Australia’s hotel quarantine system.

However, as many as 23,000 Australians are registered with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) seeking to return home.

“All states and territories, where possible, agreed to work with the Commonwealth to increase the number of international flights to their jurisdiction to enable more Australians to return home.

“National Cabinet agreed the Commonwealth would work with airlines to identify opportunities to boost arrivals into cities with available quarantine capacity.”