TRUE BLUE APOLOGY
Country music legend caught in COVID rule re-entry ‘confusion’
AUSTRALIAN country music legend John Williamson’s manager blames “confusing” Queensland Health rules after the star failed to quarantine in a hotel after returning from Victoria to the Gold Coast’s outskirts.
The veteran singer-songwriter, behind classics including True Blue, had been in regional Victoria in the lead up to a concert tour gig when the state’s fourth pandemic lockdown kicked in due to a fresh COVID-19 outbreak.
His return to his Springbrook home on June 3 – after a week in Sydney – raised eyebrows in the small tight-knit community.
A concerned Springbrook resident alleged to the Bulletin Mr Williamson was “now moving about Springbrook and is not in quarantine”.
Mr Williamson’s spokesperson said he “never had any intention to ignore or defy public health orders and it appears this is an example of the confusion that can occur with borders and quarantining”.
She said Williamson, who has no symptoms, has been “nothing but an honest and loved member of the community”.
When John flew back into was Queensland he not stopped or advised by anyone to that he needed quarantine manager John Williamson’s
AN Australian country music icon has blamed Queensland’s confusing quarantine rules after a local raised concerns he had not quarantined in a hotel after returning from Victoria.
Veteran crooner John Williamson, behind classics including True Blue, returned to his Springbrook home on June 3, raising eyebrows locally.
He had been in regional Victoria a week earlier when the state’s fourth pandemic lockdown kicked in due to a fresh Covid-19 outbreak. It triggered a mandatory 14-day isolation for any returning Queenslanders.
The 74-year-old was in regional Victoria in the lead up to a May 27 concert at Warrnambool near the Great Ocean Road.
But after the show was postponed – because of the Covid-19 outbreak and subsequent lockdown – the musician flew with his wife from Melbourne to Sydney on the afternoon of May 27. They stayed in Sydney for seven days then flew in to Queensland before returning to their Springbrook home on June 3.
A resident is questioning his return without spending 14 days in hotel quarantine but a spokeswoman for Williamson says it is a result of “confusion” around Queensland’s borders and quarantine messaging.
On May 27, Queensland declared all of Victoria a hotspot from 1am, Friday, May 28.
It banned anyone who had been in Victoria in the past 14 days from entering Queensland unless a returning Queensland resident or “a limited range of people who can enter for an essential purpose”.
But its advisory added: “Anyone who is allowed to enter Queensland will be required to go into 14 days
mandatory hotel quarantine in Brisbane.”
Anyone arriving in Queensland from Victoria since 1am May 27 and before 1am May 28 was required to “follow the same lockdown requirements currently in place in Victoria”.
This means they were only allowed to leave their place of isolation for essential reasons.
There were no directives on Queensland Health’s website for people – like Williamson – who have been in Victoria in the 14 days before May 27 but who had spent time in NSW before arriving in Queensland.
A concerned Springbrook resident alleged to the Bulletin Williamson was “now moving about Springbrook and is not in quarantine”.
Williamson’s spokesperson said the much-loved singer “never had any intention to ignore or defy public health orders and it appears this is an example of the confusion that can occur with borders and quarantining”.
She said Williamson, who is in good health and has no symptoms of Covid-19, was only in Melbourne for the one hour he needed to be at Melbourne’s airport before flying to Sydney.
“He came into Melbourne to go straight to the airport and flew to Sydney. He spent no time in Greater Melbourne.
“When John flew back into Queensland he was not stopped or advised by anyone that he needed to quarantine
– in a hotel or at home.
“If someone had made him aware of this he would have complied and it would not have been an issue.”
The spokesperson said noone involved in the Williamson entourage was aware of the quarantining order for visitors who had been in greater Victoria.
“We all believed it was just for Melbourne. John would have stayed in Sydney if this was the case. That would have averted the issue.
“John has been nothing but an honest and loved member of the community.
“I’m very sorry this seems to have become an issue and it’s a shame members of the community have taken it upon themselves to target
John.”
Williamson, who turns 75 in November and is this year celebrating 51 years in the music industry, was in the middle of a Winding Back tour across Australia.
He recently announced 2021 will be his last major year of touring.
According to his website, Williamson is hesitant to say he’s retiring, but acknowledges he won’t continue the regular touring he’s done consistently during his enduring career.
“I’ve spent more time in airport lounges and travelling highways than most and I’m looking forward to winding back and tending to my garden,” he said.