Rescue plan to follow lift of travel ban
THREE states are likely to receive rescue flights from India once a travel ban on the COVID-ravaged country ends this month, but stranded Australians who test positive to the virus will not be onboard.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirmed on Friday that the government’s controversial India travel ban would be lifted on May 15, paving the way for Australians to board repatriation flights.
Mr Morrison confirmed returning travellers would be quarantined at the Howard Springs facility in Darwin but, after a meeting of National Cabinet on Friday, said an offer had been extended to the states to receive repatriation flights.
“NSW, as well as Victoria and Queensland, indicated that they would be responding positively to that invitation. South Australia is also considering it very favourably,” Mr Morrison said.
Mr Morrison confirmed he would hold talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday afternoon to discuss the growing crisis after 412,262 new COVID-19 infections were recorded in India on Thursday.
The government in April banned Australians from returning, as India grapples with the world’s worst COVID-19 outbreak, with those in breach threatened with five years in jail or $66,000 fines.
The measures were set to be reviewed on May 15, but Mr Morrison confirmed that a meeting of cabinet’s national security committee on Thursday had resolved to resume repatriation flights on that day.
“The biosecurity order is doing its job. It is doing what we intended it to do. It will run for the term we intended for it to run, and then that will be replaced by arrangements made beyond that point to ensure we can prevent the third wave,” he said.
The Prime Minister ruled out the prospect of the ban being lifted before May 15, saying the measure had been calibrated to ensure repatriation flights returned only when safe.
Under the proposal, one repatriation flight per week will be organised, and returning Australians at this stage will head to the Howard Springs facility in Darwin.
The Prime Minister confirmed capacity at Howard Springs would this month be boosted to 2000 from 850 and the facility would receive $500m in federal government funding.