Transtasman travel may restart if ‘bubble’ agreed

WELLINGTON: New Zealand and Australia will today discuss the possible creation of a ‘‘travel bubble’’ between the two countries. Talks came as Australia yesterday reported its highest number of coronavirus cases in two weeks.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will take part in a meeting of Australia’s emergency coronavirus cabinet today, stoking speculation twoway travel could be permitted some time soon.

Ms Ardern is expected to join the meeting at the start for at least half an hour about noon.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s Covid cabinet includes premiers and chief ministers of all states and territories.

‘‘The idea of a bubble with Australia was floated two weeks ago, and this is an example of the sort of action that could happen within it, while always ensuring the protection of public health,’’ Foreign Minister Winston Peters said yesterday.

‘‘Officials in both countries are considering all aspects of the transtasman concept, and planning how this could happen more broadly,’’ he said.

Australia and New Zealand have slowed the spread of coronavirus to levels significantly below the those in the United States, Britain and Europe.

Ms Ardern said a transtasman bubble would not be ‘‘in the very, very near shortterm’’ but she and Mr Morrison had a similar idea of timelines they wanted to work to.

It would have significant advantages for New Zealand, both for tourism and business.

‘‘Don’t expect this to happen in a couple of weeks,’’ she said.

Ms Ardern said the Government wanted to ensure New Zealand’s gains were ‘‘locked in’’ before opening the border to Australians.

Asked about including other Pacific nations, she said the focus was on Australia but the Government would look to include other Pacific nations if it could do so safely.

Australia yesterday reported 26 new cases, including a 7yearold boy, its biggest daily rise in two weeks.

For the first time since March 16, New Zealand yesterday recorded no new cases.

Overall, Australia has recorded about 6800 infections and 95 deaths, and New Zealand 1137 cases and 20 fatalities.

Ms Ardern and Mr Morrison are expected to discuss strategies to slow Covid19’s spread, including Australia’s Covidsafe app, introduced last week. It was designed to help trace the close contacts of infected people.

New Zealand is developing its own app.

More than four million Australians have downloaded the CovidSafe app, well short of Mr Morrison’s previously announced target of 40% of the country’s about 16 million smartphone owners.

Mr Morrison has made wider adoption of the app a prerequisite to further ease strict social distancing regulations in Australia.