Town bids to be quarantine site

Queenstown is being pitched as a quarantine town for international students.

Universities, polytechnics and private providers, which expect to lose $600 million in revenue this year, are ‘‘pushing hard’’ for the return of international students to New Zealand.

Southern Institute of Technology chief executive Penny Simmonds said Queenstown was the logical place for a quarantine site for international students.

‘‘International students are coming for at least a year, some up to three years, it’s not a big deal for them to have to spend a fortnight in strict quarantine, so they are safe to come into the institutions.

‘‘Queenstown has got the hotels free, it’s got the space free, it’s got an international airport – it’s a logical site to be bringing international students for quarantine.’’

Queenstown Lakes District Mayor Jim Boult said in the shortterm, quarantine in his town had the potential to benefit local accommodation providers, keep people employed and bring muchneeded income to the district.

‘‘Under the current circumstances, any concept that helps workers and businesses in the Queenstown Lakes district is worthy of consideration. Naturally, however, we would need to be satisfied that this did not bring any increased level of health risk to our residents.’’

Ministry of Education provisional figures show 104,750 international students studied in New Zealand in 2019. Of those, 81,175 studied at a tertiary institution.

Deputy Secretary Graduate Achievement, Vocation and Careers, Andy Jackson, said central government agencies were working out what border controls, and specifically quarantine and isolation arrangements, would need to look like.

‘‘The Ministry of Education is an active participant in these discussions and is also engaging with education providers. We know that international education will be an important part of New Zealand’s rebuild and recovery, especially in the regions. Getting students back into New Zealand is a crucial step for re-starting the international education sector.’’

Public health considerations remained paramount to any decision to make changes to border restrictions, Jackson said.