Arrival caps to be scrapped

INTERNATIONAL arrival caps will be scrapped as early as the start of next month, Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt confirmed this morning.

The limit on Australian citizens and permanent residents arriving back in the country will be removed as soon as NSW transitions from hotel quarantine to home quarantine, which is expected to happen on 01 Nov, the marker for the state’s planned return to overseas travel.

“[Stranded Australians] have carried part of the burden during the pandemic, I acknowledge that, this has kept us safe but now we can bring them home,” Hunt told ABC Radio.

“We can remove the caps for those returning Australians if they can get home quarantine... that’s a system that’s well-established and well tried,” he added.

Hunt’s comments follow remarks made by Prime Minister Scott Morrison yesterday, backing NSW’s plans to fast-track the resumption of international travel as soon as the state’s home quarantine program is ready, bringing the date forward from mid Nov to 01 Nov.

“The NSW Premier [Dominic Perrottet] and I have been discussing how we can accelerate our plan to open international travel when home quarantine is made available,” Morrison said.

The move is expected to see a demand for flights rise rapidly, precipitating a likely expansion of flights listed by the carriers such as Qantas and Virgin Australia over the coming months.