JOYCE IN WA ‘NORTH KOREA’ GIBE
QANTAS boss Alan Joyce has intensified his attack on the Western Australian border closure, likening the policy to the dictatorship of North Korea.
Days after Mr Joyce accused Premier Mark Mcgowan of breaking his promise to reopen borders on February 5, the airline chief executive went further, saying WA did not even have a plan to open up.
“I think we should all be outraged by that, the fact you can get to London but you can’t get to Perth,” Mr Joyce told radio 3AW.
“It’s starting to look like North Korea. It’s going to be closed indefinitely at this stage unless we have a plan to start living with Covid and opening up the rest of the country.”
The attack came as Mr Joyce repeated his call for international borders to fully reopen, querying the logic behind admitting some people from overseas but not foreign tourists or business travellers.
He said the current policy was damaging tourist areas like Cairns, and cities such as Melbourne, that relied on international visitors to fill hotels and restaurants.
“There are skilled workers coming in on visas, and student visas but if you are coming in for business trips or tourism, that’s not allowed today,” said
Mr Joyce. “It is very confusing for a lot of people, and it is very hard for a lot of people.
“We should be getting on and living with Covid like we are in the eastern states today,” he said.
His comments followed the Prime Minister’s surprise endorsement of the WA border policy on Thursday.
Speaking on radio 6PR, Scott Morrison said it was reasonable to keep borders closed because Omicron was a “completely different virus”.
But the remarks prompted calls for clarity from the travel industry, seeking a full reopening of Australia to allow international visitors into the country.