NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian yesterday announced that the state would open its border to Victoria on 23 November:
Ms Berejiklian said Victoria’s “severe” and “prolonged” lockdown may have eliminated COVID-19 in the state, which has gone five days without recording a new infection.
She said that assessment was based on NSW Health advice.
“They may have, because of the lockdown, actually gone down a path of having eliminated it at this point in time,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“Come a minute past midnight on November 23, there will be free movement between NSW and Victoria.”
The reopening date should give people confidence to make plans, book holidays and reunite families.
However, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews urged Victorians not to travel into NSW:
“The Premier of NSW wouldn’t be opening her border if she didn’t have confidence Victorians could maintain the low numbers,” he said.
However, he urged Victorians not to be in too much of a hurry to leave their own state.
“Don’t go to Sydney for Christmas for summer holidays. We have lots of places here you can visit,” he said.
This raises an interesting dilemma.
NSW has become the nation’s COVID-19 ‘epicentre’; albeit cases are very low overall.
NSW recorded 6 new COVID-19 infections over the past five days versus Victoria’s zero:
NSW also has 49 active local COVID-19 cases versus Victoria’s 30:
Thus, if NSW continues to record local infections we could conceivably witness the Victorian Government responding in-kind and keeping the border with NSW closed.
I sincerely hope this doesn’t happen. It’s time to open all internal borders and reunite Australia.
