New Zealand Government halts trans-Tasmania travel bubble

Australia’s current Coronavirus crisis, with worsening COVID-19 cases in greater Sydney has seen the New Zealand Government announce the suspension of quarantine-free travel between the two nations for at least eight weeks.

With Coronavirus outbreaks in at least three Australian states, New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern announced the decision after a cabinet meeting on Friday.

The trans-Tasman bubble officially burst at midnight on Friday but managed return flights will be available over the next week to allow New Zealanders to return home.

Those who live outside of Victoria and NSW will be able to return without being quarantined but all passengers must have negative pre-departure COVID tests.

Announcing the change, Prime Minister Ardern stated “my strong message to every New Zealander in Australia right now who does not want to stay there in the long term is to come home.”

She went on to say “we’ve always said that our response would evolve as the virus evolved.

“This is not a decision we have taken lightly, but it is the right decision to keep New Zealanders safe.”

Australia is currently dealing with severe Delta strain COVID outbreaks in NSW, Victoria, and South Australia, with a local case reported in Queensland.

Across Australia, more than 14 million people are under lockdown, with suggestions that Sydney residents may have to brace for another two months of lockdown restrictions because authorities waited to impose the current restrictions

New modelling by the University of Melbourne shows that, in order to get the number of Sydney’s COVID-19 cases heading in a southbound direction, the current lockdown will need to continue until 4th September.

The trans-Tasman travel bubble, which began on 19th April, allowed Australians and New Zealanders to travel freely between the two countries.

Its two month halt could have an impact on the upcoming Bledisloe Cup Tests between the All Blacks and the Wallabies, which are scheduled in both nations.

Prime Minister Ardern stated that the Wallabies could use the seven-day window to travel to New Zealand after requesting an economic exemption, concluding “hHowever, it must be in the seven-day window - we are not making exceptions outside of that. Everyone else has to go into quarantine.”

Image courtesy of Joe Cusmano.