On the radio this morning a person from Strategic Aviation (?) said that it was likely that Australians would be able to fly to selected overseas locations in November. Soon both the NSW and the Federal Government will be announcing a timeline for coming out of lockdown including opening the international borders. I think the timeline is entirely dependent on the percentage of the population vaccinated.
We already know that there will be no “Freedom Day” like the UK as there will be restrictions such as social distancing, mask wearing and similar, as well as sudden lockdowns to cope with outbreaks.
Suggested places overseas include Japan, Singapore and the UK (there were others but I forget them). I was surprised to hear the UK mentioned because until fairly recently the UK was listed as unlikely but it is because of their success with their vaccination program.
Vaccination certificates, Covid tests and home quarantine will be part of the program (an app has already tested in SA).
Interestingly this person didn’t think there would be price gouging though the days of $1200 return fares to London are over. He also said that Business class will be expensive because of its popularity.
It will be ironic that you will be able to fly from Sydney to London but not from Sydney to Brisbane if the state borders remain closed.
Already there are workers coming in from the Pacific to cope with shortages in agriculture so presumably people from the suggested destinations will be able to travel here.
NSW Premier Gladys Brejiklian today outlined the freedoms vaccinated citizens can expect once 70% of the population is vaccinated. It won’t happen before the middle of October.
This freedom day seems to have passed us by: got big press in other countries like it was a great achievement, a milestone. But for us in the thick of it, it was just more Boris buzz, instantly forgotten. In fact, the only talk of “freedom day” I remember was brexit related. And those that cared couldn’t agree upon a date.
A few months back QANTAS announced they would be taking bookings for flights from November but recently they changed this to mid December so who knows when they will start ramping up flights.
They were doing OK with domestic flights but this NSW/Victoria lockdown has put paid to that, however eventually we are going to have to open up because we can’t remain a hermit kingdom for ever.
NSW is vaccinating over 100000 people per day, which our Glad said was 1.5% of the population though it has slowed lately.
Gladys also announced today that from next Monday there will be no more 11am Covid press conferences, what on earth does she think we are going to do then? I set my TV to turn itself on especially for that, I then go for my daily walk when the press conference ends. Is that the end of life as we know it?
I can’t see Australia going back to normal any time soon. They have helicopters circling over the beaches telling people to go home from loud hailers, booze rationing by the state, shooting of rescue dogs to prevent visitors coming to see them and yesterday we heard the Australian Health Chief talking about a New World Order.
Unless it abandons its zero covid nonsense it will be forever “prison island”.
At least ScoMo is starting to see sense - problem is he is in a minority and that means your zero covid strategy is alive and kicking with your health chief talking about a New World Order .
Even India has managed to go back to normal and they had one of the worst Covid disasters until about 3 months ago.
Australia remains in perpetual lockdown and state rule. In the UK the pandemic is over and has been since July while you only have plans for “living with Covid” from 2022.
Don’t talk to me about your “superior country” ever again Bruce. Your zero covid strategy is a zero freedom strategy
Only NSW, ACT and Victoria have lockdowns in some LGAs mainly Sydney and Melboune but Dubbo and Wilcannia are also locked down because of cases there. The other states and territories have no lockdowns.
NSW has had no lockdowns from about August 2020 until July 2021, you really have no idea what you are talking about, you better stick to Brexit, you clearly have no idea about Australia.
Covid zero bought Australia time with only about 1000 deaths since the beginning of Covid.
The disease has already been declared endemic and the current strategy is to achieve maximum vaccination coverage. Even in the current outbreak the lockdown has kept new cases down and currently the disease has an R value of less than 1 even though NSW is experiencing record numbers of new cases the health system is under stress but not swamped.
The vaccine program got off to a slow start but now is going gangbusters as more vaccines arrive. As mentioned the National Cabinet has accepted the Doherty report as the route out of lockdown with 70 and 80% adult double dose vaccination coverage being the trigger points for opening the economy up.
In NSW 45% of the population has received double dose, 77% at least one dose so the state is well on the way to achieving the Doherty targets with 70% achieved in mid October and 80% mid November.
Covid zero was a disaster and still is. The Delta variant is gaining traction in Australia so expect “prison island” to continue as an authoritarian colony of its former self.
Queensland ( where my son lives ) has not relaxed its restrictions . I am now trying to work out how to get a parental exemption. The government website is not easy .
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