CORONAVIRUS —
QUARANTINE ARRANGEMENTS — ROTTNEST ISLAND
692. Mrs A.K. HAYDEN to the Minister for Tourism:
Does
the minister support the Premier's proposal to close down Rottnest
Island to become a hotel quarantine site for Western Australians returning from
overseas; and what is the expected impact on Rottnest Island's tourism
businesses?
Mr P.
PAPALIA replied:
I thank the member for her
question.
At the outset, there is no proposal
to shut down Rottnest Island. As the member well knows, the Premier referred to
the option to use Rottnest Island, but there are many other options, and that
it is not the government's preferred option. This morning, the Premier
said to the media that it is unlikely that Rottnest would be used.
Nevertheless, we are in a pandemic. I have to say that the behaviour of the
federal government on this matter is appalling. It is lamentable that not just the Western Australian government, but every
state jurisdiction in the country was confronted with the news that,
according to the federal minister responsible for the press conference, they
were expected to double their number of international arrivals within a week
and a half. There was no consultation or collaboration. There was no use of the
national cabinet, which is the proper and now well-established process for
dealing with this national challenge that we all confront. There was none of
that. Instead, it was a pretty embarrassing stuff-up, I think, on behalf of the
federal government and the minister involved. I suggest that rather than
creating concern, anxiety and unnecessary angst among small businesses and
people who might be hoping to holiday on Rottnest, the member contacts her
federal colleagues and tells them to get back to a proper and mature process
for dealing with this issue.