Australia sticks to plan to reopen border in mid-2022 over Covid-19 fears

Melbourne

AUSTRALIAN Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said on Sunday that the government will stick to plans to start reopening the country only from mid-next year, as pressure mounts on the ruling conservatives to end the international border closure.

"We will follow the medical advice that has served us very well through this crisis," he said in a television interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corp.

Australia closed its borders to non-nationals and non-residents in March 2020 and has allowed only limited international arrivals in recent months, mainly citizens returning from abroad.

The closure, combined with snap lockdowns, swift contact tracing and public health compliance has made Australia's pandemic control measures among the world's most effective.

The number of coronavirus infections currently total around 29,700 with 910 deaths.

The government's reopening plans, unveiled last week, have sparked criticism from businesses and industries, as well as politicians within Prime Minister Scott Morrison's Liberal Party.

"Like many measures, international border closures had a temporary place, but it is not sustainable and will turn us into a hermit outpost," Tim Wilson, a Liberal Party Member of Parliament from Melbourne, was quoted as saying by The Sunday Age.

While hurting many businesses depending on international travel and workers, the border closure gave the country's first travel surplus in years, as Australians traded international forays for local excursions. REUTERS