Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says quarantine-free travel between New Zealand and Australia will begin on April 19, but warned those hopping across the Tasman will do so under the guidance of 'flyer beware'.
Cabinet met today to decide the date the two-way quarantine-free travel will start - 11:59pm on Sunday, April 18.
Air New Zealand is planning to operate quarantine-free flights from April 12 from Auckland to Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
Ardern and Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins this afternoon confirmed that all the conditions for the bubble have been met.
"The Director-General of Health (Dr Ashley Bloomfield) considers the risk of transmission of Covid-19 from Australia to New Zealand is low and that quarantine free travel is safe to commence," Ardern said.
The Prime Minister said this has not been seen anywhere else in the world in a country that has an elimination strategy and today was "new chapter in our recovery".
She said there were no countries in the world which are looking to keep Covid-free, while opening up a bubble and in that case "we are world leading".
"We are opening at exactly the right time," Ardern said. "This is an exciting day."
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison called the agreement "the first of many more steps to come ... as we get back to a more normal position, not only over the course of this year but beyond".
The virus has effectively been eradicated in both countries, with minor outbreaks the result of leakage from quarantined returned travellers. Australia has recorded about 29,400 virus cases and 909 deaths since the pandemic began, while New Zealand has had just over 2100 confirmed cases and 26 deaths.
About 568,000 New Zealand-born people live in Australia, according to 2018 figures, equivalent to 2.3% of Australia's population and Australia's fourth-largest migrant community.
Australians made up 1.5 million, or 40%, of arrivals to New Zealand in 2019, the year before the pandemic shut borders, contributing NZ$2.7 billion to its economy, according to New Zealand figures. Arrivals were forecast to reach 80% of that level by early 2022, Ardern said.
'FLYER BEWARE'
Flights to and from some Australian states could still be suspended if there were local outbreaks, Jacinda Ardern warned.
She added that travellers must wear masks on flights and undertake New Zealand contact tracing, while the travel bubble did not apply to people transiting via Australia from other countries.
The bubble would operate under a "flyer beware" system, with no new support from the New Zealand Government for people stuck in Australia by cancellations at short notice, she said.
"We are asking people to simply prepare."
Ardern said in many ways, Australia would be treated like a region of New Zealand when it came to the alert level settings.
The settings "broadly" follow the alert level settings already in place in New Zealand.
Flights from an Australian state would be paused if there was a lockdown in said state, she said.
These precautions were not based on "hypotheticals" - they were based on things which have happened in the past, she said.
However, Ardern warned that quarantine-free travel will not be what it was pre-Covid 19.
"Those undertaking travel will do so under the guidance of 'flyer beware'."
The Prime Minister said the No 1 priority has been "public safety".
"We have taken the time to get this right."
People would need to plan for the possibility of having travel disrupted if there is an outbreak, she said.
Anyone in New Zealand from Australia will be required to provide their New Zealand contact details, she said.
If any airport is not ready for the bubble to start, they will not be allowed to receive travellers, Ardern said.
Just as there are alert level settings for managing cases in New Zealand, there would now be a framework for managing New Zealanders in the event of an outbreak in Australia.
This involved three possible scenarios: "Continue, pause, suspend".
To be eligible to travel to or from New Zealand on a quarantine-free flight, people must not have had a positive Covid-19 test result in the previous 14-day period.
As well as this, they must not be awaiting the results of a Covid-19 test taken during that 14-day period, Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said this afternoon.
"When those in Australia decide to come to New Zealand, they will be making a booking on a green zone flight. That means that there will be no passengers on that flight who have come from anywhere but Australia in the last 14 days."
Travellers would also be flown by crew who had not flown on any high risk routes for a set period of time, Hipkins said.
And those who do fly would be required to wear a mask on their flight - as is the current requirement.
Travellers would also be asked to download and use the NZ COVID Tracer app while in New Zealand - but not required.
"We will also be undertaking random temperature checks of those arriving as an added precaution," Hipkins said.
He estimated that the bubble will free up 1000 to 1300 rooms per fortnight within managed isolation and quarantine facilities.(MIQ)
"Of these, we will retain roughly 500 spaces as contingency should they be needed for the transtasman arrangement," Hipkins said.
There were also a small number of facilities that the Government considered to have only been suitable for travellers in quarantine from low risk countries.
"With the opening of travel, we will look to decommission these facilities – but in the meantime we are considering whether they could be used for other low risk countries, such as the Pacific Islands," Hipkins said.
"As a result of this, we do not anticipate a large number of vacant quarantine spaces to come on stream.
"There will, however, still be thousands of spaces in MIQ for Kiwis. That's how we have helped 130,000 safely return home through our managed isolation facilities."
A WIN FOR BUSINESS
BusinessNZ chief executive Kirk Hope said today's announcement is a win for businesses on both sides of the Tasman.
"New Zealand's tourism and hospitality sectors have suffered the full force of Covid-19. Today's news will give them great encouragement that there is light at the end of the tunnel.
''Australia is our second biggest trading partner and New Zealand's largest international visitor market, accounting for almost half of all international visitor arrivals so this is an important step in getting our key service sectors operating again."
Wellington Airport chief executive Steve Sanderson said he was delighted with the news and eager to welcome travellers in both directions.
"We believe there is significant pent-up demand for travel to and from Australia. Families and friends who have been separated are eager to see each other; and there is increasing demand from Australia for safe international holiday options."
"As an extra layer of precaution we have worked to implement all Ministry of Health guidance to ensure everything possible is done to maintain a safe and hygienic environment for travellers. This includes increased cleaning, regular Covid-19 testing of all border-facing staff, thermal camera temperature checking of all arrivals, and signage to remind visitors of Covid requirements including use of the Covid tracer app."
Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum (ANZLF) co-chair Ann Sherry said the announcement was wonderful news for the 600,000 New Zealanders living in Australia who will now be able to travel home to see families and friends and share important occasions.
"It is also great for all the Australians who are keen to have a holiday in New Zealand, and New Zealanders wanting to holiday in Australia without going through quarantine on their return. We expect there will be significant pent-up demand. We hope that tourism companies on both sides will benefit from the resumption of quarantine free travel."
COVID EXPERT SAYS POSITIVE STEP
Covid-19 modeller Professor Shaun Hendy said the bubble's opening marked a "significant milestone" in our pandemic response.
"Given that Australia has also managed a successful elimination strategy and have excellent surveillance systems in place, travellers from Australia currently pose little risk," he said.
"Should an outbreak occur in one of the Australian states we would learn about it quickly and our government would have time to take steps to manage travel from any affected region."
Nonetheless, Hendy said anyone travelling to Australia should be aware that their plans could be disrupted by outbreaks on either side of the Tasman.
"Both countries have had failures at MIQ facilities from time to time, and when this happens, travel restrictions may need to be brought back in," he said.
"Travellers should be prepared for an extended stay or to self-isolate or quarantine on return."
Furthermore, he added that allowing quarantine free travel from Australia would also open up spaces in our MIQ facilities for travellers from other, higher-risk countries.
"I would suggest that government take this opportunity to consider retiring some facilities, including those that have no exercise space on site or those that have proved more difficult to manage," he said.
"This might still see an increase in MIQ places for Kiwis returning home from other parts of the world, while managing the overall risk at the border.
"Overall, the opening of a travel bubble with Australia is a positive and welcome step, which reflects the success that both countries have had in managing the virus."
