EXCLUSIVE: Pack your bags! Scott Morrison wants travel bubbles with New Zealand, Japan and Pacific islands BEFORE Christmas - but will your state let you go on holiday?
- Scott Morrison would like to see overseas travel bubbles in place this year
- New Zealand, Japan, Singapore and some Pacific islands are keen on idea
- It is possible that some states will request to opt out of any travel bubbles
- In the meantime, the prime minister wants to get domestic borders open
Scott Morrison wants overseas travel bubbles in place before the end of the year even if some states do not take part, Daily Mail Australia understands.
The federal government began travel-bubble talks with New Zealand in May but the plan was put on hold when coronavirus cases in Melbourne spiked.
Now that case numbers are coming down after strict lockdowns, international travel is back on the agenda.
Scott Morrison would like to see overseas travel bubbles in place before the end of the year. Pictured: Tahiti in French Polynesia
Japan, which has low case number of coronavirus, wants to be part of a travel bubble with Australia. Pictured: Tokyo
Japan, Singapore and Pacific islands such as Fiji, which have low case numbers or zero community transmission, have said they would like travel bubbles with Australia.
The prime minister is keen for arrangements to be in place by Christmas, but only if the health experts say it is safe.
'The aim is later this year but it's dependent on the health advice,' a federal source told Daily Mail Australia.
A travel bubble deal with another country would allow Aussies to fly there without having to quarantine when they get home.
It would also allow tourists from that country to enter Australia without quarantine, boosting the economy and providing jobs.
Japan, Singapore and Pacific islands such as Fiji (pictured), which have zero community transmission, have said they would like travel bubbles with Australia
The federal government began travel bubble talks with New Zealand in May but the plan was put on hold when coronavirus cases in Melbourne spiked. Pictured: Fiordland National Park
Unlike domestic borders, which are controlled by state governments, international flights are overseen by the federal government.
However, the prime minister is likely to respect a request from a premier who does not want international flights to and from their state.
This means that people living in Sydney could be allowed abroad but people in Perth, where Premier Mark McGowan is reluctant to open up, may be trapped at home.
Tourism operators in states that request to limit flights or keep quarantine measures in place will continue to be starved of international customers.
If some states encourage international travel and benefit from it then this could put pressure on other states to follow suit.
In normal times almost a million jobs in Australia are directly or indirectly linked to tourism.
State premiers are facing growing calls to ease border restrictions. Pictured: The NSW-Victoria border at Albury
On Friday Mr Morrison said he is 'trying to get the New Zealand travel bubble back in place.'
He added: 'I'd like to see that also if we can among the Pacific nations... Japan is keen to do it, Singapore is keen to do this and there are a number of nations that are happy to do this with us.'
In May Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham said travel bubbles will operate in some states even if others opt out.
'If New Zealand and some Australian states are ready and willing to progress, then the reluctance of other states to open up their domestic borders shouldn't become an obstacle to progress,' he said.
In the meantime, Mr Morrison's priority is to re-open domestic borders.
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Western Australia and Tasmania are closed to all states and Queensland is not letting anyone from NSW or the ACT cross the border, even if they are from ares with no cases.
The prime minister on Friday said he feared state premiers were forgetting the federation and 'retreating into provincialism.'
Mr Morrison has ordered health experts to come up with a definition of a hotspot to guide states on which areas they should shut their borders to.
'We need to get borders open, taking into account health advice that is conveyed transparently,' he said.
Senator Birmingham on Tuesday said: 'I urge Australia's state and territory leaders to engage constructively in an evidence-based process around the definitions of hot spots and the opening up of borders ahead of national cabinet this Friday.'
'We are seeing many, many jobs being lost across the country and they will continue to be lost in our travel and tourism sector and many lives disrupted, especially in cross-border communities if we don't get a common approach.'
National Cabinet will discuss domestic borders on Friday.
Victoria recorded 70 new cases overnight, down from a peak of more than 700 cases in July.
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