How Australia was made to look like a humanitarian haven only to close its doors in 21 months
Australia recently reopened its borders to vaccinated skilled migrants and international students after a nearly two-year ban in an effort to boost the economy hampered by COVID-19 lockdowns.
The emergence of the new Omicron variant forced officials to postpone the resumption of international travel by two weeks, as health officials sought a slight delay to gather more information about the tension, which appears to cause milder symptoms than other coronavirus variants.
The Impact Post Reopening
The reopening of Australia’s borders came as the country’s most populous state, New South Wales, reported the highest one-day increase in cases in four months, despite Prime Minister Scott Morrison saying the government was well prepared to deal with rising numbers.
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“We’re going to live with this virus, and we’re not going to let it drag us back to where we started,” Morrison told 4BC radio. “We have one of the highest vaccination rates, so we should be able to fight this thing. We don’t have to accept it.”
At 6:20 a.m. (1720 GMT), a Qantas flight from Los Angeles was the first to arrive in Sydney, followed by flights from Tokyo, Vancouver, and Singapore. “It’s fair to say that we’ve all been waiting a long time to welcome visitors back to Australia,” said Qantas CEO Alan Joyce.
The national carrier expects to bring more than 14,000 passengers into Australia this week, marking the beginning of what many believe will be a long, slow recovery for a tourism industry devastated by the pandemic.
Fortress Australia
The travel ban, which prohibited citizens from traveling overseas without an exemption and imposed a strict cap on international arrivals, earned Australia the moniker “Fortress Australia.” According to the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the policies have cost businesses an estimated AUS$3.6 billion ($2.6 billion) per month, with tourism being particularly hard hit.
Despite a steady rise in Omicron infections following a staggered reopening, New South Wales, home to Australia’s largest city of Sydney, lifted most restrictions for the unvaccinated on Wednesday. However, the state recorded 1,360 new cases, the most in more than three months and the most since a nearly four-month lockdown ended in early October. Since the pandemic began, Australia has recorded approximately 235,500 cases and 2,117 deaths.
Australia Expects Better Economy In Coming Months
The relaxation of border rules is expected to alleviate labor shortages, which are threatening to hinder economic recovery. In addition, the return of foreign students, who are worth approximately A$35 billion ($25 billion) to the Australian economy each year, will assist businesses in filling many casual jobs. According to official data, more than 235,000 foreigners, including approximately 160,000 students, held visas to Australia at the end of October.
Lifting restrictions on international visitors would benefit the country’s hospitality industry, which has suffered as a result of Covid-related lockdowns and border controls. Prior to the pandemic, the tourism industry generated more than A$120 billion ($84.9 billion) in annual revenue and employed about 5% of the workforce, according to Tourism Australia.
Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, the country has prohibited all foreign tourists from entering. Later, in recent months, the country has undergone a massive reopening, allowing only citizens and residents, skilled migrants, international students, and certain seasonal workers in. As a result, almost 95 percent of the eligible population aged 16 and up in Australia has been double-vaccinated against the coronavirus, with nearly nine million people receiving more than two doses. Allowing vaccinated international arrivals coincides with a decrease in Covid infections, hospitalizations, and intensive care admissions across the country.