Australia announced a foreign travel ban in March and banned Australian citizens and residents from leaving the country, except in special cases.
Following a recommendation from the Australian General Health Commission (AHPPC), Health Minister Greg Hunt announced that the emergency period would be extended until at least 17 December.
The AHPPC believes that “the international and domestic situation with Covid-19 continues to pose an unacceptable risk to public health,” Hunts said. “Extending the emergency period is an appropriate response to this risk.”
Regular international flights and cruises have also been abolished as a result of the emergency, and trade and supply of essential goods have been protected.
The opposition Labor Party has criticized the crackdown, saying the government is ignoring 23,000 Australians stranded abroad.
The government ruled in July that no more than 4,000 people a week could enter the country, and states began charging immigrants for a mandatory two-week quarantine at the hotel.
The national government will decide at Friday’s meeting whether to relax the condition on the maximum number of immigrants.
To date, 26,049 cases of Covid-19 infection have been reported in Australia, including 737 deaths from the disease, according to data released on Friday.
–
