Shadow Minister for Health, Bill Yan, says the Chief Minister has cancelled Christmas for Territorians living in regional and remote areas, while further crippling our tourism and hospitality sector by again moving the goalposts of his COVID roadmap rollout.
“The Chief Minister’s announcement that anyone who has travelled interstate will need to stay in a high-vaccination zone for 14 days following their arrival post-December 20, means all Territorian living outside of Darwin, Katherine and Alice Springs – despite the fact they are fully vaccinated – have been abandoned by Michael Gunner.
“This is a kick in the guts to every single Territorian who has followed the health advice and done the right thing.
“The Tourism sector is already on its knees and this latest change has slammed shut the doors to the Territory. Interstate tourists will be barred from Litchfield, Kakadu, Yulara and Kings Canyon until they’ve spent a fortnight in Darwin, Katherine or Alice Springs.
“Meanwhile, Territory kids who return from boarding school and live outside the major centres will be forced to spend Christmas apart from their families – because the Chief Minister has banned them from returning home.
“Michael Gunner has stuffed up the vaccine rollout from the very beginning, he’s failed remote communities and now fully vaccinated Territorians are being punished for his failures,” said Mr Yan.
Shadow Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Steve Edgington, says the Gunner Government has had more than 10 months to roll out the COVID vaccine, but with just two weeks until Christmas has decided to punish regional and remote Territorians because of Labor’s incompetence.
“Under Michael Gunner’s dictatorship, any fully vaccinated person including NT residents entering the Territory from 20 December will not be able to visit their family or visit any place outside of Alice Springs, Katherine or Darwin for 14 days.
“If a fully vaccinated Barkly resident travels by vehicle to Queensland for Christmas, the only way they can return home is to drive past their front door and continue on to Alice Springs, Katherine or Darwin and spend 14 days there, at their own cost! This will add around $5,000 to the cost of a family holiday! Are you serious?
“And, while this is happening, every other person in the Northern Territory whether fully vaccinated or unvaccinated can travel in and out of Darwin, Alice Springs and Katherine any day of the week potentially carrying COVID to low vaccinated areas.
“The Chief Minister appears to say Tennant Creek is a low vaccinated area but Labor isn’t even being open and honest with us by telling Territorians what the vaccination rate actually is. How can people in Tennant Creek address this if the Gunner Government is withholding information?
“The Gunner Government has had ample opportunity but failed to get on the front foot and show any sign of leadership back in March this year by developing and implementing a well-resourced multi-agency community engagement plan in remote communities to ensure all vulnerable residents were well informed, supported and encouraged to access the COVID-19 vaccine. That is shameful and Territorians who have done the right thing are now being punished.
“Michael Gunner has over-promised and under-delivered on a quarantine-free Territory post-December 20,” said Mr Edgington.
ENDS