Canberra/Wellington - Australia and New Zealand have both
closed their borders to all visitors, except for citizens and
permanent residents and their close family members.
The travel ban means the deadline for any non-Australian-citizens or
non-residents of Australia entering the country is Friday at 9
pm (1000 GMT), Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison told
reporters in Canberra on Thursday.
Morrison said the travel ban was being put in place because "about 80
per cent of the cases" of coronavirus in Australia have come from
either people returning from overseas or their relatives.
"Measures we have put in place have obviously put an impact on that.
This is a further measure now that that can be further enhanced."
Australia has recorded at least 684 confirmed cases of Covid-19, the
potentially fatal disease caused by the new coronavirus, with the
number of new cases increasing each day.
A day earlier, Morrison announced a travel ban on Australians leaving
the country.
"We have been thinking to align arrangements across the Tasman Sea
and I appreciate the consultation that I've had with [New Zealand]
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in dealing with these issues," Morrison
said on Thursday.
About half-an-hour after Morrison's announcement, Ardern also said
that New Zealand was similarly closing its borders to all visitors in
an attempt to stop the spread of the new coronavirus.
Some key health professionals are also exempt from the New Zealand
ban, which comes into force starting a minute before midnight (1059
GMT on Thursday).
Ardern said she was "increasingly concerned visitors to New Zealand
are not adequately self-isolating," adding that it was "an
unacceptable risk that [New Zealand] must end."
In both Australia and New Zealand, the ban on arrival includes all
visitors, as well as residents on temporary visas, like students and
skilled workers.
New Zealand confirmed on Thursday 18 new cases of Covid-19 in the
past 48 hours, bringing the country's total to 28.
The Ministry of Health said all of these related to overseas travel
and there was no evidence of local transmission in New Zealand yet.
Earlier in the morning, the New Zealand government banned indoor
events with more than 100 people, but it did not apply to workplaces,
schools, supermarkets or public transport.
"Protecting the health of New Zealanders is our number one priority,
and that means we need to reduce the risks associated with large
gatherings," Health Minister David Clark said in a statement.
The government also advised its citizens not to travel abroad.
"This is the first time the New Zealand government has advised New
Zealanders against travelling anywhere overseas. That reflects the
seriousness of the situation we are facing with Covid-19," Foreign
Minister Winston Peters said.
He also urged all New Zealanders outside the country to consider
returning home immediately.
"Borders are closing. You may not be able to return to New Zealand
when you had planned to. You should, therefore, organize to come home
now," he said.
Across the Tasman Sea, Australian authorities on Thursday morning put
new restrictions on certain crucial medication, including limits on
purchases, after people started panic buying and hoarding medicines
in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Australia's deputy chief medical officer Paul Kelly announced that
paracetamol and the asthma medication Ventolin would only be sold
behind pharmacy counters and limited their purchase to one per person
in a bid to stop panic buying and hoarding.
"Please do not buy more than you need for anything, whether that's
food and particularly medicines," Kelly told reporters in Canberra.
Other government officials also asked Australians to stop hoarding in
general, as Australian supermarkets have been facing mass panic
buying of supplies in bulks sparked by the spread of the virus.
"The reality is we produce enough food for 75 million people, we are
just 25 million people. So there is no risk of us having any issues
around food security," David Littleproud, minister for agriculture
and emergency management, said.
Morrison also said there are "no issues with food supply."
"What there is an issue with is the behaviour of Australians at
supermarkets. That is what is causing the distress and the strain,"
he said.