The first week of Dominic Perrottet’s tenure as NSW premier has been characterised by a series of bombshell announcements featuring sweeping amendments to the previously planned roadmap out of the pandemic. On October 15, the state's rookie leader dropped arguably his most explosive announcement to date. At a 10am press briefing, without any forewarning to the transport or airline industries, Perrottet declared that NSW would become the first state in Australia to reopen its borders to the world and that fully vaccinated arrivals would not be required to quarantine upon arrival.
News that international tourism is resuming within a matter of weeks has “blindsided” international airlines that are now scrambling to reintroduce routes into Sydney. According to a report from the Guardian, 6000 additional seats will be released for sale within 48 hours, but many airlines remain in the dark about what specific logistics need to be in place to make Perrottet’s plan viable. An anonymous airline source told the Guardian: “We’ve been caught by surprise on this. We’ve had zero consultation that it was happening today. There is no formal guidance for us.”
There is also some debate about whether Perrottet even has the authority to reopen international borders. While the vast majority of social restrictions during the pandemic have been at the discretion of state premiers, control of Australia’s international border has remained with the federal government. While Scott Morrison has announced that international travel can resume from November, Perrottet was evasive during the press briefing, declining to confirm if the PM had actually given NSW the green light to announce such a major shift in the status quo. It’s also unclear if Perrottet has agreed how international visas will be granted, which is also a matter for the federal government.
There are also potential repercussions for the fate of interstate travel in Australia. Reopening to the rest of the world could be a red flag to other states and territories, especially Tasmania and Western Australia where a total suppression strategy is still in effect. With foreign arrivals potentially importing new variants and undetected cases, state borders could remain shut to NSW long after the international border reopens.