Canberra Airport boss says ACT government 'gold standard' on borders

Amid a summer holiday period marked by sudden state border closures, Mr Byron said premiers "could do well" to follow the ACT's example and impose restrictions for only as long as they were necessary.

His comments came as Qantas boss Alan Joyce slammed Victoria over its border closure to Sydney, saying it was disproportionate to the actual risk.

Mr Byron said a recent increase in passenger numbers through Canberra Airport was a sign of renewed confidence among Canberra travellers, which he put down to the ACT government's handling of its border as coronavirus cases emerged in other states.

More than 26,000 people have flown in and out of Canberra Airport in each of the past three weeks, he said, up from fewer than 2000 a week in August and September.

While the numbers would have been inflated by Christmas and New Year travel, and were still well down on the 65,000 people flying each week before the pandemic struck, they did represent signs of recovery for the airport after a horror 2020.

Mr Byron said the ACT's decision to lift quarantine rules on Brisbane travellers after three days was proof that it was prepared to keep restrictions in place for only as long as they were needed.

The ACT's decision to effectively shut its border to Sydney on January 2 was a reasonable and proportionate response, he said, as was the move this week to lift restrictions on the Central Coast and Wollongong.

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There are still restrictions on Sydney, but they are limited to people from 11 council areas in the city's western suburbs and northern beaches.

"The evidence is there that the ACT is the gold standard and the leader in removing border restrictions," Mr Byron said.

"They are the leaders, they've been very proactive. They were the quickest [to lift restrictions] on Brisbane, and along the NT the following day, were the first to reopen to greater Sydney.

"I do think they are the gold standard in imposing [restrictions] only as a last resort but when they are required, and at the same time being the most responsive and the quickest to remove them when they are not required.

"I think quite frankly the other premiers could do well to follow that, and the Australian government would be happier if other states followed our chief minister and health minister."

Mr Byron said state premiers deserved praise for keeping their borders open to the ACT, despite closing to regional NSW as Sydney's northern beaches cluster spread in late December.

States such as WA, SA and Queensland had shut their borders to a largely coronavirus-free ACT early in the pandemic, essentially because the territory sits as an island inside NSW.

"All the other state premiers have now recognised the ACT's COVID-free record and not lumped us in with NSW," he said.

"That gives a lot of confidence to Canberrans."

The airport boss said New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland had in the past month shown an ability to stamp out clusters or potential outbreaks through effective contact tracing.

Chief Minister Andrew Barr and chief health officer Kerryn Coleman this week warned Canberrans about the risks of travelling interstate, including the prospect they might be forced to quarantine upon return to the capital.

Responding to Mr Byron's comments on Friday, Mr Barr said the government had relied on expert advice from Dr Coleman and the nation's other chief health officers as it made decisions on borders, hotspot declarations and other restrictions.

"As a government we've also had to balance the economic impacts, community expectations as well as the health advice," he said.

"This isn't an easy process, however the ACT's track record to date during the pandemic demonstrates that listening to the health advice has lowered our public health risk and has led to better economic outcomes in the medium term.

"We've fared well so far, but you only have to look at the situation in other parts of Australia and globally to understand how quickly things can change."