Australian Treasurer: Businesses will close if states don’t eventually open borders

Josh Frydenberg is doing the media rounds this morning.

The Treasurer was just asked on Sunrise whether the economy will be pushed into recession if states don’t eventually open their borders.

As regular readers of this blog will know, national cabinet has agreed to do away with large-scale lockdowns once Australia reaches a 70 to 80 per cent vaccination target. But some state and territory leaders have hinted that they will keep borders closed in some circumstances (for example, if they feel there are too many cases in another state).

Here’s what Mr Frydenberg had to say about the possibility of future border closures:

“Well, it certainly will cost jobs. It certainly will see businesses close. It will see our debt burden increase and it will see the wellbeing of Australians suffer.

You could have the ridiculous situation where somebody in NSW could travel to Canada before they could go to Cairns or somebody in Victoria could travel to Singapore and Bali before they could go to Perth.

That would be ridiculous. That is why it is so important that the agreed national plan is adhered to by the states and the territories.”

Source: smh.com.au