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Free at last: Aussies can cross all state borders for first time since virus hit

Australians are free to travel across all interstate borders without undergoing quarantine for the first time since the coronavirus arrived.

Mar 15, 2021, updated Mar 15, 2021
More than 100 police officers are back on the streets after the Gold Coast border barrier was demolished Photo: ABC

More than 100 police officers are back on the streets after the Gold Coast border barrier was demolished Photo: ABC

Domestic borders are now fully open after Western Australia eased restrictions with Victoria overnight.

It is the first time WA has had no quarantine requirements for any state or territory since border restrictions were introduced last April.

All states are now classified as “very low risk” under WA’s controlled border system.

But a re-elected Premier Mark McGowan has warned he won’t hesitate to bring back a hard border if needed to keep the virus out of WA.

The premier was speaking after leading Labor to a landslide election victory which highlighted the popularity of his tough response to the pandemic.

McGowan on Sunday said WA authorities were keeping a close eye on new hotel quarantine-linked cases in Queensland and NSW.

WA Health has identified three Brisbane venues attended on Thursday by a doctor who caught the virus from a hospital patient.

Anyone who has arrived into WA from Queensland in recent days has been contacted and advised to self-quarantine if they attended those venues.

The state’s health department on Sunday issued advice for any recent arrivals from NSW, who had visited two Sydney locations on Saturday, to get tested for COVID-19 immediately and quarantine until March 27.

McGowan said his government would continue to be guided by medical advice.

“What you’ve seen with the Commonwealth government is when necessary, they’ve shut the border to New Zealand,” Mr McGowan said.

“The borders work … they’ve kept Australia safe and they’ve kept Western Australia even safer. So if we need to, we’d do it again.”

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