Leadership in NSW and SA welcome

Business Council of Australia

The South Australian government’s common-sense decision to open the state’s borders to New South Wales from Thursday will give people and businesses the ability to get on with their lives and start making plans again, Business Council chief executive Jennifer Westacott said.

“Border closures have had a massive impact on people’s jobs and their livelihoods, and they have made it impossible for many families to plan for the future.

“It is good to see South Australia and NSW learning from our experience managing this virus throughout the pandemic, putting in place the systems to manage it locally, keep people safe and get their economies open again.

“This will be welcome news to families hoping to reunite, for workers who can now cross borders to get to their jobs and for businesses like retailers who can look towards the critical Christmas period and plan with optimism.

“The economy doesn’t stop at state borders. Every artificial barrier to doing business hurts people and puts jobs at risk.

“If New South Wales and South Australia can get the systems in place that manage the virus, keep people safe and open their borders up then there is no reason other states can’t do the same.

“We congratulate the South Australian premier for his leadership putting the people of South Australia and the national interest first.

“We continue to urge all state and territory leaders to take a common sense approach, manage outbreaks locally, open the country back up and adopt a nationally consistent scheme to manage border closures only as a last resort.”

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