Peter Gutwein,Premier
Today marks a significant day for Tasmania.
Our borders are now reopened to the world, reuniting Tasmanians with family, friends, and loved ones for the first time in many months.
The past 22 months have been among the toughest in living memory, and all of today’s reunions were made possible thanks to the success of our vaccination program and the willingness of Tasmanians to roll up their sleeves.
With 96 per cent of Tasmanians now having had at least one dose and 90 per cent fully vaccinated, and nearly 90 per cent of over 12s fully vaccinated, we have reopened as one of the safest places in the world.
Importantly, with our protections in place, I am advised the new travel management system is in full swing and is working well for passengers and processing staff.
There were over 7,700 people registered to travel to Tasmania today, arriving by air and sea, with over 200 vehicles processed for this morning’s Spirit of Tasmania double sailing.
Pleasingly, our advice is that the vast majority of people entering Tasmania today did the right thing, however two travellers were cautioned after they were detected trying to enter the state at Launceston Airport from a flight from Adelaide without necessary approval.
One was an unvaccinated passenger from Adelaide who did not have approval to enter Tasmania, who was turned around and returned to Adelaide.
The other was an international traveller who arrived from Adelaide without the necessary approvals. The traveller has been placed in hotel quarantine.
We will continue to monitor the situation closely in coming days.
To anyone thinking of coming, please remember, all the information you need is available at www.coronavirus.tas.gov.au, so jump online, take a look, and make sure you follow the rules.
