COVID-19 Testing

Mr MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Leader of the Opposition) (15:05): Supplementary question to the Premier: for clarity, did the Premier say that he is not aware if we collect statistics on the number of people complying with the testing requirements having returned from moderate risk LGAs interstate?

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL (Dunstan—Premier) (15:05): What I received this morning was an update that 115,000 people had used the entry check portal here in South Australia. There are requirements. They are at a much lower level than they were previously. We are asking people to have a PCR test and get a negative response within 72 hours of their departure if they are coming from New South Wales, Victoria or the ACT. We are asking people who are coming in from any other place to also be fully vaccinated.

There is a requirement in those lower risk LGAs where they are between 80 per cent and 90 per cent to have a test on arrival, but we do not go through every single one of those transactions because we have a much lower threshold in terms of surveillance that we need now that we have got to 80 per cent. In fact, we have gone well past 80 per cent and we are now at more than 90 per cent of South Australians over the age of 16 who have had at least some vaccination and, of course, we are well on the way to getting to 90 per cent of all South Australians over the age of 12 fully vaccinated in South Australia.

That provides us with a much higher level of protection, but we formed the opinion, based upon the advice from the Doherty Institute to the national cabinet, that at 80 per cent we would be opening up to those people interstate. We have put some speed humps in the way of the disease so that it doesn't spread through very quickly, and the longer we delay significant numbers coming into South Australia the more protected we are going to be.