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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-09-21 Daily Xml
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COVID-19 Travel Exemptions

The Hon. E.S. BOURKE (14:35): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking a question of the Minister for Health and Wellbeing regarding border exemptions.

Leave granted.

The Hon. E.S. BOURKE: This morning, the minister's office sent an email to opposition offices that says:

Please find below a response to your question in the Legislative Council on Tuesday 7 September 2021 regarding the number of applications for travel exemptions back to SA.

How many applications for an exemption are there currently to allow travel into South Australia?

That was the question:

At this point in time, the Minister for Health and Wellbeing is unable to disclose the exact number of exemption applications. The numbers are quite rubbery.

My questions to the minister are:

1. Exactly, or even approximately, how many applications have been received?

2. Has the minister ever made any representations on behalf of a person or an organisation in relation to border exemptions?

3. How does the minister think people who are stuck on the border will feel when the best the minister's office can say is that they are working off rubbery figures?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (14:36): The advice I have received is that since the new portal was established on 9 August we have received about 11,000 applications, and my understanding is that the current number of outstanding applications is around 5,900. In terms of representations, the minister's office often raises cases with SA Health for that matter, from government members, from opposition members and from crossbenchers.

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