Why strict border control remains crucial if we want to keep the travel bubble safe
- Written by Nicholas Steyn, Research assistant, University of Auckland
With the opening of a quarantine-free travel corridor between New Zealand and Australia this week, it’s easy to forget COVID-19 is still spreading globally, faster than ever, with more than three million deaths recorded worldwide.
Within a day of the travel bubble opening, a fully vaccinated border worker who cleans planes coming from countries with high rates of COVID-19, tested positive and was transferred to a quarantine facility.
Such cases show why it remains absolutely essential to maintain strict border measures to keep the virus out of the trans-Tasman bubble.
Since January 1 2021, 397 international arrivals in New Zealand have tested positive for the virus. Most have been contained in managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) facilities.
Authors: Nicholas Steyn, Research assistant, University of Auckland