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Editorial: Australian leaders need to pull together to ensure WA gets the Defence help it needs

The West Australian
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COVID quarantine arrivals at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in East Perth are guided by masked and gloved Australian Defence Force personnel on arrival from Perth Airport.
PICTURE BY NIC ELLIS THE WEST AUSTRALIAN
Camera IconCOVID quarantine arrivals at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in East Perth are guided by masked and gloved Australian Defence Force personnel on arrival from Perth Airport. PICTURE BY NIC ELLIS THE WEST AUSTRALIAN Credit: The West Australian

In times of crises such as the coronavirus pandemic, Australians expect all levels of government to co-operate for the benefit of the nation.

This means we want our politicians to resist the temptation to point-score for electoral advantage — petty politicking, in other words — and work for the common good.

At the same time, we expect them to respect regional differences and local circumstances.

It’s a big country and a one-size-fits-all approach to public policy is not always appropriate. Yesterday, we sympathised with former Australian commando Stephen Spencer, who completed two tours in both Afghanistan and East Timor, and his struggle to bring his family back to WA from the United Arab Emirates where he has been a physical training adviser to the military since 2015. He said the arrival caps imposed on international arrivals to Australia were making it so difficult to come home that he had “lost so much faith in Australia and the values that once defined it”.

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We implored authorities to apply the same determination they have showed in suppressing the coronavirus — particularly in WA where we have been blessed with relatively few infections — to finding a solution to bringing home families like the Spencers and keeping the rest of us safe.

Today, we highlight another issue that requires State and Federal MPs to work together: ensuring enough Australian Defence Force personnel are deployed to WA to help local authorities keep their guard up against the pandemic.

This is particularly relevant to the maintenance of the State’s hard border and the hotel quarantine program.

Twenty ADF personnel were deployed to State checkpoints at Kununurra and Eucla on September 17 but it seems their mission is rather short-lived.

They are pulling out next Wednesday — the official reason being the need to start getting ready for the summer storm and bushfire season — and the State Government is not impressed.

“It's very disappointing, we would have liked their help there,” Premier Mark McGowan said yesterday.

“The PM did offer support of the ADF for things we might have wanted and the thing we want is support on the border.

“What we now need to do is get additional ADF support into our hotel quarantine. We’re doubling the number of Australians coming in from overseas, we’re taking the most per capita of any State in Australia and we will need additional Defence support.”

The virus is an insidious enemy that no level of government can fight on its own. It’s reasonable to expect our leaders will ensure WA gets all the Defence help it needs.

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