Australia's overseas travel ban extended to mid-December

Last week, Qantas said it was planning to restart international flights – including to and from the UK – before the end of the year should the government meet its 80% target.

The airline said it was preparing to operate to those destinations it expects the Australian government to declare low-risk owing to their high rates of vaccination, such as the UK, the US, Canada, Singapore and Japan.

It also hopes to redeploy some of its Airbus A380s ahead of schedule, including on its Sydney-London route via Singapore, although this won’t be until November 2022.

Speaking to TTG last month, chief executive of Melbourne-based Intrepid Travel, James Thornton, said he did not expect the country to reopen until after Australia’s federal elections next summer.

Hunt said the international Covid-19 situation was such that reopening the country’s borders continued to pose "an unacceptable risk to public health". "The extension of the emergency period is an appropriate response to that risk," said Hunt.

The extension of the ban will see Australia’s four emergency conditions remain in place: mandatory pre-departure testing and mask wearing for international flights; restrictions on the entry of cruise vessels within Australian territory; restrictions on outbound international travel for Australians; and restrictions on trade of retail outlets at international airports.