Jenny Gale, Head of the State Service, message to all staff

Border Update and Travel within Tasmania (18 Aug 2020)

To: All Tasmanian State Servants

Dear Colleagues

The Premier has today delivered a Ministerial Statement in Parliament, where he provided an update on Tasmania’s border status, and initiatives to support Tasmanians travelling within our home State.

Border Restrictions Extended

Based on Public Health advice, our border restrictions will remain in place until at least 1 December 2020, giving time for the COVID-19 situation in other states to be effectively brought under control. The Premier outlined that this extension will also give us time to build the community’s trust in our border measures to protect Tasmania from areas in the rest of the country that pose a high risk.

The Premier announced we will also further strengthen the stringent process already in place for essential travellers. The Department of State Growth will now be involved in the assessment process along with the Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment and the State Control team to provide another layer of review in the assessment process before the State Controller makes the final decision.

To ensure that the public is kept informed we will also make publicly available statistical and regional information regarding essential traveller exemptions granted to enter Tasmania, on a weekly basis, taking into account people’s individual privacy.

Encouraging Tasmanians to travel within our State

To help drive intrastate visitation, and support and encourage Tasmanians to get out and experience their home state the Premier has today announced the introduction of the ‘Make yourself at home travel voucher’. This means that across the months of September, October and November the Government will be making a total of $7.5 million available to encourage Tasmanians to travel outside of their municipality, to stay midweek in accommodation or to purchase a tourism experience for any day of the week.

The support will provide up to $100 towards the cost of a room in commercial accommodation, or up to $50 per booking to participate in a tourism experience whether that be a cruise, a walk or entry to an attraction such as the Port Arthur Historic Site or the Tahune Airwalk.

Local businesses will also be encouraged to conduct their meetings or team building workshops away from their base in other parts of the State and they will be able to access this support as well to hold mini conferences and meetings.Page Break

Thank you all for your ongoing work and effort. I hope that a great number of you are able to take advantage of the Government’s encouragement to be a tourist at home – to travel and participate in some of the amazing experiences within our beautiful State.

A reminder as always to please wash your hands, cover your coughs and sneezes, if you’re unwell stay at home and don’t go to work, and if you display even the mildest symptoms, please, get a test.

For more information please visit the Tasmanian Government’s coronavirus website at http://coronavirus.tas.gov.au or call the Tasmanian Public Health Hotline on: 1800 671 738.

Best wishes

Jenny Gale Signature block
Jenny Gale
Head of the State Service
Secretary, Department of Premier and Cabinet
18 Aug 2020