We the undersigned are calling on NSW Premier GLADYS BEREJIKLIAN and NSW Health Officials to isolate Greater Sydney and Newcastle from regional NSW in the fight against COVID19.

The border closure at the QLD / NSW border by the QLD Premier has created enormous distress for people living in Tweed and Northern Rivers communities cut off from essential QLD services on the Gold Coast and in Brisbane.

The current health emergency situation has particularly highlighted the lack of adequate specialist medical services in Northern NSW. This region desperately leans on SE QLD for medical and community assistance.

Please lock down and isolate Greater Sydney, Newcastle and the Central Coast to keep the virus spread under control and prevent the spread into regional areas

There are no active cases in the Northern Rivers region but Queensland has closed the border, refusing to wait for the NSW state government to take a proactive lead. Now there is the threat of a hard NSW/QLD border closure which will have a devastating effect on our communities who rely on Queensland for vital medical and economic support.

Our region is already struggling with depleted health services.

Closing down hot spots in Sydney and Newcastle will stop people from hotspots moving freely throughout the State. Lockdown Sydney and Newcastle and save lives.

The facts:

• People in border regional communities cannot access vital medical treatment in the cities of Gold Coast and Brisbane.
• Medical workers living on the Gold Coast cannot get to work in Northern NSW ie health staff employed in Lismore, Byron or Ballina Shires have to quarantine for 14 days before returning to the Gold Coast. Many share their time between the two states. This is putting added pressure on local employees who are now working overtime to cover shifts that co-workers from the Gold Coast are unable to fulfil;
• The Federal Government is trying to keep people employed but the border closure is doing the exact opposite. Many people cannot access their workplaces across the border, eg. construction workers are unable to get to their worksites as they fall outside the bubble, Police Officers are in the same situation amongst many others.
• Students cannot get to school.
• Many families have been split up or divided due to work commitments outside of the border bubble, forced to make a choice between putting food on the table and not seeing their family..
• Many can no longer access essential services, including dentists, orthodontists and other medical specialists.
• Sport for many regional children is now being cancelled because it falls outside the bubble.
• The Federal Government is providing grants left, right and centre to assist in job training, mental health, JobSeeker and Job Keeper payments while the QLD NSW border closure is crippling our regional economy and placing an enormous strain on families.

NSW Premier it is time you stepped up and acted. PROTECT Regional NSW. Stop flights still arriving from Sydney and Newcastle into Ballina Airport. Isolate the true hot spots of Greater Sydney and Newcastle and prevent the spread of the virus into regions.