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Canberra Today 4°/8° | Saturday, April 27, 2024 | Digital Edition | Crossword & Sudoku

Taking up a financial case for quarantined locals

Chief Minister Andrew Barr

CANBERRANS forced into home quarantine after spikes in the number of COVID-19 cases are seeking some form of financial compensation. 

The ACT government can confirm that 10,600 people are currently on stay-at-home orders.

Most of those recent visitors to Sydney hotspots in particular have been unable to work for at least 14 days.

The clusters have also grown to such an extent along with the discovery on a daily basis of new exposure sites that thousands of people returning to the ACT from trips have lost their only source of income.

The concern over a lack of remuneration for their inconvenience of isolating has caught the attention of the ACT government.

Chief Minister Andrew Barr has raised the matter with Prime Minister Scott Morrison and hopes it can be resolved at a national cabinet meeting on Tuesday (June 29).

“It was fair to say that he was not aware of the issue in terms of how the Commonwealth had written their regulations associated with eligibility for the scheme,” Mr Barr said.

“He said it didn’t sound fair and that they would look at it.

“We have a team of officials working with the Commonwealth on this today.”

Many Australians received a $1500-a-fortnight JobKeeper support package payment during the pandemic after being able to attend jobs when the federal government had encouraged people to stay home to avoid mass social interaction.

But no compensation has been previously arranged between governments for others that are suspected of contracting the virus.

The ACT government has not stated whether it will reimburse persons isolated for 14 days for lost wages should the federal government take no financial action.

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Thank you,

Ian Meikle, editor

Andrew Mathieson

Andrew Mathieson

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