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These of you that have read my recent cruise articles about the slow restart of cruising in Australia, will know that I have been pushing very hard to secure some sort of response from a number of organisations as to why, well over a year after COVID-19 arrived on our shores, the Australian cruise sector is still in limbo or as I call it “wallowing in the dark” and in particular while other countries are steaming ahead, with cruising having already started or about to start, albeit in a very controlled manner.I know that many of my industry colleagues and friends and also cruisers, are equally frustrated by the ongoing, painfully slow delays related to the return of cruising in Australia, but more than that, what I am told by many is the really irritating and creating such frustration, lack of information about what is going on being provided to people like us, that means you and me!

You, me, the travel industry and the sector, outside those inside what we might call “the inner circle”, that is the bodies that are discussing and negotiating the return of cruising in Australia with the Federal and State Governments, are unquestionably being kept in the dark in relation to what is being discussed and what options may be on the table to allow cruising to restart in Australia, with many outside the “inner circle” feeling that we are all being treated like children or fools, as if we are not intelligent enough to be provided with this information.

So, who are these insiders and in the “inner circle”?  Well of course the Federal and State Governments, plus it appears the larger cruise operators, I believe the Chairman and Board of CLIA, the MD of CLIA, who I am told is giving the members of CLIA regular updates.  So, you can see what I mean by the “inner circle”, with if you are not in that “inner circle” are not being provided with updates.

Now, I do know that CLIA and fair play to them has been heavily involved and worked very hard in this process and I am not criticising CLIA or their MD, Joel Katz as I reckon their hands regarding providing updates outside their members may be tied by the State and Federal Government, but having said that, it really is time that the content of the discussions taking place are revealed by someone to the greater world out there, to the travel industry, the suppliers of products and the public in general, as this secrecy has gone on long enough.

When I have asked the Federal and State Governments and others, including CLAI and operators, for updates I receive standard statements that tell me and you absolutely nothing, with one phrase really irritating me and that is variations on ”we are working towards the careful resumption of cruising beginning with domestic itineraries”.

CLIA told me that central to everything is that it is pressing the government to finalise the framework for a restart of cruising and that so much hinges on the Government agreeing a pathway, with that suggesting the roadblock is with the Federal Government.

What concerns me though is that the Federal and State Governments have already demonstrated a distinct lack of knowledge and understanding of cruising in Government, as evidenced in my recent interview with Dr Ian Norton.

He is Australia based, with several years’ experience with the World Health Organisation managing diseases like Ebola and more recently resolving issues with Ruby Princess created by the ineptitude of the NSW Government and he also worked on recovery issues with the Grand Princess – did you watch the interview?  If not CLICK HERE to watch!  Dr Norton says that says Australia cruising can start RIGHT NOW and he is an acknowledged expert and much more knowledgeable than any of us and/or any I imagine anyone in government in this specific medical area and of cruising, and I repeat he made it very clear that cruising in the bubble could start right now.

So come on you guys in the “inner circle”, we all need some certainty of the way ahead and as CLIA told me, cruise lines cannot finalise operational plans with the States and Territories until there is a pathway for ships and crew to re-enter Australia, and with no pathway, the only definite date that everyone has to work with is the current expiry of the Biosecurity Determination on 17 June.

Having said that, it did not help that Carnival Corporation extended their pause to 17 September and while even if the go ahead was given on June 17 and it will take some time to get ships going again, the extensions and Carnival’s announcement appeared to be interpreted by some as that any approval might not happen until September.

 CLIA says quite rightly that suppliers also need certainty, travel agents need certainty, and of course consumers need certainty, but the Government does not seem to have taken that in account, at least by their what I describe as deadly silence and what appears to be a clear lack of understanding.

CLIA told me that with respect to the 17 June, they are pushing for the framework to be finalised prior to this decision, as the government will be seeking advice from health authorities, including the AHPPC, the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee, before deciding whether and under what conditions to extend the determination.  But what concerns me again is whether the AHPCC really understands and others really understand what they are making a decision regarding?

Who and what is the AHPCC?  Well here is the membership and check it out – not one person that has experience in and understands the cruise sector: –

The AHPPC is chaired by the Chief Medical Officer of the Australian Government and as of November 2020 comprises the Chief Health Officers of the State and Territory Governments. 

Jurisdiction Position Office holder
Commonwealth Chief Medical Officer and Director of Human Biosecurity (Chair) Paul Kelly
New South Wales Chief Health Officer and Deputy Secretary Population and Public Health Kerry Chant
Victoria Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton
Queensland Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young
Western Australia Chief Health Officer Andrew Robertson
South Australia Chief Public Health Officer Nicola Spurrier
Tasmania Chief Medical Officer Tony Lawler
Australian Capital Territory Chief Health Officer Kerryn Coleman
Northern Territory Chief Health Officer Hugh Heggie

 As of 2017 it also included: 

Jurisdiction Position Office holder
Australian Defence Force Surgeon-General and Commander Joint Health Rear Admiral Sarah Sharkey
Commonwealth Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer Alison McMillan
Commonwealth Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nick Coatsworth
Commonwealth Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jenny Firman
Commonwealth Deputy Chief Medical Officer Michael Kidd

The AHPPC also provides strategic direction and support to five standing committees:

Communicable Diseases Network Australia (CDNA)

National Health Emergency Management Standing Committee (NHEMS)

Public Health Laboratory Network (PHLN)

Environmental Health Standing Committee (enHealth)

Blood Borne Viruses and Sexually Transmitted Infections Standing Committee (BBVSS)

As of November 2020 it also oversees one time-limited advisory group, the Aged Care Advisory Group.

You see, I really I doubt the AHPCC understands cruising as it has already demonstrated, and this lack of understanding is also demonstrated by the stupidity, ineptitude and lack of knowledge base and understanding of cruising in the Northern Territory government’s decision regarding cruising in their waters, along with over the ditch, the New Zealand Government’s unbelievable decision related to PONANT.

So, I asked CLIA how can we help and they asked us to support the industry’s efforts by calling on our readers to write to their Ministers and reinforce the message that we need the government to finalise the framework for cruise resumption, so that our industry can move forward, so let’s bombard the Ministers with emails and here are the relevant email addresses: –

So, CLIA while we can help you, we also need you and the relevant governments to help us and while we might disagree there has been a deadly silence, we really do need detailed updates regarding what the reality of the current state of play regarding the return of cruising in Australia, who is involved in the discussions, what the process is, what is being discussed, what the issues are, what the stumbling blocks are, etc,

You say that the industry, CLIA, your cruise line members and the Australian Cruise Association, supported by external medical experts, have submitted detailed proposals to the Federal Government and States on how you believe cruise can resume in Australia, but we need to know what these submissions said!  – we need to know!  You say your proposals provide detailed scenarios for both returning ships and crew. That is great news but what are your proposals?

You say you there have meetings and discussions at all levels of government, as well as presentations to the CDNA and AHPPC, and there is have a working group that regularly meets with the Federal Govt, made up of CLIA, ACA and representatives of cruise lines, as well all the key Federal government agencies and that is great, but who is on the working group and what has been discussed?

You say that these are very complex and address a constantly shifting landscape and I am sure they are but I am also sure that there are many amongst us that are intelligent and experienced enough to understand them and in addition perhaps simplified versions could also be provided to those less knowledgeable and experienced.

You say that the health authorities are looking at everything through the risk lens, and you continue to provide the reassurance that cruising can resume in a careful and safe way and we are confident that you are providing those reassurances, but it all needs to be much more open as I have outlined above and also do the health authorities really understand the risk or actually the lack of it?  I doubt it!

You say that the path to resumption is complex and while I am sure it is but, you all need to tell us what it is, with keeping us all in the dark is not a good approach about what has and is happening.

We look forward to receiving much more detail and updates as I have outlined from any or all the parties involved in the “inner circle”.

An opinion and report by John Alwyn-Jones, Cruise Editor.