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Many media yesterday chose to dramatically misquote Adele Labine-Romain, National Travel, Hospitality and Leisure Sector Leader at Deloitte Access Economics, saying that she had said international travel would not restart until 2024, with even today 7News saying, “Health minister gives travel update after report rules out holidays until 2024”.

Let me reassure you, these statements that international travel would not start until 2024 are not true and to stress and avoid any confusion, are totally incorrect and not what Adele said at all!

So, I took the opportunity to have a chat with Adele and ask her if she did say that international travel whether inbound or outbound would not start until 2024 and she was abundantly clear, as you would imagine one of the country’s leading tourism and travel researchers, statisticians and economists with a stellar track record would be, saying, no, she did not say that.

So, what did she say?

Well, if you want to get the real story of what Adele thinks about the return of international travel, which I found to be a very optimistic and positive, rather than the depressing picture, painted in many media, and yes she was misquoted, then click on my interview with Adele below and I am confident you will be pleasantly surprised – I could tell you what she said, but best you hear it from her:-

In the meantime, the Federal Health Minister even more confusingly has now said that even when Australia is fully vaccinated, the borders may remain on lockdown, with some describing it as being trapped for years on a ‘prison island’, with promises about opening the borders once millions are vaccinated now seemingly abandoned while the rest of the world begins to move on from the pandemic, with Adele also giving her views on the social consequences and the timetable that the Federal Government has to provide for reopening the borders for both inbound and outbound. No political rhetoric or innuendo from Adele, just facts.  How refreshing!

A report and interview by John Alwyn-Jones