501 deportees board a repatriation flight from Sydney Airport to New Zealand in February this year. Photo / Channel 9
501 deportees board a repatriation flight from Sydney Airport to New Zealand in February this year. Photo / Channel 9
Australia's latest batch of so-called "501" deportees will be quarantined in a dedicated central Auckland hotel when charter flights resume next month.
A police spokeswoman said the 501 deportations were put on hold three months ago.
"Charter deportation flights are due to recommence from Australia as it reopens its borders.
"These flights ... have been suspended since late March. Deportations continued through commercial flights until late July when the travel bubble with Australia burst."
Police refused to say what date the first cohort would arrive or how many deportees were expected to be sent, citing privacy and security concerns.
Australia has been deporting New Zealand-born criminals - even those who have spent most of the lives across the ditch - in a controversial policy that has strained trans-tasman relationships.
Hundreds of people have been sent back under Section 501 of the Australian Migration Act, many of them gang members who have gone on to reoffend here.
Managed Isolation and Quarantine associate deputy secretary Andrew Milne confirmed the Ramada Suites on Federal St had been contracted to quarantine the deportees for their mandatory 14-day MIQ stay after they arrive in New Zealand.
A reporter questions 501 deportees as they are put on to a repatriation flight from Australia to New Zealand. Photo / Channel 9
The facility was previously used for 501 deportees before repatriation flights were put on hold.
Milne said any deportations from Australia were a decision for the Australian government, and as was the case before the trans-tasman bubble was opened, New Zealand needed to accommodate any deportees who were repatriated.
"MIQ will be standing up the Ramada managed isolation facility again. This facility was an excellent one for these returnees and we know they will be treated with the same professionalism, care and attention as before."
Additional security measures would be put in place, including additional security staff and protective fencing. Extra wraparound, rehabilitative and reintegration services were also available for the returnees through a variety of government agencies and NGOs.
A review of the hotel's ventilation system had been undertaken "to ensure it is operating optimally, but ideally to MIQ preferred conditions – which includes negative pressure in returnees' rooms. There has also been a lead in period to stand up the necessary staffing for the facility".
The Ramada was not suitable for use as a general purpose MIQ facility, Milne said, as it had just 42 rooms and a tight footprint, leaving little space for the additional services required to support a larger number of returnees.
All Managed Isolation and Quarantine facilities operate in a level 4 environment and all workers follow strict infection prevention controls developed by the Ministry of Health to manage the risks of spreading Covid-19, Milne said.
