A confession from the Deputy Chief Health Officer caught Tom Elliott’s attention on Friday.

Annaliese Van Diemen conceded at her press conference this morning that 30 per cent of returned travellers taken to hotel quarantine have refused to undertake COVID-19 testing.

“I find it bizarre that they can’t be forced to,” Tom Elliott said.

Professor Tony Blakely, Professorial Fellow In Epidemiology at Melbourne University, said in “in an ideal world” 100 per cent would get tested.

“However, we don’t live in an ideal world,” he said.

“To try and compel everybody to have a test would be starting to reach over into breaches of civil liberties and the rest of it.

“That said, if you’re in quarantine, you’re in quarantine because you’ve arrived in the state, or the country, and you’re there for 14 days.

“After 14 days, the chance of you having the virus still and having not manifested with symptoms, or cleared the virus yourself, is very small

“It’s less than one per cent.

“So the 14 day period itself does get the people through the risk period.

“It would be nice to have the testing, as well, of course.”

Interestingly, Sandy told Tom Elliott she was in quarantine in April and couldn’t get a test when she asked.

“They said no, you haven’t displayed symptoms,” she said.

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