Australian Tourism Minister wants transtasman bubble with certain states

A transtasman bubble with certain Australian states could open up even before interstate border bans are lifted.

Australia's Federal Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham said New Zealand was the first choice for an international travel bubble, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

"New Zealand is obviously the first, and right now only, international market that we could safely agree to open up to," he told the Age and the Sydney Morning Herald.

"If New Zealand and some Australian states are ready and willing to progress, then the reluctance of other states to open up their domestic borders shouldn't become an obstacle to progress."

He said such travel should not rely on other states, such as Queensland, keeping their borders closed.

"The recovery of jobs and small businesses in some states shouldn't be held back by the decisions of other state governments."

Queensland's local government earlier this month released a "roadmap to easing restrictions", setting out expected dates certain restrictions would lift or be adjusted.

• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website

The road map identifies July 10 as a date from which interstate travel may be permitted.

The state has so far had 1061 cases of Covid-19, and six deaths linked to the virus.

On May 15, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said any transtasman travel agreement would not happen quickly and was more than "weeks" away.

Ardern said she could not put a timeframe on when travel to Australia might resume - but warned "it won't be weeks" - it would be longer.

She said she did not want travel to and from Australia to endanger the very low rates of the virus in New Zealand.