Speaking after National Cabinet today, Scott Morrison said that option had been ruled out.
“The suggestion that defence facilities can be used as immigration facilities, they’ve all been assessed before,” he said.
“They’ve been ruled as inappropriate. They’re not there sitting idle and otherwise used for that purpose.”
He said that hotel quarantine had thus far been “enormously successful”.
“That’s been over one of the most intense periods of demand and stress on the system,” he said.
“So we’ll continue to assess these as time goes by.”
Those include detention centres and military bases.
“I’ve lived in some of those defence facilities,” Mr McGowan said last week.
“I know what they’re like. Many of them were built with this in mind.
“When everyone pushes back against Christmas Island, just remember, the Commonwealth used it in March and April last year for people coming back from Japan and China.”
The first Australians to be able to return from India will be those deemed “most vulnerable” by the Australian High Commission.
Indian Air Force lands in Perth to take emergency oxygen supplies home
The flights will be handled by Australian crews and all passengers will be tested prior to departure.
“All of this is about sensibly preventing a third wave of COVID-19 here in Australia, and doing that responsibly while at the same time doing everything we can to sustainably bring Australians home from what is currently (the) most significant hot spot for those travelling into Australia of anywhere in the world right now,” Mr Morrison said.
The prime minister confirmed three flights from India will arrive in Australia once the temporary travel ban ends on May 15.
This content first appear on 9news