In refusing to repatriate his State’s share of returning citizens, Mr Andrews said Victoria had higher standards than other Australian jurisdictions.

While NSW and Queensland have recently doubled their weekly intake of Australians stranded overseas to 3010 and 1000 respectively, Mr Andrews has increased Victoria’s intake by just 8 per cent to 1310.

“We’re not going to go anywhere near the capacity that NSW has,” Mr Andrews said.

“We have less capacity because we have a different model and I believe higher standards. I can say that because it’s true.

“There’s not 3500 private security working in our system. Do I need to go any further than that?” Mr Andrews quipped.

Meanwhile, 40 per cent of repatriated citizen arriving in NSW are residents of other States.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said her State continued to do the heavy lifting.

“Until Victoria is prepared to increase its intake, more Victorians will inevitably have to return through the NSW system, and we are ready to do what we must in the national interest,” she said.

NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said, unlike Victoria, NSW would continue to have a measured and proportionate response as cases occurred.

THRIVING

“While we need a strong health response, we need a strong economic response as well,” Mr Perrottet said.

“If you look at Sydney today, traffic’s coming back and the city is, I think, thriving again and that’s a very positive thing,” he said.

“But there are going to be cases. We have returning Australians coming home and the quarantine system has been very positive – particularly for our State.”

Mr Perrottet appeared perplexed at Mr Andrew’s “higher standards” claim.

“Well I welcome that from Daniel [Andrews] and I’d say that he should take more returning Australians,” he said.