North Coast MPs from four different political parties have come together to write to the Queensland Government to ask them to remove the divisions they have created for border communities.

National Party Members Chris Gulaptis, Geoff Provest, Gurmesh Singh and Ben Franklin, along with Liberal Party MLC Catherine Cusack, Labor MP Janelle Saffin and Greens MP Tamara Smith have jointly written to Queensland Deputy Premier Steven Miles requesting residents still be able to travel into the State when NSW begins to reopen.

Local Nationals MLC Ben Franklin, the initiator of the letter, said the harsh border conditions have been devastating for Northern NSW residents and they deserved assurances they would not be punished by QLD as NSW becomes the first state to reach 70% double dosed vaccination rate.

“Each of us who signed this letter have received countless calls, emails and letters about the devastation the tough border restrictions have caused for residents,’ Mr Franklin said.

“We may not agree on everything, but on this we are united – NSW border residents deserve to be able to access work, health care and education and have this border crisis resolved.

“There is a National Plan in place that was agreed to by State Premiers of all political persuasions and it is important that each state honours its commitment to the plan.

“We don’t want there to be an ‘us and them’ attitude between our communities. We have never had this and we need Queensland to come to the table and help chart the path for returning to normal once again.”

The seven MPs have told the Queensland Government that they have received hundreds if not thousands of concerns from NSW residents that they are suffering because of the border closures and that the restrictions are “killing our border communities.”

In the letter, it has been highlighted that even when NSW begins to incrementally open up at 70%, residents from Greater Sydney, who have borne the brunt of the outbreak, will still not be able to travel to regional NSW.

Mr Franklin, along with all the signatories have asked the Queensland Government for certainty and a commitment to keep the border open.