'Confusion and anger' over Victoria-NSW border closure

Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie says she is concerned regional communities such as Albury-Wodonga are paying the economic and social price for the Andrews government's mishandling of the COVID-19 crisis.

Victorians will be banned from entering New South Wales from 11.59pm Tuesday night as Australia's leaders desperately try to contain the latest outbreak which continues to surge.

Premier Daniel Andrews said the decision to close borders between Australia’s largest states came after a phone call between himself, the Prime Minister and NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian.

The decision to close the borders coincided with Victoria recording 127 cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, with 16 detected in the public housing towers that have been locked down.

People who live on the border will be eligible for a permit if they need to travel across the border for work.

Senator Mackenzie told Sky News there is considerable "anger and confusion" over this announcement.

"We have a community of 100,000 people between Albury and Wondonga," she said.

"We share a workforce, we share education system and a health system, for instance you can only have babies here in Wondonga, and it begs the question, where does a new mother go when she heads back to Albury, does the father have to quarantine?

"There's a lot of confusion and anger around a community that really sees itself as two cities, one economy, and one community.

She said since the outbreak is confined to Melbourne, it would have made more sense to lockdown down the city and leave the regions alone.

Image: News Corp Australia