Australia: Right columnist Katie Hopkins kicked out of the country after coronavirus breach

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Katie Hopkins (archive image)

Photo: Nathan Strange / AP

Australia has revoked right-wing British columnist Katie Hopkins her visa over an alleged coronavirus violation.

According to media reports, Hopkins had boasted in an Instagram video that she opened the door to her hotel room without a mask for food delivery people.

Hopkins had flown to Sydney to take part in a reality TV show. Most people entering Australia have strict corona restrictions: They have to be in hotel quarantine for 14 days. According to the British Guardian, Hopkins had also said that she would “scare the security people” by opening her door naked and without a mask. The posts are now no longer available.

Even if it was meant to be a joke, the amusement of the Australian government is limited: "They are clearly not someone we want to keep in the country a second longer than we have to," said Australian Interior Secretary Karen Andrews the public broadcaster ABC.

That Hopkins had boasted about breaking the quarantine was "terrible".

"It was a slap in the face of all those Australians who are currently in lockdown."

Lockdown paralyzes large parts of the country

To curb the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus, a lockdown has been imposed on around twelve million people in Australia.

Canberra has also limited the number of entries.

Tens of thousands of Australians are therefore stuck abroad.

British columnist Hopkins has long been controversial.

She often represents racist, anti-Islamic and anti-migration views and speaks out against corona restrictions on a regular basis.

She should originally have appeared in an Australian offshoot of the reality TV show "Big Brother".

According to the British media, this contract was also terminated because of the quarantine scandal.

jok / AFP