Was Rita Ora forced to quarantine in Australia? Armed officers escort singer after backlash over 'The Voice' trip
Just days after being accused of paying a restaurant in London to break coronavirus lockdown rules to throw a birthday party, Rita Ora has caught the attention of the Australian public after she was allowed to enter the country before 40,000 individuals who were stranded overseas because of the cap on the number of visitors in a given week. This criticism came from Australia's opposition home affairs spokeswoman Kristina Keneally who also accused Prime Minister Scott Morrison of leaving Australians behind.
Speaking to The Guardian, Keneally said, "It’s another example of Scott Morrison leaving Australians behind," and added, "There are still 40,000 Australians stranded overseas. Every celebrity who takes up a place in quarantine is a place denied to a stranded Australian." Reportedly, other celebrities such as Matt Damon and Miranda Kerr were also allowed to isolate in self-organized private residences to avoid Australia’s strict hotel quarantine regime. However, Ora had not organized a private residence and also traveled with her team, which burdens Australia’s strict cap on international arrivals.
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One source told The Sun, “It’s very clear how seriously the Australians are taking their border control, and there are no risks taken at all. They have no time for rule-breakers.
Ora traveled to Sydney, Australia, for work as she was announced as one of the coaches for 'The Voice' Australia. According to a report in The Sun, Ora was escorted to quarantine by armed officers. She was first escorted from Sydney Airport to a waiting minibus then driven to a nearby hotel where she stayed in her room.
A source was quoted as saying, "Rita traveled first class, with all the trimmings of private lounges and VIP suites. But there was nothing she could do to avoid having to properly quarantine. It’s very clear how seriously the Australians are taking their border control, and there are no risks taken at all. They have no time for rule-breakers. Border agents and the military are involved — and she had to comply.”
Before this, the singer's team has reportedly paid a London restaurant £5,000 to break lockdown rules for her 30th birthday. The singer hosted a birthday bash that reportedly saw celebrities such as Cara Delevingne and Poppy Delevingne attend. The CCTV footage in the restaurant was shut off in order to ensure that celebrities attending the bash would not be recorded.
What was worse was that the singer had flown to Egypt for a private performance and upon returning to London in November, instead of quarantining for two weeks, she had thrown a party. She did apologize for the same and said, "Given the restrictions, I realise how irresponsible these actions were and I take full responsibility." She also added, "I'm deeply sorry for breaking the rules and in turn understand that this puts people at risk," and said, "This was a serious and inexcusable error of judgement."
London's Metropolitan Police arrived at the Casa Cruz restaurant after a potential breach of Covid lockdown regulations had been reported. Charles Holland, who represented the Met Police's application shared, "'Police were advised that a party was being held on November 28 at the venue, Casa Cruz. They were told large groups of people had arrived via the back door of the club, there was security and loud music was being played and this was all during the second national lockdown."
He also slammed the restaurant and said they "selfishly wanted to flout the lockdown for financial gain and selfish pleasure".