Australia's system of hotel quarantine is under scrutiny after the latest in a series of COVID-19 leaks caused a five-day shutdown of Victoria.
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One new locally-acquired case was recorded in Victoria on Saturday, while five new cases were recorded on Friday.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said on Friday that there needed to be a "cold, hard discussion" about reducing the number of travellers returning to Australia from overseas.
Victoria entered a third lockdown at 11.59pm on Friday after the UK variant of the virus escaped quarantine at Melbourne Airport's Holiday Inn.
The outbreak now tallies at least 13 cases, including a woman who may have worked at an airport cafe while infectious.
On Friday evening, the Victorian government announced a pause on all international passenger flights from Saturday, excluding those already in transit.
The Victorian weekly cap had been set to lift from 1210 to 1310 overseas arrivals.
Mr Andrews asked whether there should be a "much smaller program" of hotel quarantine that was "based on compassionate grounds" and said the more infectious UK variant meant the "game (had) changed".
"This thing is not the 2020 virus. It is very different. It is much faster. It spreads much more easily," Mr Andrews said.
"We, all of us, have to have a conversation about what's safe, what's proportionate, what's reasonable."
A reduced traveller cap would make it harder for Australians stranded overseas to make it home. Thousands are already struggling with constantly cancelled flights and high ticket prices.
Mr Andrews said it was for the federal government to decide how many people would be returning to Australia.
But Prime Minister Scott Morrison has defended the hotel quarantine program, arguing that leaks are inevitable.
The virus has escaped from hotel quarantine in Sydney, Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide in recent months.
The Melbourne outbreak can be traced back to a family of three who quarantined at the Holiday Inn and are believed to have been infected overseas.
One family member, who is in intensive care, used a medical device called a nebuliser in their room despite them being banned outside of medi-hotels.
Elsewhere, NSW and Queensland on Saturday both reported no new local cases in their respective 24-hour reporting windows. Both states reported two new cases in travellers in hotel quarantine.
Victorian visitors to NSW from Saturday will be obliged to follow their home state's "stay at home" orders. This does not apply to residents of NSW border communities unless they have visited Greater Melbourne.
But NSW has strongly advised its residents to avoid non-essential travel to Victoria.
Tasmania, Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia have closed their borders to Victorian travellers.
Australian Associated Press
