The Big Guns’ Peta Credlin is calling on the government to prioritise Australians who need critical care over international visitors.

The MSC Magnifica cruise ship is carrying more than 1700 people from Italy, France, and Germany, including more than 250 passengers with upper respiratory symptoms, and is due to dock in Western Australia tonight.

Ms Credlin, PM Tony Abbott’s former chief of staff, tells Ben Fordham during the 2004-05 bird flu epidemic five quarantine centres around Australia were planned for.

“We have to be humane… but they can’t come anywhere near Australians. We can’t have the debacle we had the other day.

There’s only 243 ventilators in the whole of the state of WA, and I don’t think Australians want every single one of those ventilators in our hospitals going to anyone on this ship, because they’re all foreigners.”

“I’m not going out in public at all,” Graham Richardson adds, “If I catch this thing, I’m a goner.”

Click PLAY below to hear the full interview