There were only three new cases of COVID-19 in WA overnight bringing the state total to 517.

All three are West Australians from the metropolitan area.

Two had been on a cruise ship in the Mediterranean and came home with illness while contact tracing is still under way for the third.

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Mark McGowan said three cases were the lowest numbers seen since the testing regime started.

“Three new infections is very encouraging, very encouraging for all of the measures we have taken over the last month … and it shows some of the things we have been doing have had an impact,” the Premier said.

“There’s going to be restrictions in place for at least six months in one form or another and we’re not going to loosen things that would make it worse.

“We continue to be hampered by people coming back from overseas.

“That’s continuing to be the threat factor for WA.”

Mr McGowan said the war was not won and he would only make changes to restrictions based on medical advice.

He said if restrictions were lifted too early it would be hard to put the “genie back in the bottle” if there was community spread of the virus.

“The border restrictions have been very effective in my view,” Mr McGowan said.

There have been 68 case of coronavirus related to the Artania cruise ship which means 449 West Australians have had the virus.

So far 239 have recovered but there are still 38 people in hospital.

The Premier said WA would look each month at whether any restrictions could be “tweaked” but ruled out changing border control measures.

“We’ve done so well so far … and I don’t want to see us lose that position and I don’t want to see people’s health outcomes impacted,” he said.

Mr McGowan said getting Australians back to their home states after quarantining on arrival from oversea was a national issue at the moment.

“It’s a problem all over Australia, Sydney has thousands if not tens of thousands of people being kept in hotels,” he said.

“Getting them home is not easy.

“Qantas has wound back its flights so much it’s hard to get flights home for these people.”

Mr McGowan said there were discussions between premiers and the Prime Minister about the issue.

He said WA may have to underwrite flights to get West Australians home.

“We’ve successful flattened the curve, now we have to work out how we keep it there but also find a long term solution to the problem,” Mr McGowan said.