Scott Morrison will meet with state and territory leaders this week for an emergency National Cabinet meeting amid rising COVID-19 cases across the country.
National Cabinet was not scheduled to reconvene until early next year, but increasing COVID-19 cases and the risk posed by the Omicron variant have necessitated a meeting just days before Christmas.
Morrison said that state leaders needed to fine tune their approaches to Omicron as more information comes to light about the variant, but he urged them not to reintroduce travel restrictions ahead of Christmas.
Speaking to reporters in Brisbane on Monday, Morrison said,
“We would urge (state and territory leaders) be calm, and consistent messages be given about travel arrangements and the requirements.
“When we last met, we made some decisions, and it’s a good opportunity to update on all of that before Christmas.”
Experts are warning of a surge in cases during the holiday period due to interstate travel and large gatherings. On Monday, NSW recorded 2501 new cases, and Victoria 1302. South Australia recorded 105, Queensland 59, the ACT 13, Tasmania three, and the Northern Territory also recorded three new infections.
Deputy Labor leader Richard Marles accused the Morrison government of letting Australia lag behind other countries when it came to booster shots, saying, Scott Morrison has stuffed up the rollout of the vaccine initially this year, now we’re seeing it happen again with the booster.”
The Prime Minister assured the public that there were enough boosters to meet demand, with up to four million people becoming eligible for a booster before the end of the year as a result of the reduction in the length of time between second and third doses of the vaccine. Morrison said, “There was some pressure, but that’s been overcome now and people will be able to get on and [get their booster] over the course of the summer break.”
At the cabinet meeting, NSW and Victoria will push for the interval to be reduced even further, to four months instead of five. NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard and his Victorian counterpart Martin Foley have written to federal Health Minister Greg Hunt ahead of the meeting to request that the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation make “specific determinations” for both states to have a fast-tracked booster program ahead of the holiday period. In addition, ATAGI will consider whether Australians will need to have received the booster in order to be considered fully vaccinated.
While states like Tasmania are making masks in indoor spaces mandatory from Tuesday, NSW is resisting calls to reintroduce such laws, with Premier Dominic Perrottet calling the matter one of “personal responsibility”.
Image: Mark Evans/Getty Images
