We Must Get Ahead of the Virus

“This won’t hurt a bit.” We’ve all heard those words getting a needle for one thing or another.

Right now, Australians are learning that the true pain is not getting a needle at all.

Somewhere, deep down, every Western Australian knows the truth. There will be another COVID outbreak in Western Australia. 

Perth has already had two this year. Chances are there will be a third by Christmas. The masks will come out, school chaos will return, small businesses will lose thousands.  

The warning from Victoria is clear. Business as usual isn’t enough when it comes to quarantine, vaccine rollout or public information.

We need to get ahead of this virus. Complacency is going to hold back our community and our economy.  

On current projections the vaccine rollout won’t be finished until September 2022.  

We are two AFL grand finals away from our state being fully vaccinated.  

So when people like the Prime Minister and Chief Health Officers start talking about exemptions for those who ARE vaccinated, I get angry.  

When you have an age-based vaccine rollout (appropriately based on health advice) we need to be conscious that younger Australians will feel more of the negative economic impacts in a staged recovery.  

We know that some Australians under 40 are likely to be waiting until 2022 to be fully vaccinated.  

Right now, lockdown exemptions for vaccinated Australians will disproportionately benefit those at the front of the slow and long vaccine queue.  

The solution to avoid this inequality is obvious. Get the vaccine rollout back on track.  

Currently Australia is receiving 1,400,000 vaccine doses a week, but only injecting 450,000 into the arms of Australians.  

We also have more than enough health professionals to get the rollout done safely and much faster. 

The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency has 82,262 health professionals registered in WA.  

These health professionals could be doing shifts in the mass vaccination centres we need the Commonwealth to set up. Perth CBD has plenty of vacant commercial property right now. Surely even a fraction could be used for vaccination centres.  

There are empty office levels in the CBD directly opposite the Department of Health that could be used.  

Now that we have a more certain vaccine supply, we also need the Federal Government to outline a clear timetable for when every Australian will be offered a vaccine.

National Cabinet has an obligation to make sure Western Australia, and every part of Australia, is able to stop the next outbreak.  

The Prime Minister’s monthly meeting schedule is lazy. Meeting every four weeks might be fine for the local Rotary club. But it isn’t fine for a “war footing”.  

If we were serious about a “war footing” then we would be serious about using our defence assets.  

RAAF Base Learmonth and immigration detention facilities have already been identified by the Government’s own review.  

My constituents in Perth want us to get the riskiest quarantine out of the CBD. 

Until we have alternative quarantine locations it will always be the inner suburbs of Perth that bear the worst of outbreaks.  

Moving the riskiest quarantine out of the CBD will also help increase capacity.  

There will be no serious movement on skilled migration or international students until we can get the 40,000 Australians home.  

Our economic recovery needs these 40,000 Australians to come home. Until they do, there won’t be the community support for vaccinated workers or students to return to our shores.  

All of this is urgent.  

It is urgent because every week that we fall further behind on vaccination is another week that the crazy fringe are able to undermine the vaccine program.  

Let’s not give them any more ammunition.  

A credible public information campaign would save Australian lives.   

Boosting confidence is something we can do regardless of the speed of the vaccine supply.

The United Kingdom had Elton John front their campaign.  

If Tourism Australia can get Kylie Minogue for their ads, then surely we can recruit Kylie or some local Perthonalities to boost vaccine confidence.  

This opinion piece was first published in The West Australian on Friday, 4 June 2021.