Government MPs are becoming increasingly vocal about the need to ease lockdowns. By contrast, Labor is warning about relaxing the rules too quickly and driving case numbers even higher. covid19 auspol
Liberal MPs are urging Prime Minister Scott Morrison to take a hard line against states that veto plans to ease lockdowns when vaccination rates hit 70 per cent, escalating a political clash over calls to abandon the target when coronavirus case numbers have surged to record levels.
“We assume that a single outbreak involving 30 individuals initiates community transmission at the time of transition to Phase B once target vaccine coverage is achieved,” the Doherty report said. While the lockdown rules are under the control of states and territories, federal government MPs are calling for a hard line in Canberra to keep all leaders to the agreement to ease the curbs at 70 per cent vaccination and use lockdowns only in rare circumstances at 80 per cent.
“There is a divide that is opening up in the community – you’re either pro-lockdown or anti-lockdown – and I think good bipartisan leadership will show that you have to transition out of lockdowns. “The immunisation rates in high-risk groups - like Indigenous, diabetics, immuno-suppressed, teachers - are so low that it would be cavalier to remove restrictions too soon,” he said.
“There could be a case for some restrictions after 70 per cent but they can’t be the same punitive restrictions we have at the moment, because the whole point of getting to that vaccination is that we can start to ease,” Senator Bragg said.The national cabinet agreement sets a twin target by saying states should ease restrictions once their vaccination rates reach 70 and 80 per cent and the national average reaches the same levels, but there is a push within the party room to allow more freedom.
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