Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Speaker. The Leader of the Opposition needs to understand that carping negativity is not a substitute for policy positions. The opposition has been invited for more than a year to join the government in our efforts to combat the virus. But throughout the pandemic they have chosen, time and again, just to pursue political pointscoring, rather than joining and supporting the national effort. We saw in the Lowy poll today that 95 per cent of Australians believe that Australia has handled this pandemic well. The evidence shows that when you look at the case numbers in Australia. The fatality rate in Australia could have been 30,000 more were it not for the steps taken by governments, including our government, to ensure that Australia has positioned itself as one of the best countries in the world as we move through this pandemic. The opposition seems to believe that, when there is a global pandemic, there can't be transmission of a virus. That is a foolish position and a misleading position. We've taken a realistic approach and are working with governments around the country to keep Australians safe, to protect lives and to protect livelihoods. The opposition continues to focus on politics and pointscoring, rather than just supporting a national effort. I commend Lieutenant General Frewen for the great job he's doing in ensuring that we are moving as quickly as we can to vaccinate as many people as we can.

See this speech in context