Katie Allen (Higgins, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Health and Aged Care. Will the minister update the House on how further investment by the Morrison government is continuing to protect the health and safety of Australians against COVID and other potential pandemics to secure our future?

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to thank the member for Higgins. As she's pointed out in our discussions, we know that around the world the pandemic is not just continuing but is continuing to wreak devastating havoc. There have been over 750,000 cases and 14,000 lives lost in the last 24 hours. I hear almost a response of, 'Wow, so what?' from the other side—

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister will resume his seat.

Mr Dreyfus interjecting—

The member for Isaacs!

Mr Hunt interjecting—

No, the minister will resume his seat. His microphone's off.

Mr Hunt interjecting—

The minister will now cease interjecting.

Honourable members interjecting—

Members will cease interjecting.

Mr Dreyfus interjecting—

The member for Isaacs will contain himself.

Government members interjecting—

Members on my right will cease interjecting. I'm now issuing a general warning.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for the Arts) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, on a point of order simply to assist the House, I think it's important for everybody to know that every member of this House on every side appreciates the gravity of what's happening around the world. That should simply be accepted and no games should be played with that simple fact of the integrity of members.

Honourable members interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Members on my right! The minister has the call.

Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Indeed, that is exactly the point I was making. There are 750,000 people who have contracted the virus in the last 24 hours. There are 14,000 lives that have been lost. In Australia, we are blessed with the fact that there were zero cases of community transmission. Of all of the different things that could be happening in Australia, this is perhaps the most important in the last 24 hours. The defences that we have built as a nation over the course of the last year are keeping Australia secure. They are continuing to keep Australia secure, and the investments which have been put in place as part of that are continuing.

I note that the member for Higgins was one of 402,000 people last week to put her shoulder forward for the vaccination. There are many others who have done this in all parts of the country—82,000 in the last 24 hours. Very significantly, the budget contains an accumulated investment of over $25 billion in our COVID health response. That includes both our primary care, which is above $6 billion, and telehealth. It includes our vaccination program, which is over $7 billion. Very importantly, as part of that, I'm delighted to be able to say, as we announced earlier today, that the government has secured access to 25 million doses of the Moderna mRNA vaccine. As part of that, importantly, that allows us to have a medium-term strategy—where we are focusing next year on the ability to have booster and variant capacity. Now that the medical advice has indicated in particular this is important for the variant strategy—the ability to adapt—we've followed that advice and made that investment, but there are two other elements that are particularly important.

The minister for innovation will help lead a process of securing mRNA investment and processing capability in Australia through an approach to market. Indeed, Moderna itself has indicated it is interested in participating in that process and potentially producing vaccine over the medium term in Australia. That means that we now have over 190 million vaccines, we have a new capability and we potentially have the capacity to produce the vaccines here in Australia. (Time expired)