Raff Ciccone (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the minister representing the minister for health, Senator Colbeck. Yesterday the Acting Premier of Victoria, James Merlino, said, 'Victorians have turned out in their thousands to get vaccinated, but we can't maintain this rate without certainty about supply from the Commonwealth.' Why has the Morrison government failed to give certainty of supply and forced the Victorian government to stop taking bookings for the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine?

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Ciccone for the question. The Australian government has, in fact, provided additional resources and vaccines to Victoria to assist them through their current circumstance. We've worked very closely with the Victorian government. We've supported them in vaccine supply. There are a significant number of additional vaccines that have been supplied to Victoria to assist them with the rollout, so I don't accept the premise of the question that's been put by Senator Ciccone that we are trying to starve Victorians of vaccine supply. In fact, we've worked very cooperatively to provide additional capacity and additional vaccines in the tens of thousands to Victorians so that they have additional supply to support Victorians who are looking for a vaccine.

The announcement today is also obviously going to create some further challenges with the changes in the advice that we received with respect to the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines. We will follow that advice and we will continue to work with the states towards supporting them—

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Ciccone on a point of order?

Raff Ciccone (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, on relevance: I don't want to repeat part of the question, but the quote that I had asked the minister about was directly from the Acting Premier about the lack of certainty about the supply from the Commonwealth. That was the Acting Premier's direct quote, and I ask him to address that part of the question.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You've emphasised part of the question. I think, with respect, the minister was talking about the supply of vaccines to the state of Victoria, so I think he is directly relevant.

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We have worked very closely with Victoria to support them with supplies. We have provided additional Pfizer vaccines to Victoria to the tune of 150,930 over four weeks. We have provided them 170,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine over six weeks. And we have provided an additional 330,000 AstraZeneca vaccines to our primary care clinics in Victoria, so that they can be assisted with the current issues they're dealing with. We will continue to work closely with the Victorian government and all the other states to ensure that they have the maximum available supplies to support people to get vaccinated as quickly as possible.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Ciccone, a supplementary question?

Raff Ciccone (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Can the minister confirm that at national cabinet the Commonwealth committed to ensuring supply of the second dose? Why has the government failed to meet this commitment?

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thanks, Senator Ciccone, for the question. The Commonwealth government has given supply indications for vaccines out to each state over a considerable period of time. We continue to work with the states as those vaccine supplies are confirmed from our suppliers. We will continue to do that. We have given supply indications to each of the states, we have met those supply indications and we continue to work with the states in circumstances as we are working with Victoria right now to ensure that they have the maximum available supply that we can provide to them to support their vaccine rollout. There have been 150,000 additional Pfizer vaccines to Victoria over four weeks, 170,000 additional AstraZeneca vaccines to the Victorian state government over six weeks and over 330,000 additional doses to our primary care providers.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Ciccone, a final supplementary question?

Raff Ciccone (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

How many aged-care workers have been turned away from Victorian vaccination centres as a result of the Morrison government's failure to provide certainty of supply, as it promised at national cabinet?

Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My advice from the Victorian government, from three sources, is that aged-care workers remain a priority category for vaccination in Victoria. That advice has been provided to me by three sources within the Victorian government. So I don't accept that workers don't have the vaccine available to them, because I've had it confirmed from three sources within the Victorian government that they remain a priority and that there still are bookings available for aged-care workers if they want to go and get a vaccine.