Nick McKim (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My understanding is that Senator Steele-John is now good to go, so I seek leave for him to make his multi-delayed three-minute contribution on the matter of public importance.

Leave granted.

Jordon Steele-John (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

[by video link] There is a lot of talk in this place and in the media about what it will take to change the way that we manage COVID-19 in the community to open up.

I've got to say that right now I am furious. Young people are at risk and disabled people are at risk all because the Morrison government has failed, failed and failed again. This is not good enough. Only a fraction of disabled people are currently vaccinated. It is absolutely heartbreaking to hear of COVID-19 cases making their way into group homes with individuals who are not fully vaccinated. Even for those who are in the front of the queue for the vaccine there is the struggle to find somewhere accessible where it can be administered. Disabled people are feeling scared. We are feeling isolated. We are terrified that, as corporations push to open up our country, we are the ones who will be left behind to die.

It is outrageous that young people do not have a time frame to receive a vaccination. This slow, delayed rollout is causing longer and longer disruptions to our lives. We do not have access to the mental health supports that we need. All the while, house prices go up and the climate crisis continues to loom over our generation. This government's failures are stealing some of the best moments of our youth while at the same time their failures in relation to climate change steal our future.

The Greens will not risk the lives of young people, of disabled people, of the immunocompromised. As we move to change our response to the pandemic, we will ensure that the voices of at-risk community members are centred and that their wellbeing, their safety, is and continues always to be at the centre of everything we do. I thank the chamber for its time.