Slade Brockman (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator Birmingham. Can the minister please advise the Senate how the Liberal and Nationals government is implementing its plan to transition Australia from the COVID-19 pandemic and build a stronger and more secure nation?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Brockman for his question. I know his enduring work and interest in relation to Australians seeing through the short-term challenges and immediate challenges our nation faces and also the importance of continuing to build a stronger and more secure Australia in the long term.

Our immediate focus as a government continues to be dealing with the immediate health and economic crises but also on setting out a pathway to the return of more normal life. It's built on the clear premise that, by getting people vaccinated, we can make current approaches to lockdowns, border closures and restrictions ultimately a thing of the past. It's not necessarily eliminating safeguards and precautions that have to be taken in relation to infectious diseases but being able to move forward. Just last week the national cabinet agreed, in principle, to our updated four-step plan to chart our path out of the pandemic and the targets we need to reach to get there. It is a uniquely Australian plan, based on clear medical, scientific and economic evidence.

Today we've shared that expert advice from the Doherty institute and the Commonwealth Treasury with Australians. It's a plan that gives every Australian a goal to work towards as a way out of this pandemic. It ensures that, as we get through each phase that we as a country need to reach with the vaccination target on average and for each state and territory, we also know the different steps that can be taken in changed management approaches to COVID-19, whilst still keeping Australians safe. For example, once we get 70 per cent of eligible Australians vaccinated, we'll move to the next phase, where lockdowns will be less likely, restrictions can be eased and many freedoms can be returned. Those steps will be enhanced even further at the 80 per cent stage, as the Doherty institute evidence outlines.

Australia is in a unique position amongst nations of the world, having had the ability to work through such an expert scientific approach that can enable us to work through our vaccine rollout and continue to manage the pandemic in ways that can best position our country for the future.

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

Senator Brockman, a supplementary question?

Slade Brockman (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Can the minister please outline the supports the government has put in place, including with the states and territories, to support Australians and businesses affected by lockdowns?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The immediate challenges remain real for many Australians, particularly those facing lockdowns in greater Sydney, in South East Queensland, and others along the way. We are directly delivering financial support to impacted individuals and to businesses. People who have lost more than 20 hours of work in the previous week during a lockdown can claim $750. People who have lost between eight hours or a full day of work to 20 hours can claim $450. These are equivalent levels of support we provided with JobKeeper last year but in a more targeted tailored program that can effectively reach those who need it most. In fact, it's a program that Premier Dan Andrews has likened to being an updated version of JobKeeper. Individuals who currently receive an income support payment through our social security safety net will also receive an additional weekly payment of $200 if they have lost more than eight hours of work, whilst we have plans and operations in place with states and territories in relation to cost-sharing support for small- and medium-sized businesses, all of it designed to help ensure we get people through these difficult times so they come back strongly afterwards.

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

Senator Brockman, a final supplementary question.

Slade Brockman (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Can the minister please update the Senate on the progress of the vaccination rollout, and the steps the government is taking in cooperation with the states and territories as part of the national road map?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to thank the millions of Australians who are turning out to get vaccinated. With numbers growing each and every day, we now know that around 12.6 million doses have been administered across Australia and more than a million doses a week are being administered. We have acknowledged there were early challenges to the program in terms of expected deliveries that didn't arrive, in terms of changes in advice from medical experts but, nonetheless, we saw a total of 4.5 million vaccinations administered last month, which was more than double what was achieved in May when 2.1 million doses were administered. This steady increase in supply, coupled with a steady increase in distribution outlets, is ensuring that we have the strongest possible position for Australians to be able to get vaccinated, to know that the supply and the outlets will be there for them, and that we can reach the 70 and 80 per cent targets outlined by the Doherty Institute to safely proceed to the next stages of pandemic management.