Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Health and Aged Care, Senator Colbeck. Can the minister confirm that the Morrison government placed its first order of Moderna in May, nine months after the Trump administration had placed its Moderna orders?

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

[by video link] I don't have the specific date of when the first order of Moderna was placed, but the Australian government have gone through a process of full recognition and registration of all of the vaccines that we have utilised in the country. We've had the opportunity to take advantage of international experience with respect to the utilisation of the respective vaccines—

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

Senator Gallagher, on a point of order?

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, a point of order on direct relevance. We were not asking about the registration, provisional or otherwise, by the TGA. We were asking about the original order of Moderna—the actual vaccine procurement strategy.

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

On the point of order, you reminded the minister of the question. The minister addressed part of the question in his initial response, but you've called for the remaining information to be directly relevant. I believe information about ordering vaccines would, in that case, be directly relevant. He has directly addressed the first point you asked, rather than making a broader comment on vaccine strategy. I've let you remind him of it and I'll listen to his answer carefully.

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

The Moderna vaccine forms a very important part of the overall vaccine strategy for this country. As I said to the chamber a moment ago, I don't have with me the specific date that the first order was placed. I'm happy to take that on notice and confirm that for the chamber. It forms a very important part of the overall vaccine strategy. The way that the government have managed the introduction of new vaccines into the country is to ensure that we've had full data available to the country via the TGA to ensure that the vaccines that we're utilising have high levels of efficacy and are safe. We, through the TGA, took just 23 days to approve the utilisation of the Moderna vaccine. We have used all our resources to ensure that we could have access to this vaccine as quickly as was safely possible so that it could be incorporated into the vaccine rollout program.

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

Senator Gallagher, a supplementary question?

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Moderna has been administered in the United States since December last year; in France, Germany and Italy since January this year; in Singapore since March; in the UK and Canada since April; and in Japan since May. Can the minister confirm that as late as April this year the Morrison government still hadn't even commenced discussions with Moderna to secure vaccine supplies?

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

[by video link] We have at all times worked with vaccine suppliers across the globe to ensure that we have capacity to meet the demands of the vaccination rollout for the Australian people. As I've just indicated to you, we approved the dataset for the Moderna vaccine in 23 days. We took the approach all through the rollout of the vaccines that we would utilise vaccines that were fully approved by the TGA and assessed through ATAGI so that we could guarantee to the Australian people that they were getting access to an efficacious and safe vaccine. We saw that as important for vaccine confidence in the Australian community. We have taken every step to ensure that Australians could be confident in the vaccines that they were taking. They went through the full and proper approval process.

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

Senator Gallagher, a final supplementary question?

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

More than six million people are in lockdown in New South Wales and are unable to get vaccinated as a result of the Morrison government's repeated failure to secure enough vaccine supplies. Aren't these Australians paying the price for Mr Morrison's repeated insistence that it isn't a race and that it is not a competition?

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

[by video link] I won't apologise for ensuring that the vaccines that are available to Australians have been through a full and proper assessment and approval process. I won't apologise for that and nor would the government. It is important to ensure that there is vaccine confidence within the Australian community and that we have taken the approach that we have. Australians can be confident that the vaccines that are approved for use here in Australia have been fully approved by the TGA. They can have confidence in the TGA and ATAGI and Australians can be confident in taking up the vaccines that have been approved for the vaccine rollout in Australia. It's the Labor Party who continue to undermine the confidence of Australians with their negative attitude and negative tactics, attacking the vaccine rollout. The Labor Party should be ashamed of their approach to the vaccine rollout.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

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

Order! I'm going to remind senators that, when I am hearing from people remotely, there needs to be extra compliance with the standing orders so I can hear the contributions.