Queensland Deputy Premier Steven Miles has responded to Prime Minister Scott Morrison's suggestion that the state's borders should be open by Christmas by questioning the PM's priorities during his US trip.
Key points:
- Queensland Deputy Premier Steven Miles tells Scott Morrison to focus on his own job
- He accused the Prime Minister of trying to distract from international diplomatic issues
- Mr Morrison is in the US for a meeting of Quad leaders amid a diplomatic row with France
At a craft brewery to launch an advertising campaign to encourage higher COVID-19 vaccination rates in Queensland, Mr Miles said the Prime Minister had multiple international issues of diplomacy to deal with and "should focus on his job".
"Diplomacy is his job. International trade is his job. Vaccination should be his job, but we're doing it. Quarantine should have been his job, but we're doing it. Keeping COVID out of NSW was his job and he failed at it," Mr Miles said.
Mr Morrison has spent the last week in the United States, first speaking in a videotaped address at the United Nations General Assembly, then taking part in the first-ever meeting of the Quad leaders in Washington with US President Joe Biden, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.
On Sunday, in an interview on the sidelines of the Quad summit, Mr Morrison said he couldn't see why Australians "should be kept from each other" when 80 per cent of the population is vaccinated.
Mr Morrison told Channel Seven that premiers need to honour the national plan so Australians can have "their lives back" by Christmas.
"It's important that we do move forward. We can't stay in second gear. We've got to get to top gear in living with the virus … that's where we need to be," Mr Morrison said.
But Mr Miles said the national COVID plan does not – and never has — included opening borders once vaccination levels reach 80 per cent.
"That's not what the national plan ever said, but it is what the Prime Minister has continued to restate the plan said. I find it pretty incredible," Mr Miles said.
AP Photo: Evan Vucci
)No new Covid cases in Queensland
Queensland recorded no new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, a stark contrast to southern states where New South Wales and Victoria both recorded triple-digit increases in new cases.
There, Premiers Gladys Berejiklian and Dan Andrews have laid out a cautious return to normal for millions of residents who have been living under lockdown for months.
But Queensland's leaders have declined to say when the state's borders may reopen and Mr Miles has stressed that any decision will depend on the situation in Queensland and interstate.
"The situation in terms of number of cases, number of hospitalisations, number of people in ICU and the number of people vaccinated," Mr Miles said.
He said his conversations with Queenslanders had suggested they don't want COVID-19 to cross the border, which would force the introduction of COVID restrictions.
Right now, very few restrictions exist across the state, beyond mask-wearing in the south-east.
"I don't think Queenslanders want to just give in this close to the end of the pandemic," Mr Miles said.
"I don't think Queenslanders will want to let COVID in for Christmas if we don't have it and New South Wales still does."
Mr Miles suggested the Prime Minister had bigger issues to deal with beyond Queensland's borders, pointing to the recent diplomatic fallout from Australia's decision to scrap a $90 billion submarine deal with France in favour of a defence alliance with the US and UK.
"You've got diplomatic incidents with Paris. He broke up with France by text message. You've got him being rebuked by the European Union. You've got a trade dispute now provoked with China," Mr Miles said.
"So, all of that, and he's managing to distract the national debate with some discussion about what should happen in Queensland in three months' time."
Queensland vaccination campaign
The Deputy Premier's comment came as he launched a new campaign to encourage Queenslanders to be vaccinated.
The 'For The Love Of' campaign is attempting to reach people who are undecided about whether to get the vaccine. Four ads — 15 to 30 seconds in duration — are running on multiple TV and radio channels and social media sites.
Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said vaccine supply was no longer an issue and that people who had been asking for a dose had been able to receive one.
"So now, we've just got to get the people who are less aware of the need to be vaccinated," Dr Young said.
"I want people to be vaccinated before the virus arrives, not when it's arrived – it's too late then."
She said higher vaccination rates would eliminate the need for long periods of hotel and home quarantine for close contacts of confirmed cases.
Queensland's vaccination rates are lagging behind those in other states. As of Saturday, 63.4 per cent of eligible Queenslanders had received at least one dose, compared to 85.9 per cent of people in NSW and 76.9 per cent in Victoria.
And 45 per cent of Queenslanders had received two doses, compared to 59.2 per cent in NSW and 47 per cent in Victoria.
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2021-09-26 06:54:40Z
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