Labor leader Anthony Albanese believes Australians should be granted access to coronavirus vaccines before March if the immunisations are approved by authorities.
Mr Albanese questioned why officials would wait until March to begin administering vaccines if they have been green light by health personnel months earlier.
Acting Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly on Wednesday revealed Australia will likely have two vaccines to roll out in March.
But Mr Albanese said the logic behind waiting for a set date after approval has been given is nonsensical after the US, UK and Europe fast tracked their vaccines.
Anthony Albanese said coronavirus vaccines should be rolled out earlier than March if approved by authorities
Australia will not change its rules around international arrivals from the United Kingdom despite a new strain of COVID-19 spreading in England.
Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly said Australia would continue to welcome overseas arrivals from the UK and while authorities were investigating the new virus strain, it does not yet pose a significant threat to the Australian community.
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Australia Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly said Australia will not shut borders to the UK.(9News) We don t believe there s any reason to change our border arrangements in relation to people coming from the UK, Professor Kelly said. Our view is that this is a concern in the UK.
Thailand seafood market cluster grows to more 1,000 cases
From journalist Angie Puranasamriddhi in Bangkok
A shrimp market in Samut Sakhon, Thailand is closed and surrounded with barbed wire on December 20. Chalida Ekvitthayavechnukul/AP
At least 427 new Covid-19 cases were confirmed on Monday from a Covid-19 cluster stemming from a seafood market outside of Bangkok, Dr. Taweesilp Visanuyothin, the spokesperson of the center for Thailand’s Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), said Tuesday.
The cluster from the Samut Sakhon province has grown to more than 1,000 in a few days, mostly among migrant workers.
Train travel between Samut Sakhon province and Bangkok has been suspended until January 3. Foreigners are currently prevented from entering or leaving Samut Sakhon.
Australia awaits final approval of COVID vaccine before distribution22/12/2020|4min
Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly says the government is continuing with “all its planning” for the introduction of a COVID vaccine to Australia, with hopes of establishing an implementation plan in early January.
Professor Kelly said there were a number of steps still be taken regarding the purchasing and regulating of a possible vaccine, stressing none of the vaccines world-wide had yet received final approval for open distribution.
“There are several countries in the world that have emergency-use authorisation, because they have emergencies,” he said.
“I talked about the US earlier - 200,000 cases yesterday. They have an emergency. They need to get on with it. Same in the UK. Same in Europe overnight.
Australia now has four cases of mutated Covid-19 strain 1 minute read
Sydney, Australia, Dec 22 (efe-epa).- Australia on Tuesday raised to four the number of cases linked to the hyper-contagious mutant Covid-19 strain.
The new cases of the fast-spreading virus have sparked health concerns even as flights continue to repatriate Australians stranded in the United Kingdom, where the new coronavirus variant was first detected.
However, Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly avoided giving details of the people infected by the new strain.
Kelly was addressing a press conference, a day after the first two cases of the variant were detected in Australia.