- Prime Minister Scott Morrison says Australia must open-up when we hit vaccine targets, despite NSW and Victoria’s worsening COVID-19 outbreaks
- The PM argues Australians must learn to live with the virus and stop it, saying lockdowns aren’t sustainable in the future
- His comments come as Sydney records 818 new local cases, after smashing records at the weekend with 825 and 830 new cases on Saturday and Sunday
- These are the highest number of daily COVID-19 cases ever recorded in Australia, with Melbourne also reporting a spike in numbers
- Victoria acquired 71 new cases of the virus on Monday, the highest number of infections recorded in the state in close to a year
Prime Minister Scott Morrison argues Australia must open-up when we hit vaccine targets, despite NSW and Victoria’s worsening COVID-19 outbreaks.
Speaking on Monday morning after a horror weekend of new cases in Sydney, the PM said Australian’s shouldn’t fear the coronavirus.
Mr Morrison said Australians must learn to live with the virus, stating lockdowns weren’t sustainable in the future.
“Our goal must be to help people overcome those fears and not give in to them, because this cannot go on forever,” Mr Morrison said.
“This is not a sustainable way to live in this country, without those freedoms that we all cherish.
His comments come as Sydney recorded 818 new local cases on Monday and 825 cases on Saturday and another 830 new cases on Sunday.
Those case numbers at the weekend are Australia’s worst ever recorded since the pandemic began.
But, the Prime Minister said once Australia reached 70 per cent vaccination rates we have to “move forward”.
“It’s just a virus, and we have to deal with it, and Australians get that. But equally, they also know there has to be a plan out, there is a plan out, and we need to move forward with that plan,” Mr Morrison said.
As of August 22, only 30 per cent of Australians aged over 16 are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has welcomed the PM’s comments today, stating the country must learn to live with the Delta strain of COVID-19.
In response to the growing case numbers, Ms Berejiklian also introduced new restrictions for residents in Sydney’s western suburbs at the weekend.
These include wearing mask outdoors and limiting daily exercise, though the restrictions only apply to areas considered ‘hot spots’.
In neighbouring Victoria, the COVID-19 outbreak has begun to grow further, with 71 new cases of the virus acquired on Monday.
That’s the highest number of infections recorded in the state in close to a year, when it was grappling with its worst outbreak.
Victoria’s COVID-19 commander Jeroen Weimar said unfortunately the rate of people ending up in hospital was on the rise.
“Of the 29 people currently in hospital or in hospital with Covid, 21 are under the age of 50 and there is one infant among those people,” Mr Weimar said.
“Within ICU, we have one person in their 20s, one in their 30s, five in their 40s, and two in their 50s and again, very young age profile for an unit.
“Nobody who is an ICU has been vaccinated at this point in time. “
Canberra notched up 16 new cases of the virus on Monday, while New Zealand’s case numbers rose sharply, with 35 new COVID-19 infections acquired overnight.