Greens leader Adam Bandt said Scott Morrison's announcement today that children would not be included in vaccination targets was a political decision that made the community less safe.
Scott Morrison's 80% vaccination target is only 65% of the whole population, as it excludes under 16s. An additional 4 million people need to be vaccinated to reach the 80% target if all children and teenagers were included. The Grattan Institute has warned that opening up at such a low level of vaccination could lead to thousands of deaths.
Delta has infected many children across Australia and outbreaks have been seen in schools. The Pfizer vaccine has been approved for over 12s in Australia and other countries have begun national vaccination of children.
As stated by Greens leader Adam Bandt MP:
"Scott Morrison is fudging the numbers so he can wave the 'Mission Accomplished' flag in December, even though millions of people will remain unvaccinated.
"Excluding children from the vaccination targets is a political decision. Scott Morrison is setting targets that are easier for him to achieve but that leave millions unvaccinated.
"Israel has opened up with only 65% of the population vaccinated and is experiencing a growing wave of deaths.
"Our kids don't just need to be vaccinated, they must be included in the vaccination targets, otherwise we risk a wave of deaths and more lockdowns."
