Prime Minister Scott Morrison speaks during a press conference in the courtyard of the Prime Ministers on December 11, 2020 in Canberra, Australia.
Sam Mooy | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Australia will maintain its coronavirus blockade strategy until at least 70% of its population is fully vaccinated, but after that it will have to start living with the virus, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Sunday.
The country recorded a record 914 infections, the highest daily figure as the southern and eastern states of New South Wales, Victoria and the Australian capital territory remain under strict closure.
“You can’t live with blockages forever and at some point you have to make that shift, and that’s done at 70%,” Morrison said in a television interview on Australian Broadcasting Corp.’s Insider program.
Blockades are a key element of the federal government’s strategy to curb outbreaks until it reaches 70%, with the gradual reopening of borders when the figure rises to 80%.
But deviating from the zero COVID strategy adopted since the pandemic began, Morrison said it was highly unlikely that Australia would reach zero cases before the sidewalks could be eased.
“Blockages are not a sustainable way to deal with the virus and that is why we need to reach 70% and 80%, in order to start living with the virus,” he added.
Currently, approximately 60% of the population of 25 million is closed. Home orders, which often last for months, have engraved the patience of many.
Police in New South Wales ’most populous state said it had issued 940 fines in the last 24 hours for breaching public health orders, while the media said several hundred people were they gathered to protest on Sundays at the Queensland state border.
This comes after hundreds of arrests made by police on Saturday during anti-blockade demonstrations in Sydney and Melbourne, the capitals of the two most populous states, New South Wales and Victoria, are under strict closure.
New South Wales recorded 830 new infections on Sunday, despite intensified efforts, and the territory of the Australian capital, where the capital, Canberra, is located, had 19. Across the country, the number of active cases is about 12,000.
The southeastern state of Victoria, in its sixth blockade since the start of the pandemic, recorded 65 locally acquired cases on Sunday.
“We’re throwing it all against that,” said Martin Foley, the state’s health minister.
Approximately 30% of Australians over the age of 16 have been fully vaccinated, according to health ministry data on Saturday. This is mainly because the Pfizer vaccine is scarce and the AstraZeneca vaccine causes public unrest.
Despite a third wave of Delta variant infections, Australia’s COVID-19 figures are relatively low, with just under 44,000 cases and 981 deaths.