Vaccine Rollout Ramping Up
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Over 13.25 million doses have been administered, with a new record set on Thursday, with 240,039 doses in a single day.
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Vaccinations are increasing with over 1.25 million Australians vaccinated over the last 7 days.
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More than 80% of those aged over 70 are protected by a first dose
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Over 65% of all Australians aged over 50 are protected by a first dose.
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More than 43% of all Australians aged over 16 are protected by a first dose.
National Plan to Transition Australia’s National COVID-19 Response
Following last week’s National Cabinet, the Prime Minister released a four-step National Plan that charts our way back as Australia learns to manage COVID-19 into the future. The Plan incorporates the Doherty Institute COVID-19 modelling and Treasury economic analysis, and sets vaccination targets required to transition to each phase. Once Australia achieves a vaccination rate above 80 per cent, Australians should expect lockdowns to be a thing of the past, with international travel restrictions lifted for fully vaccinated Australians. See the Plan here.
Commonwealth’s First Ever Closing the Gap Implementation Plan
Delivering the annual Closing the Gap Statement, this week, the Prime Minister unveiled $1 billion in funding to underpin the Government's first Closing the Gap Implementation Plan. This is the first time any government has worked with Australia’s Indigenous groups, known as the Coalition of Peaks, to build a real partnership. The Plan places an emphasis on giving back responsibility, listening and empowering.
The Plan outlines a major investment in health infrastructure and support to ensure Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders can access health services, when and where they need them. Measures include greater support for new mothers, including greater access to antenatal care and more support for the first year of a baby’s life. Read more here, or read the Prime Minister’s Closing the Gap statement here.
Redress Scheme for Stolen Generation Members
The Prime Minister also announced a financial and wellbeing redress scheme for living Stolen Generations members. Survivors will be afforded the opportunity to tell their story, have it acknowledged and receive an apology for their removal and resulting trauma. Minister for Indigenous Affairs Ken Wyatt said this commitment recognises and acknowledges the wrongs of the past, and represents a major step towards healing. Find out more here,
Supporting the Aviation Sector to Keep the Nation Moving
The Morrison Government has extended a range of programs to support the domestic aviation sector, to keep Australians moving and to ensure this critically important sector continues to operate. This includes the Domestic Aviation Network Support (DANS), which has been extended until the end of the year to maintain a minimum level of services on key air routes. The Regional Airline Network Support (RANS) program has also been extended. These two programs have allowed more than 1.8 million passengers to continue to travel across our country, including essential workers in health care and other frontline services. The Retaining Domestic Aviation Capability (RDAC) initiative announced this week will also help to ensure airlines and their staff receive support through this challenging period and are ready to ramp up flying again as soon as possible to support our economic recovery. Industry-wide assistance from this Government for aviation totals more than $4.5 billion since March 2020. Read more here.