SUBJECTS: Vaccine rollout; national quarantine; Scott Morrison failing Australians; vaccine supplies; importance of GPs; Sydney lockdown; financial support; confusion and hesitancy over messaging.

ANIKA WELLS, MEMBER FOR LILLEY: Good morning, everyone. I'm Anika Wells, the Federal Member for Lilley. Welcome to beautiful Wavell Heights on another glorious Brisbane winter morning. I'm here with the Leader of the Labor Party, Anthony Albanese, and Dr Conor Calder-Potts, who is the director here at Shaw Road Medical Centre to talk about what the vaccine rollout looks like on the ground here in Brisbane’s north side.

We all want Australia's pandemic recovery to succeed. Every Australian is counting on our recovery to work and to work quickly. And everybody here on the north side has been doing their bit to make that happen. We have frontline health workers at the Prince Charles who have worked night and day on actual COVID patients and people recovering from COVID to make sure that our community stays safe. We have retail workers and service workers here on the north side at places like Westfield Chermside, at Stafford shops, who have been keeping everybody fed, watered, keeping everybody's medicines going during the pandemic. We have even former Prime Ministers here in Brisbane who are tapping their business contacts and doing their bit to make sure that we can get our hands on as much vaccine as possible. And we have people like Dr Conor Calder-Potts. We have doctors, we have health practitioners, hardworking GPs, and their staff, like medical receptionists who have been doing their bit to make sure we get as many jabs in arms as soon as possible. And I would say a particular shout-out to our medical receptionists here on the north side this morning. They get the most abusive phone calls from people who are frustrated, who want to understand what's happening, who want to know when they can get their jab. And they are the ones taking the hits for the Morrison Government not providing that clarity, not providing that certainty. So what I want to say is – this Prime Minister needs to do better. Because everybody else is doing their bit except him. And it's my great pleasure to introduce Dr Conor Calder-Potts to you now to talk to you about what the vaccine rollout experience has been like for him as a doctor in a medical practice here in Brisbane.

DR CONOR CALDER-POTTS, SHAW ROAD MEDICAL CENTRE: My name is Dr Conor Calder-Potts. I am the clinic owner and the GP who works in the clinic here at Shaw Road Medical Centre. I just want to share my experience as a GP during the COVID pandemic and the COVID vaccine rollout to date. Firstly, I'd like to say that I believe that GPs are the best people to provide the mass vaccine rollout to Australia. There's 5,000 clinics widely dispersed across Australia. We are experienced in providing vaccines through the National Immunisation Program. And we were very enthusiastic to help with the mass vaccine rollout when it first started earlier this year. Unfortunately, there's been a lot of supply chain issues and coordination issues with the vaccine rollout. And that has made it very difficult for many GP clinics to provide the vaccines moving forward. I'd like to share a little bit of a timeline of what has happened to GP clinics starting in March when many GP clinics applied to become a vaccine clinic for the AstraZeneca vaccine. We applied, we increased the infrastructure, we bought extra vaccine fridges, we hired more nurses, we found more space to vaccinate people. Unfortunately, we were then made to wait for over a month and a half to two months when we finally received some AstraZeneca vaccine. During that time, the Government announced that patients should contact the clinics to get vaccinations. Unfortunately, none of the clinics had been delivered any of the vaccinations yet, the AstraZeneca vaccine. So as Anika said, many medical receptionists and nurses faced abuse and frustration from the Australian public about the confused mixed messaging that was being put out there. Finally, we did receive some vaccine late May, early June with the AstraZeneca vaccine. Our capacity in this clinic is about 700 vaccines a week. We only were provided 150 vaccines a week. So that's about 25 per cent of the capacity. And so, we continue to have to turn away patients because we couldn't vaccinate the demand that wanted the vaccine. Following this, a few weeks later, the advice from ATAGI changed and we were told not to vaccinate people under the age of 50. A few weeks after that, we were then told not to vaccinate people with the AstraZeneca vaccine under 60. And throughout this whole time, people have been continually asking us for vaccines. And now, there's a huge demand for Pfizer vaccine. And we are still waiting for the Pfizer vaccine to be delivered to us. The reports that I've received recently have told me that we are likely to only receive the Pfizer vaccine in September/October. So there's still a significant time period until we can actually vaccinate with Pfizer. As a sort of summarising, as a GP, I think the best way for us to escape this pandemic is to vaccinate Australia. We want to vaccinate Australia. Unfortunately, we haven't received the vaccines to be able to do that. And I hope that the vaccine rollout will improve in the near future so that we can move forward and vaccinate everyone. Thank you very much.

ANTHONY ALBANESE, LEADER OF THE AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY: Well, thank you very much, Conor. And thank you to Anika for having me back in your electorate of Lilley. What we've just heard from someone who's not a politician, he's a doctor, doctors go into that profession because they want to look after people's health. And it's been incredibly frustrating here in the city of Brisbane, throughout regional Queensland where I've been this week, but throughout Australia in terms of the rollout of the vaccine. The truth is this was always a race. And the Prime Minister, by treating it in such a complacent way, has been incompetent, and has led to the debacle that we've seen play out that's led to the lockdowns. This is Scott Morrison's lockdown in Sydney. And Scott Morrison must step up to the plate and provide substantial economic support for workers and for businesses that are doing it tough as a direct result of the failure to roll out this vaccine effectively and a direct result to have national quarantine facilities. This morning, I listened to the New South Wales Education Minister say that teachers who teach in schools in southwestern Sydney will be eligible to get the vaccine. But if you live in southwestern Sydney and you're a teacher, but the school you teach at is outside of that area, you aren't eligible. Now, I represent parts of the Canterbury-Bankstown Local Government Area that is within this zone. What the Education Minister said was that these decisions are because of supply. It has been the supply. It was always the supply. Scott Morrison said we were at the front of the queue, and we were never at the front of the queue. This medical facility here being told they won't get access to Pfizer vaccines for months. This medical facility told that they can only get 150 vaccines a week of AstraZeneca when they could be distributing at least 700 vaccines. This medical facility investing in fridges and making that capital investment because they wanted to look after their clients and people in this local community. People are frustrated because of the mixed messages that have come through, including from the Prime Minister. We should be and we should have listened to the health experts. We should now be doing what we can. Labor has been talking for almost a year now about our four-point plan. Roll out the vaccine effectively, get access to more vaccines, make sure that we have national quarantine, have an effective public information campaign and manufacture mRNA vaccines here. We should be increasing the rollout of the vaccine by taking the vaccine to people where they are, by making sure that we do what we can to contact suppliers to get that additional supply, by making sure that this is the priority for the Federal Government. Instead, what we have is a Federal Government that's determined to just politically manage issues rather than deal with the systemic problem that has been there from this stroll out, rather than a rollout. If this Government was as good at rolling out the vaccine as they are in spin and political management in the 24-hour cycle, then Australians would be much better off. But this is a Government that's always focused on the politics, always focused on itself, not focused on the needs of the Australian people. And an effective Government is one that looks ahead, a week, a month, a year, many years. This Government is towards the end of its third term. They have acted with arrogance in their statement that we were the front of the queue. And imagine how arrogant and out of touch they would be if they got a fourth term. 

And I'll conclude with this about economic support. When Scott Morrison was asked about this last week, he spoke about Australians having savings in order to deal with the loss of work and the loss of income. He said that Australians would have built up a buffer during this period. He is totally out of touch. The fact is that some Australian businesses, including those who received JobKeeper from this Government who didn't need it, that's gone into corporate bonuses, that's gone into profits and shareholder bonuses, the fact is that some people have done well. But a whole lot of Australians, and in particular, Australian small businesses, continue to do it tough. They don't have a buffer. They'll go out of business without support. And it just shows that this is a Prime Minister who should talk to more people around this country, including here in Queensland, in the regions, and ask them whether they have a buffer or not. Because they don't. They're crying out for support. And the Government must announce substantial support today. They can't leave people in New South Wales behind like they left people in Victoria behind. No Australian should be left behind by a Federal Government that is responsible for this lockdown.

JOURNALIST: What is the minimum amount you think that individuals should receive?

ALBANESE: What we had last time was circumstances whereby the Government, reluctantly after saying it was a dangerous idea, established wage subsidies at a level that kept people in employment. If it was good enough for when those circumstances were there, then it's good enough now. So we're flexible about the mechanism that's delivered. But we need to make sure that people keep that relationship between workers and employers to keep people in work so that the economic recovery can occur. 

JOURNALIST: Do you mean a return to JobKeeper at the same level as was initially brought in?

ALBANESE: Well, what we're saying is that the Government itself said that was appropriate when you had the level of disruption, which workers are experiencing right now and small businesses are experiencing right now. We're not trying to box the Government into a corner here. We are happy to discuss any proposals that the Government has. But can I make this point as well? That when the legislation was carried, we supported constructively giving the Treasurer power to provide additional support with the stroke of a pen. That power is there now, and it should be used. 

JOURNALIST: So the support for business is likely to be a version of the cash flow boost, is that the most appropriate?

ALBANESE: Well, the Government should be consulting with the New South Wales Government that's been crying out for support, but also with small business in particular about the level of support that's appropriate and the best mechanism to deliver it. But it needs to be a mechanism that ensures that workers stay in employment. 

JOURNALIST: ACOSS says that given the unemployment situation in Sydney, people can't get jobs, that JobSeeker should be lifted. And they recommend it should be $475 a week. Do you think that that's appropriate?

ALBANESE: Look, we think that any support should be examined carefully by the Government and needs to be of a level which don't push people in a poverty, which doesn't leave people behind. 

JOURNALIST: Do you agree that JobSeeker should be lifted given the circumstances?

ALBANESE: We think that the Government needs to give appropriate consideration to all of those measures. There was a very small increase in JobSeeker in the past. We need to make sure that people are looked after during this crisis. 

JOURNALIST: Given what we're seeing in Sydney and the clinical supplies of AstraZeneca, should ATAGI change its advice in terms of AstraZeneca’s availability to under-60s?

ALBANESE: I tell you what shouldn't happen, a politician who doesn’t have ‘doctor’ next to his name giving advice to ATAGI, the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation. Part of the problem that we have here is a Prime Minister making statements on the run, sometimes then contradicting that own advice that he has said just days later. We should leave the health advice to people like the good doctor here. You spent how many years at medical school?

CALDER-POTTS: Six.

ALBANESE: Six. That is six more than I spent. Six more. And the idea that politicians give health advice is a very bad idea. 

JOURNALIST: You’ve been in Queensland for a week now. 

ALBANESE: Longer than a week, actually. I am always in Queensland.

JOURNALIST: You were in Moranbah yesterday. Can you talk us through your mine visit, why it wasn’t more public? Were you concerned about the frank reaction from the miners? And how were you received? 

ALBANESE: I was received very well, as I always am when I'm talking to working people. And I had a meeting on Sunday in Moranbah. We put out a media alert for it as we put out an alert yesterday. And I was with the ACTU President, Michele O'Neil. And we were talking to mine workers, the presidents and secretaries of the lodge, about the issues of concern to them. And then yesterday, I was at Isaac Plains. And I want to thank Stanmore Coal for the hospitality, and the workers there. We were talking there about secure work. What mine workers are concerned about is casualisation. They're concerned about labour hire companies undermining wages and conditions. On Sunday, I met Simon. I've asked questions in the Parliament of Scott Morrison about Simon and his best mate, who work side by side. His best mate earns $40,000 a year less than he does by doing the same job. We need same job, same pay. And Labor will legislate for that. Same job, same pay isn't just an issue of driving down wages and conditions. It's also an issue of safety. Because if you don't have secure employment, if you're not a full-time employee, but you're in labour hire, then you don't have the confidence to be able to come forward on safety issues. And that's why this is an issue of wages, it's an issue of conditions. But it's also an issue of safety. And the miners there, I want to thank the secretary of the Union, who was there, and Robbo, our candidate for Capricornia. He's a mine worker, he knows firsthand the issues of concern to miners. And I'll say this as well, that the mining industry and workers are all very concerned that this Government has dumped resources from the Cabinet portfolio. Resources contribute $310 billion to our national economy, resources that is responsible, directly and indirectly, for employing one million Australians that depend upon it for their work. Our major export isn't represented around the Cabinet table. Now, I know Keith Pitt is a dud. And I can understand why he wouldn't be in the Cabinet of Barnaby Joyce. But the decision by Barnaby Joyce and Scott Morrison to not have resources in the Cabinet is appalling. It's one that the resources sector is very concerned about, including CEOs of resources companies that I've spoken to, not just here in Queensland, but throughout Australia.

JOURNALIST: Is Kevin Rudd helping with the vaccine rollout? Pfizer says that his intervention made no difference.

ALBANESE: That's not what they've said at all. Look carefully at their statement. What they've said is that related to the contracts that were there with the Federal Government. And Kevin Rudd made it very clear to the company and has made clear publicly that he wasn't negotiating a contract. That can only occur between the Australian Government and the respective companies. I think Kevin Rudd has done as he always does do, the right thing by Australia. He always wants to look after Australia's national interest. And he was in a position to make a constructive call. And he did so. He contacted the Prime Minister before he made that call. I was certainly aware after he had that meeting as well. He then wrote to the Prime Minister, as is appropriate, and informed him of the deliberations that occurred with the head of Pfizer. The question here is, why is it that our Prime Minister and our Health Minister haven't picked up the phone to the head of Pfizer? Why is it that it took Kevin Rudd to step up and to have that direct contact after Australian business people said to him that there was a need to do so? Other world leaders have done so. This is a Prime Minister who told us we were at the front of the queue. And if you look at Pfizer statements, I listened to a former Pfizer executive today, speaking once again about the failure of the Government to secure deals while other countries were doing so with Pfizer and Moderna. The Australian Government met with Pfizer in July. They sent a junior burger along to a meeting and then didn't conclude any deal until November. And the failure of this Government when it comes to the rollout of the vaccine is there for all to see. And the consequences are being experienced by people in Sydney today who are locked down, and people here in Brisbane, wearing masks when they're not doing media interviews. The consequences are there for our national economy, with a loss of some $7 billion dollars as a result of that lockdown up to now. The cost could be much more. Would have been a lot cheaper for the Government to do deals earlier with more suppliers for greater quantities to be delivered earlier. And that's what Labor was calling for this time last year.

JOURNALIST: Will Labor go to the next election promising to retain stage three tax cuts?

ALBANESE: We'll make a decision at an appropriate time. I've seen some reports about a meeting that hasn't taken place. We've said we'll make our announcements after we do deliberations. Our priority has been issues relating to the pandemic that's occurring at the moment in terms of our Shadow Cabinet discussions. But I'll say this. Australians will always be better off under Labor. They will always be better off under Labor. And what we know is we have a Prime Minister who last week suggested that Australians didn't need economic support who were being locked down because they had a buffer. This Government doesn't get it when it comes to the budgets of Australians. 

JOURNALIST: I was wondering if you could walk us through some of the abuse that your staff are copping and why. What is the purpose of that abuse?

CALDER-POTTS: I'm not personally taking that abuse, it is the medical receptionists who are taking the phone calls and the nurses in the clinics around Australia, not just this one. People are frustrated. And that's understandable. They get told one thing by the Government and then follow that advice, call their local GP and find out that we don't have the vaccine. So there's been some abuse towards receptionists where receptionists have been unfairly targeted by the public through no fault of their own, where we just simply don't have the vaccine.

JOURNALIST: Have you seen hesitancy in the older age groups and perhaps in some younger folks? 

CALDER-POTTS: Absolutely. Probably around the time when the target advice changed, there was a 50 per cent cancellation rate in our COVID vaccine clinic. And there's still a lot of people over 60 and above who don't want to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine because of the messaging that has been promoted. There are also younger people who are willing to weigh up the risk versus the benefit of receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine and have decided to get the AstraZeneca vaccine through my COVID Clinic.

JOURNALIST: We've been hearing from GPs as well with the changing advice, you guys have been spending a bit more time talking people through the vaccines and getting informed consent. Obviously, time is money. Are the Medicare benefit payments enough considering how much time you're spending walking people through?

CALDER-POTTS: No, it's not. We are asked to bulk bill all consults related to COVID vaccinations. And the rebate being provided for the COVID vaccines is not enough to cover the costs of the clinic - the advice that we're providing, the nurses, the fridges, all of the infrastructure that we're providing. So the majority of GPs are doing this through philanthropic reasons to ensure that Australia gets vaccinated and we escape the lockdown and end the pandemic. And we are happy to do that. We just need a supply of vaccine to achieve that.

JOURNALIST: Are you experiencing people coming into your clinic and saying, 'I want to get my AstraZeneca jab, it is actually my second one, I got my first one somewhere else'. 

CALDER-POTTS: Yes.

JOURNALIST: What's the reasoning behind them changing?

CALDER-POTTS: Often it's because patients prefer to see their regular GP to get the vaccination. So initially, we didn't have the AstraZeneca vaccine. So patients found the vaccine at another clinic or a larger GP respiratory clinic. But then eventually, we were provided with the AstraZeneca vaccine. And so patients prefer to see their regular GP to receive their second vaccine.

JOURNALIST: Just seeing the chopping and changing all the time and just the frustration of having no supply and being told to roll it out, what is that like?

CALDER-POTTS: It's very frustrating for all the GPs around Australia. The advice changes almost on a weekly basis. We often don't find out through any official channel. We find out through the media. And there's a lot of GPs that are feeling quite burnt out. And practice staff are feeling burnt out as a result of this vaccine rollout. 

ALBANESE: Thanks, everyone.

ENDS