Australia’s international borders are unlikely to open this year despite the rollout of coronavirus vaccines, the federal health secretary says.
Brendan Murphy said on Monday free-flowing travel to and from the country was not expected to resume in 2021.
“I think that we’ll go most of this year with still substantial border restrictions,” he told the ABC.
“Even if we have a lot of the population vaccinated, we don’t know whether that will prevent transmission of the virus.
“And it’s likely that quarantine will continue for some time.”
Australia’s border has been largely closed to overseas visitors since March 2020 to stem the spread of COVID-19, with a limited number of citizens and their families allowed to return each week.
Meanwhile, authorities are chasing more details after Norway reported a small number of very frail people died after receiving the Pfizer vaccine.
The government is planning to distribute the Pfizer vaccine as well as the locally produced AstraZeneca jab.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said the reports from Norway underlined how important it was to put safety first.
“That’s why we haven’t rushed it. That’s why we haven’t cut corners,” he told reporters in Melbourne.
“But we do have confidence in the Pfizer vaccine. We do have confidence in the AstraZeneca vaccine.”
A survey of more than 1,200 people by market researcher Roy Morgan has found more than three-quarters of Australians are keen to be vaccinated.
