Matt O'Sullivan (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

( There really have been two key moments, at least in my lifetime, that have shaped the course of history—shaped our lives, our future lives and the way we live. The first, of course, was September 11 and the impact it had upon our society and the way we go about life. Importantly, we noticed it in the way that we travelled. I remember my very first plane ride. I was 18 when I first hopped on an aeroplane. It was from Perth to Adelaide. My friend said, 'You should try to go up the front, to the cockpit, and sit with the pilot.' So we arranged for that to happen, because in those days you could do that; you could go up to the front of the plane. After September 11, of course, they put in place the necessary security protocols to deal with it. When we go through airports now there's a big change.

This pandemic, the COVID pandemic, has been another significant, pivotal moment for the world. If we'd described some of the conditions we're now living under, dealing with lockdowns and massive changes to our freedoms and the way we go about our lives, no-one would have believed it. No-one could have imagined what we're dealing with, because these are unprecedented times. These are life-changing, life-altering times for us as a society and, indeed, as a global population.

These have been incredibly challenging times, and this government has had to work with them and adapt where necessary. One of the important things, once the vaccines had been pronounced successful, somewhere back around July last year, was that this government stepped up and negotiated with the providers of the vaccines that were known at the time to be viable and to have the potential to be rolled out across Australia. We dealt with it in the circumstances at that time, negotiating with the various providers of those vaccines, including one that potentially was going to be developed and made available within Australia in partnership with University of Queensland. We found, after thorough testing of it, that that vaccine wasn't going to be viable due to testing results for HIV, which were inaccurate. Of course, that stunted the ability to roll out that vaccine. But the government adapted and moved along with those necessary changes. That is the hallmark of this government. You've got to be able to react to circumstances, to changes, and adapt so that you can appropriately see the rollout get across the country. And we are seeing the rollout take up significant pace now.

I want to draw attention to what's happening in Western Australia right now. In Western Australia, my home state, arguably we've dealt with the COVID pandemic better than anywhere else in the country and anywhere else in the world. We've experienced very few instances where we've had to lockdown. While we have had a few lockdowns, we've ultimately been able to transgress through this COVID pandemic. We've been able to see businesses thriving. The resources sector is delivering great economic returns for the country.

I think, sadly—maybe it's because of the success and we are a victim of that success—the vaccine rollout in Western Australia is the lowest in the country. I'm not blaming Western Australians. I do understand it, because when I speak to family, friends and people in the community about taking up the vaccine, and taking the opportunity to go and get it, many of them are not rushing to do it because it's not front of mind for them. It's not necessarily in their face. I want to encourage Western Australians—we've led the way in many aspects of this COVID pandemic. Let's not lose the way in not making sure that we hit those vaccine targets before Christmas. We certainly don't want to see other states beat us to it. I know that Western Australians are parochial and they'll rise to the challenge. I want to encourage you to get out there and make a booking. It's easy to do. It's simple to do. You've got the opportunity to do it and I encourage you to do it— (Time expired)