So when will SA reopen after Covid, Mr Marshall? ‘It won’t be the day we hit 80 per cent’

Just days ago, the Premier committed to reopening borders once vax rates hit 80 per cent. Now he has outlined a massive caveat that could dramatically alter the deadline.

South Australia’s Covid-19 restrictions will only be relaxed when there is “equity” in vaccination rates across local government areas, Premier Steven Marshall says.

Mr Marshall said South Australians should not expect restrictions to ease as soon as the state’s vaccination rate hits 80 per cent – just days after indicating that was the threshold to reopen.

“I don’t think it will be the day we hit 80 per cent,” he said on Wednesday.

“We don’t want to have just an average of 80 per cent but have real pockets where there is a lack of balance so we need to get some equity across that.”

Mr Marshall said authorities were working towards identifying communities with lower jab rates but he would not say what that ‘‘equity’’ meant and whether that meant all LGA’s had to meet 80 per cent or another figure.

Premier Steven Marshall has put a major caveat on previous comments that SA would reopen once vaccination rates hit 80 per cent. Picture: Keryn Stevens

And even once equity is achieved, Mr Marshall said some restrictions would remain.

“When we see an LGA which has maybe got a lower vaccination rate, we’ve got to take corrective action,” he said.

“There’s not going to be a ‘freedom day’ in South Australia where everything is removed,” he said.

“We’re still going to have to have isolation for those people who have got the illness and their close contacts. That’s going to be an important part of what we do as we open.”

On Sunday, Mr Marshall had vowed to open South Australia’s borders to New South Wales and Victoria when 80 per cent of the state’s population was fully vaccinated – likely well before Christmas.

It’s a figure the premier, chief public health officer Professor Nicola Spurrier and Police Commissioner Grant Stevens have been touting for weeks, saying that milestone would allow SA to open to Covid-ravaged states and end statewide lockdowns.

Mr Marshall said the state could still lock out some interstate travellers, but that was likely to be based on local government areas or exposure sites.

“Once we get to double-dose 80 per cent vaccination across South Australia, we will certainly move away from state lockdowns,” he said on Sunday.

“We’re going to have to live with it (the virus); it is going to be a tough period the next three to four months, what I’m hopeful of though is we can increase that vaccination rate, we can stick to the science, the evidence.”

On Wednesday he again urged South Australians to get vaccinated.

“This is essentially the disease of the unvaccinated, so my quest at the moment unequivocally is getting people as vaccinated as quickly and as safely as possible,” he said.

The latest data released by the federal government shows as of September 14, 40.6 per cent of South Australians were fully vaccinated and 1,439,865 jabs had been administered.

Australia-wide, 42.6 per cent of Australians were full immunised while 67.8 per cent of people had at least one dose.

Meanwhile, Broken Hill has recorded five new cases of Covid-19.

About 20 exposure sites have been listed in the town, including a post office, Centrelink branch, Coles supermarket and NAB branch.