Steve Wardill: Dangerous political squabbling will undermine confident in COVID vaccine
The State and Federal governments must put health advice before politics, especially when it comes to the COVID vaccine, writes Steven Wardill.
Steven Wardill
Don't miss out on the headlines from Steven Wardill. Followed categories will be added to My News.
It is appalling that Queenslanders are getting different advice from the State and Federal governments about the COVID-19 AstraZeneca vaccine.
It’s a new low in the never-ending bickering between these levels of governments which people were given a brief respite from at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.
No wonder most voters reach the conclusion that we’re over-governed.
Maybe they’re right.
Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath and her director general John Wakefield yesterday revealed a new protocol would be introduced under which people with a history of allergic reactions would be told to consider delaying getting the jab.
Just two hours later Federal Health Department boss Brendan Murphy and the head of the Therapeutic Goods Administration John Skerrit urged people not to delay.
Soon after, the Queensland Government backflipped on its own advice.
We’re all used to the tiresome squabble between different levels of government.
But this kind of mixed message is totally unacceptable.
Health advice should always be above politics.
After a small number of cases of allergic reactions, there should have been an agreed national position on moving forward with the AstraZeneca vaccine and everyone should have then sung off the same song sheet.
This kind of squabbling won’t just undermine confidence in the COVID vaccine and slow our efforts to end this pandemic.
It will cause some people to question the safety of other vaccines in the future and that’s downright dangerous.
More Coverage
Why Trad’s political demise good for Premier
Political leaders usually go backwards after three elections, with rumours of takeovers. And while there’s some backroom jostling in Queensland, Annastacia Palaszczuk’s job seems pretty safe, writes Steven Wardill.
Youth justice reforms fail to address cause of crime crisis
The Palaszczuk Government’s latest quick fix for youth justice fails to address the systemic issues that make kids gravitate towards serious crime, writes Steven Wardill.