Blair MP Shayne Neumann says his office has received phone calls from Covid vaccine conspiracy theorists

Shayne Neumann says the economic future of the country depends on a successful rollout of the vaccine

Three time Olympian Australian swimmer Cate Campbell (L) receives her dose of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine against Covid-19 at the Queensland Sports and Athletics Centre in Brisbane on May 10, 2021, after the Australian Olympic Committee began their rollout of vaccinations for members of the Olympic team ahead of the the games in Tokyo. (Photo by Patrick HAMILTON / AFP)

FEDERAL MP for Blair Shayne Neumann is urging residents to get the jab for the good of the country, regardless of his recent criticisms of the Federal Government’s slower than expected rollout of the Covid vaccine.

Mr Neumann said he was concerned by the number of phone calls received by his office from people who had expressed reluctance to be vaccinated due to worries over side effects or, in some cases, conspiracy theories.

He said he had been telling his constituents to go and get the vaccine as soon as they became eligible because the economy was reliant upon Australia ‘defending itself through vaccination.”

“I have been getting some resistance from people in the electorate,” he said.

Greg Hunt MP announced the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine to 56 Queensland community pharmacies during a recent speech.

There are people who are hesitant due to concerns about clotting, and there are others who have these conspiracy theories about the vaccine.

Popular political figure Pauline Hanson has been among the few to publicly state that she would not receive the Covid jab – a statement labelled as “irresponsible” by the Australian Medical Association.

AMA vice-president Dr Chris Moy said Ms Hanson had a significant following and her comments could cause confusion.

“The vaccines have been fully tested for safety and effectiveness by the Therapeutic Goods Administration. Australia has even had the extra benefit of being able to observe what’s happened overseas,” Dr Moy said.

Mr Neumann said some of the conspiracy theorists he had spoken to had been disappointed when he told them to go and get the vaccine, but he said the country’s future depended on it.

Blair MP Shayne Neumann says anti-vaxxers have come away disappointed after speaking to him. Picture: Alix Sweeney

“The economy won’t get going until the health of Australians is protected by vaccination,” he said.

Just under 3,600,000 Australians had received the Covid jab as of Tuesday, the equivalent of about 14 per cent of the population.

People aged 40-49 are part of the next round of vaccine recipients.

The speed of the rollout could improve later this year if the state government is successful in opening mass vaccination hubs, after more of the Pfizer vaccine doses are expected to arrive in the final quarter of 2021.

For more information on Covid vaccine eligibility, visit the official government site here.

Originally published as Blair MP Shayne Neumann says his office has received phone calls from Covid vaccine conspiracy theorists