‘I don’t know’: Brad Hazzard says he’s in the dark about extra Pfizer doses for NSW

NSW says it has been left in the dark about important Covid-19 vaccination information from the federal government.

Brad Hazzard says he is in the dark about thousands of Pfizer vaccines apparently en route to Sydney from the national stockpile.

The NSW health minister made the surprising comment on Saturday when asked about reports Scott Morrison had decided to funnel extra doses to his state.

“I can‘t confirm that because I don’t know that,” Mr Hazzard said. “I’ve seen nothing in writing, if that has happened.”

The NSW health Minister hit out at the secrecy surrounding the national stockpile. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Bianca De Marchi

After saying he could not confirm if the doses were on the way or how many were being sent, Mr Hazzard hit out at the Commonwealth for a lack of transparency surrounding vaccines and the national stockpile.

“I have no idea how much, if any, are in our national stockpile,” he said.

“I simply don’t know that. I would like to know.”

He added that last year he and other health ministers had been “frustrated” by secrecy around how much personal protective equipment was in the national stockpile.

“We never got to find out … so we went about making sure in NSW our staff were protected,” he said.

“I’m just being open and honest here because there is no other alternative at this point.”

Australia’s deputy chief medical officer Michael Kidd told reporters later on Saturday that NSW would get an extra 50,000 doses of Pfizer from the federal government.

“The Commonwealth will increase the emergency allocation to NSW of additional doses of Pfizer from 150,000 to 200,000 doses this week,” he said.

Professor Kidd said every additional delivery was another person with “extra protection” against Covid-19.

“Every dose of the vaccine counts,” he said.

“If they do get exposed to Covid-19, their risk of becoming seriously unwell is reduced, their risk of transmitting to other people is reduced as well.

“That‘s why it’s so important that so many people are queuing up and getting their vaccines over recent weeks and thank you to everyone who is doing that.”

NSW recorded 163 new cases on Saturday, the highest number in the outbreak to date.

Originally published as ‘I don’t know’: Brad Hazzard says he’s in the dark about extra Pfizer doses for NSW