Coronavirus: Gold Coast MP Karen Andrews says Australia must learn to live in ‘COVID-19 environment’

A Gold Coast MP has urged residents to learn to live in a “COVID-19 environment” in order to save damaged industries.

GOLD Coast MP Karen Andrews has warned Australians need to learn to live in the COVID-19 environment to help “damaged” industries.

The Industry Minister spoke to media outside her Varsity Lakes office on Tuesday and said things need to change or industries like aviation, tourism and retail will continue to plummet.

“What’s happening to industry across Australia is particularly important and it’s very disappointing where we are at the moment,” she said.

MP Karen Andrews says Australia need to learn to live in the COVID-19 environment. Picture: Jerad Williams

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“We need to start looking at the solutions, at how are we going to keep industry operating.

“The long-term answer cannot be that we keep shutting everything down.

“We need to know how to live and to work in the COVID environment because quite frankly this will be with us for many many months.”

Since the pandemic forced restrictions across Australia, the Gold Coast has been hit hard with the tourism sector already losing more than $4 billion in the six-month COVID-19 crisis.

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Ms Andrews said the federal government is working to ensure a future COVID-19 vaccine can be manufactured in Australia to help speed up the country’s recovery.

“We have been searching for a number of months now for vaccine candidates so we are able to deal with this COVID crises,” said Ms Andrews, who’s also the Science and Technology Minister.

“We are working with multiple research organisations across Australia and across the world.

The federal government is working to ensure a future COVID-19 vaccine can be manufactured in Australia to help speed up the country’s recovery

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“We are also very focused on when a viable vaccine comes available, Australia is going to be in the best possible position to be able to manufacture that right here in Australia.

“We are in a very strong position with that because we developed relationships over many, many years, particularly in the science community.”

The federal member for McPherson said CSIRO are working with Oxford University to find a vaccine but any other research organisation with breakthroughs will be talked to.