Andrew Bolt: Even if Australians die, we should open our borders and let people choose vaccination or coronavirus

Virgin’s boss was right: people will likely die if we open our borders, but we should. And let jab-shy Aussies choose between the risk of a vaccine or COVID.

Virgin airline boss Jane Hrdlicka was right: Australians will probably die if we open our international borders, but we should.

And the Prime Minister Scott Morrison was wrong to smash her as “insensitive”.

He should have said: she’s right: and the borders will open for Australian travellers in, say, March.

So get vaccinated by then — or risk death.

Yes, Morrison would never say that this side of the looming election. But it is time for more frank talk.

Our problem is Australians have become so insanely scared by both the coronavirus and the vaccines we have a Catch 22.

Opening our borders is unsafe because not enough Australians are getting vaccinated, but keeping our borders closed means that for many Australians it’s safer not to.

The Virgin Australia CEO was the guest speaker at the QUT Business Leaders Forum in Brisbane. Picture: Supplied,

For younger Australians, the risk of dying from blood clotting from the AstraZeneca vaccine is higher than the risk of dying from the virus while our border controls are up.

Yes, it’s a minuscule risk — one in a million, perhaps — but too many people think they’d be that one.

That’s a reason why 29 per cent of Australians don’t plan to get vaccinated, according to a Resolve Strategic poll this week.

And if they don’t, we won’t get the “herd immunity” we’re told we need before Australians may again fly overseas.

So the timid are preventing the bold from travelling. Is that fair?
Is that even healthy?

A switch is needed — which pushes some responsibility for your health from Big Government to where it primarily belongs.
To you.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison should open the borders. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dan Peled

If Morrison declares he will lift our travel bans in March, he wouldn’t just give Australians an incentive to vaccinate that they don’t have now, whether it’s to protect themselves or get ready
to fly.

He would be saying it’s your call whether to take your chances with the virus or with the vaccine.

But even if Morrison says nothing, some Prime Minister must one day open the borders, knowing Australians will die.

An open border means letting in not just the coronavirus but the flu, that each year kills about 1000 to 4000 Australians, plus any other new bugs.

Yes, Australians will die. But we happily live with worse risks every day.

Far more Australians died in car accidents in the past year than died of the coronavirus.

But we don’t ban cars, do we?