About half of NSW’s young people still won’t be fully vaccinated once Greater Sydney re-opens

Many Sydneysiders are looking forward to the city’s reopening but one key group won’t be able take advantage of the new freedoms.

Sydneysiders are looking forward to enjoying the city’s amazing restaurants and other venues once 70 per cent of the state’s adults are vaccinated but not everyone will be ready to get out and about.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has made it clear that only those who are fully vaccinated will be able to enter venues, and even those working in these businesses will need to have been jabbed.

However, young people aged under 40 years old have only recently become eligible to get vaccinated, with supplies of Pfizer opening up to them just two weeks ago.

Just 20 per cent of young people aged 16 to 29 years old have been fully vaccinated in NSW, compared to 49 per cent or more in older age groups.

While the first dose numbers are more healthy — with 64 per cent having had at least one jab — many young people won’t be fully vaccinated by the time Greater Sydney is expected to re-open around mid October.

Around half of those aged 16 to 29 years old won’t be fully vaccinated by the time Sydney opens up. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

University of NSW Professor Mary-Louise McLaws, an adviser to the World Health Organisation, said at the current pace, only about 48 per cent of young people will have been double dosed in around 30 days, when 70 per cent of the broader population is expected to be fully vaccinated.

“Which means one in two of them will be unvaccinated and at risk of any circulating virus,” she said.

She said it was not very realistic to expect young people to stay home, and if they were “roaming around and enjoying life” this could see an uptick in cases.

“We need to focus on them and get the vaccine to them as a priority,” she said.

Prof McLaws noted that 20 to 39 year olds were often those likely to be working in bars or cafes, working more than one job, as well as being essential service providers.

“So it was basically a very thoughtless thing to do to put these young people right at the back of the queue and then not allow them the freedoms of restrictions being lifted when of course they haven’t been able to get to an appointment or their appointments have been cancelled at the last minute because of vaccine supply.”