Prime Minister Scott Morrison has hit out at Labor’s proposal to offer a $300 incentive to those who get fully vaccinated by December 1, claiming the plan is an “insult” to Australians.
Labor leader Anthony Albanese said the cash payment would stimulate the economy by, and help struggling businesses.
Speaking at Question Time, Mr Morrison lashed the proposal. He said it was “a vote of no confidence” in Australians that suggested they “won't get vaccinated unless you dole out the cash.”
Referencing Professor Peter Collignon, an infectious diseases expert, Mr Morrison said Labor’s plan was “a bad idea”.
“Financial incentives are likely to discourage vaccination, particularly amongst those who are concerned about adverse effects on non-financial incentives are the desired approach,” Mr Morrison said.
“Those 80 per cent of older Australians who have turned up and rolled up their sleeves, they didn't need the cash. They just needed to know that it was good for them, it was good for their family, it was good for their community and it was good for their country.”
The Labor leader, Anthony Albanese, and shadow treasurer Jim Chalmers Source: Photograph: Darren England/AAP 07 Oct 2020.
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese responded to Mr Morrison’s comments by asking him how the proposal differed from ‘No Jab, No Pay’.
withholds three state child and family benefits for parents of children under 20 years of age who are not fully immunised.
“Why did the Prime Minister just before Question Time claim to the Australian people that 'No Jab No Pay' was not an incentive scheme to improve child immunisation rates?” Mr Albanese asked.
“Can the Prime Minister confirm that when he personally introduced the legislation he said the following in the second sentence of his second reading speech: 'This is an important initiative aimed at boosting child immunisation rates'?
Mr Morrison responded by accusing Mr Albanese of “selective hearing” and reiterated the government is “seeking to vaccinate the entire population.”
“The point I was making was to draw a comparison between that and what was occurring at that time, [it] is not a proper comparison,” he said.
Mr Morrison’s suggestion that a financial incentive would discourage vaccination sparked controversy on social media.
Author Maxine Beneba Clarke compared the vaccination proposal to the baby bonus she received over a decade ago from the government.
“The Liberals: We’re not PAYING people to get a vaccination. It’s a medical procedure, That will never end well,” she tweeted.
“Me: I mean…the government gave me like, 4 grand, to have a baby 15 years ago, and now it vacuums, does all my tech for me, and makes stop motion book trailers, so…”
The baby bonus was a universal cash payment that started in 2004 and ended a decade later.
It offered parents $3,000 for the birth of a child, with the amount later increasing to $4,000 in 2006 and $5,000 in 2008. That amount was then reduced to $3,000 in 2013 before the payment ended in 2014.
Currently, families can access a , with the total amount of a Newborn Supplement depending on the family’s income.
the baby bonus did its job by encouraging people to have more children at a time when fertility rates were low.
Others who were critical of Mr Morrison’s comments pointed out that $300 is a significant sum to many Australians.
Political Editor Samantha Maiden tweeted of Mr Morrison’s comments, “You have to earn a lot of money to think Australians would say no to $300 to get vaccinated.”
“I'd lick the crossing button at Flinders St station for half that,” a user responded.
While journalist Paul Karp joked, “Raise your hand if you are prepared to be paid off and insulted with $300 cash.”
But some users agreed with Mr Morrison, commenting that financial incentives were not necessary to encourage the community to get vaccinated.
“Everyone who has been vaccinated so far, and for the next few months, are doing so because they want to be vaccinated and/or protect others,” one person commented.
“I see it as wasteful on that basis.”
In the US, President Joe Biden has cleared the way for states to offer $100 incentives for people to get the jab, while in the UK, companies like Uber and Deliveroo are planning to offer discounts for vaccinated individuals.
Earlier on Tuesday, Finance Minister Simon Birmingham said the Federal Government’s research had shown cash payments were “unnecessary and unlikely to work”.
“It’s clearly unnecessary in the sense that Australians are responding. They do want to get their vaccines,” Senator Birmingham told the ABC.
Mr Albanese told Nine’s Today Show that it was time to “put politics aside” and for the Coalition to get on board with what he described as a “constructive suggestion.”
“What we’re talking about here is bringing the Australian people with us on this project,” he told Today.
“What it would do as well is it would spark conversations around the workplace, around communities. ‘Have you got your 300 bucks yet?’ is a conversation that we want. Anything that starts the conversation about the need to get vaccinated is a good thing.”
