The rollout of a COVID-19 vaccine could be completed earlier than anticipated following the Morrison government’s move to buy up an additional 30 million doses from overseas suppliers.
The move comes as Australia’s best hope for a homegrown vaccine was dashed over fears false positive HIV tests could undermine public confidence in a jab and set back community immunisation.
The government announced on Friday it had scrapped a deal to acquire the University of Queensland vaccine and would instead purchase an additional 20 million doses from AstraZeneca and 10 million doses from Novavax.
– Bookings to Queensland doubled in the last week of November as domestic border restrictions were about to be eased, new Flight Centre data reveals, yet one travel agency group fears the state’s border was opened too late for many travellers.
Travel Authority chief executive Peter Hosper said his company had one client who had a trip to the sunshine state rebooked three times as restrictions were loosened and tightened over past months. The fourth time was a step too far, and the client decided to make their way to Byron Bay instead.
“The truth is, on the holiday side, we didn’t get an influx of bookings because people had already made other arrangements for December and January, or they were apprehensive about the border situation,” Mr Hosper said.
These insights are the first into the health of the rekindled travel sector since borders began to reopen as new community coronavirus infections slowed to a halt in Australia.
