The Greens have called upon the Prime Minister to boot Craig Kelly from his role chairing a parliamentary committee, following weeks of disinformation intended to undermine the medical response to coronavirus.

The Greens say that decades of decline in Australian manufacturing puts the nation at risk of having fewer options when it comes to Covid-19 vaccines, and have called for a publicly-owned vaccine manufacturer.

Both Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are based on new technology (mRNA), and while CSL has capacity to manufacture the protein based vaccines it doesn’t at this time have the ability to produce mRNA.

Leader of the Australian Greens Adam Bandt MP has today called on the government to defer the looming cuts to JobKeeper and JobSeeker in light of the growing COVID outbreak in NSW.

The Coronavirus Supplement is due to drop $200 a month in just 10 days, before being entirely cancelled come March 31.

“With lockdowns and travel bans throwing the country’s Christmas plans into chaos, Scott Morrison must immediately ditch the looming cuts to JobSeeker and JobKeeper,” Mr Bandt said.

The Australian Greens support the recommendations and the interim findings of the Senate Select Committee on COVID-19 majority report and have tabled additional comments and findings.
 

Australian Greens Disability Rights spokesperson Senator Jordon Steele-John said he was appalled at findings by the Disability Royal Commission, released today, that cited "serious failures" by the Morrison government to make "any significant effort" to consult with disabled people during the early stages of response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The recommenations made by the Chair are a vindication of the outrage and distress felt by disabled people, and our families, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic" Steele-John said.

Greens Leader, Adam Bandt, says the latest reported emissions drop, driven by the Covid-19 shutdowns, should provide no cover for the Morrison Government.
 
Australia’s reduction targets are some of the weakest in the developed world and are under renewed pressure after the election of Joe Biden who has called on nations to lift 2030 targets.
 
Indeed, when volatile land clearing figures are excluded, Australia’s emissions are actually above 2005 levels.
 
“Covid is not a climate policy,” Bandt said.
 

The Greens say that it is imperative that the Commonwealth learn the hard lesson from the Victorian aged care COVID outbreak and take leadership before it is too late. 
 
"All providers must be focused on preventing the entry and spread of Covid-19 in aged care facilities", Greens spokesperson on Ageing Senator Rachel Siewert said. 
 
What we learnt from the Victorian experience is that aged care providers cannot wait to act once an outbreak occurs. 
 

Australian Greens Housing spokesperson Senator Mehreen Faruqi has said that AHURI’s Renting in the time of COVID-19: understanding the impacts report, released today, has shone a light on the struggles of renters during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Senator Faruqi said:

“Renters are doing it very tough. The findings of this report confirm many of the fears we’ve had for renters throughout this crisis. Many are earning less, living precariously, and being refused rent reductions.

A study released by the Australian Gambling Research Centre (AGRC) today shows that gambling companies are using the pandemic as an opportunity to prey on people who may have more time  on their hands because of lockdown or job loss and are feeling anxious and alone. 
 
“The underhanded and sneaky tactics used by gambling campaigns through this pandemic show exactly why we need proper regulation nationally and in all States and Territories, including a national regulator and a national self-exclusion register”, Greens spokesperson on Gambling Senator Rachel Siewert said.