Coronavirus crisis: National Cabinet provides no update on international border reopening

Scott Morrison says States shouldn’t change their reopening plans over Christmas, with Omicron so far proving no less severe than previous COVID-19 variants. The mutated virus was the key topic of discussion in the final National Cabinet meeting, which Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly advising Australia was still in the “early stages” of understanding the virus. As a result no official decision on opening the international border to migrants and international students was made. It follows a pause on reopening the border to those cohorts for two weeks earlier this month. “As more evidence relating to disease severity, transmissibility and vaccine effectiveness becomes available, the Commonwealth will continue to consider Australia’s international border settings in a manner consistent with a suppression strategy,” The National Cabinet statement said. The country’s vaccination rates were also discussed. “We’ve just got WA to get to that 80 per cent mark and that will be just a couple days away,” Mr Morrison said on 2GB. According to data released on Friday, WA has achieved a vaccination rate of 79.3 per cent. More than 88 per cent of the eligible population has received their first dose. Once WA reaches 80 per cent double dose rate, Mark McGowan will announce an official date for reopening. But the Premier would not rule out a delay to reopen the borders because of Omicron. “I don’t have a crystal ball ... it may be that Omicron is no different to the other strains but we just need to wait and get more information on that,” he said on Thursday. But when asked if he expected States to change their plans based on Omicron Mr Morrison said “they shouldn’t”. “I don’t believe they will,” he said. National Cabinet also provided an in-principle endorsement of the Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Agreement, which will be finalised in early 2022. The Agreement suggests actions to build a comprehensive, co-ordinated, consumer‑focused and compassionate mental health and suicide prevention system to support all Australians.