Saturday, December 11, 2021 – 16:24 WIB
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Australian Finance Minister Josh Frydenberg speaks during a press conference in Melbourne, Australia, Friday (28/9/2018). (ANTARA/AAP/David Crosling/via REUTERS/am.)
jpnn.com, SYDNEY – Australia should ease COVID-19 restrictions to boost its economic recovery, said Finance Minister Josh Frydenberg, although daily infections are currently the highest in six weeks.
“The country has to stay calm and move on. And not overreact to the Omicron variant,” Frydenberg told reporters in Melbourne on Saturday.
Australia has one of the highest vaccination rates in the world, with nearly 90 per cent of people over the age of 16 having been fully vaccinated.
However, Australia found 1,753 cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, up about 3 per cent in the past week and being its highest daily total cases since October 29.
Frydenberg said state and territory leaders should ease restrictions put in place to slow the spread of the virus, and stressed the need to accelerate Australia’s economic growth while he dismissed concerns about the Omicron variant.
“Our economic recovery hinges on easing the rules. We have vaccination rates at record highs now and that has proven to be a vital defense against COVID,” he said.
While some measures were relaxed when the vaccine was rolled out, interstate travel is still prohibited between some states and capacity limits at shops and restaurants are strictly enforced.
A $2 trillion economy was devastated by the lockdown in Australia’s two largest states, and gross domestic product fell 1.9 per cent in the third quarter.
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The daily spike in cases and the emergence of the Omicron variant make the Minister of Finance (Menkeu) worried about the return of restrictions that killed the economy
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