We cant just be held back Push for NSW vaccine passports

The Committee for Sydney says the NSW government should immediately give more freedoms to fully vaccinated residents while setting a date in the near future for the introduction of vaccine passports.

The committee, which represents prominent organisations and businesses, also wants the government to make vaccinations mandatory for all 400,000 NSW public servants.

An urban think tank is calling on the government to set a date for the introduction of vaccine passports. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Deputy chief executive Ehssan Veiszadeh said introducing a passport system would significantly boost vaccine uptake, saying the government should move away from its COVID-zero goal.

“We can’t just be held back by states that want to keep things closed forever, we need to start opening things up here,” he said.

“We can’t be led by the lowest common denominator, we need to be able to show the way, we need to inspire the other states.”

Case numbers in Sydney have continued to rise despite the city entering its seventh week of lockdown, while infections have spread further into regional NSW. On Tuesday, 356 cases were recorded.

Mr Veiszadeh said the passport scheme should be done through national cabinet but in the meantime there was nothing stopping the state government from introducing its own system.

“You can start to give people freedoms now who are vaccinated because we know you have much less chance of ending up in ICU, you have a much less chance of dying from COVID,” he said.

“There is no reason why vaccine passports shouldn’t start being used now across industries that are already open, such as in retail settings and essential workplaces.

“Once we begin to emerge out of restrictions, these can be expanded to gyms, cinemas and tourist attractions.

“... In France, the moment they introduced the vaccine passport, vaccination numbers shot through the roof.”

The urban think tank said it was vital that start dates for the use of passports across different industries were set “sooner rather than later” and that they were easy for people to use.

In a statement to members, the committee said the state government should “lead from the front” and make vaccines mandatory for its 400,000 workers.

“If that proves too difficult, at least it should mandate vaccines for public servants who interact with the public, such as those working across the transport network, Service NSW centres and schools,” it read.

Adrian Esterman, a professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at the University of South Australia, said it was too soon to introduce a vaccine passport or extra freedoms for the vaccinated.

“If you do it now, you are disenfranchising everyone basically under 40,” he said.

“I think the main thing in Australia is if we are going to introduce them, and I think we probably will do, is to do it once everyone’s had a chance to be vaccinated.

“Even if you are vaccinated there is still a reasonable chance you can get infected and a reasonable chance you can be infectious.”

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Daniella White is a reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.

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