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5.48am BST
Morrison is being careful to separate the $747m funding package from tensions in the region, particularly with China.
All of our objectives through the activities of our defence forces is designed to pursue peace. That is the objective of our government. That is the path that we are pursuing, but to do that in a region as uncertain as this you need to ensure that you have the defence capability that enables you to protect and defend Australia’s interests in that region. And this enables us to ensure there’s an appropriate balance.
5.45am BST
He also touched on the vaccination program, saying (incorrectly, but I made the same mistake earlier) that two million Australians had been vaccinated, when it is actually two million doses which have been administered.
He went on:
More than half of those have been vaccinated by their GPs. The vaccination program continues to roll out, focusing on those most vulnerable Australians and those in the front lines of our health workforce, and we will soon move on 3 May to bring forward the over 50s vaccinations with AstraZeneca through the GP respiratory clinics and the state and territory-related facilities, and two weeks after that we will move to over 50s – I should say more broadly – for the GP rollout all around the country.
