With the confirmation of new Senator for Western Australia Dorinda Cox today, Greens Leader, Adam Bandt, has put the Greens on election footing with a reshuffle of the Greens’ ‘shadow Ministerial’ portfolios that prioritises the party’s key campaign areas and sets the party up for ‘balance of power’ negotiations in the likely event of a minority Parliament. 

The Greens say that the Government's approach to vaccinating First Nations people, disabled people and aged care residents, has been unacceptable and once again led to a tragic death that could have been prevented if adequate planning and support for experts was given when it was asked for.

Communities should not have to be begging for support, Greens spokesperson on Health Senator Rachel Siewert said. 

The Greens say that Mr Morrison’s failure to include children in the national vaccination targets will cost too many lives. 
 
“Mr Morrison has finally succumbed to public pressure and is now saying National Cabinet will talk about how to vaccinate children and teenagers (12-15 years old) tomorrow, but we urgently need to have targets for children”, Greens spokesperson on Health Senator Rachel Siewert said. 
 

The Greens have reiterated their calls for at least 80% of the whole population, including kids, to be vaccinated before we can start lifting restrictions, writing to Scott Morrison urging National Cabinet this Friday to agree to include children in vaccination targets. 

Leader of the Australian Greens Adam Bandt MP said:

“Scott Morrison’s plan will have kids leaving the cave and going straight to the ICU,” Mr Bandt said.

The Greens say that State, Territory and Federal Governments need to provide more financial support to people on income support and low incomes in lockdown if we are to succeed in fighting the delta variant.
 
"Last year we had the JobSeeker supplement and the JobKeeper payments which changed people's lives and enabled them to manage some very difficult times", Senator Rachel Siewert said. 
 
"The Federal Government took those supports away cruelly and prematurely.
 

The Greens say children and teenagers must be urgently included in the government's national vaccine targets and without children and teenagers being included in the plan we will not get out of rolling lockdowns. 
 
"Young people are contracting this deadly virus and they need protection too", Senator Rachel Siewert said. 
 
The Prime Minister’s current targets exclude children and most teenagers. The PM’s 80% target is really a 65% target of the whole population.
 

The Senate Community Affairs References Committee has tabled its fourth interim report into the Government’s robodebt scheme.
 
“The Committee does not accept the Government’s ongoing claim of public interest immunity in regards to the legal advice on the illegal robodebt scheme”, Senator Rachel Siewert said.
 

The Greens say it is unconscionable for the Government to be chasing income support recipients for JobKeeper debts when billionaires collected millions in Jobkeeper while turning significant profits. 
 
“There is a clear double standard between individuals receiving income support and businesses who claimed Jobkeeper'', Greens spokesperson on Family and Community Services Senator Rachel Siewert said. 

 “I am certain the vast majority of these so-called debts will be genuine mistakes in a confusing system.