The battle over how to combat coronavirus has a geological fault– and today it deepened
Published
An MP required a chat on Friday morning as he drove through his electorate.
On one side of the roadway he passed the local Centrelink office and a queue of the newly unemployed extending 300 metres.
On the other, he saw a swarm of police raiding a regional brothel, where all concerned were obviously flouting the restriction announced today on such “individual services”.
For some, this crisis is devastatingly genuine. For others, it does not seem to exist.There is a fault
line, too, when it comes to how best to take on the coronavirus. A fault line that deepened this week.The “lock-downers “argue tighter constraints are the only way to stop the infection dispersing. They also reckon this will imply the least financial cost in the long run. It’s a twin argument to conserve lives and jobs.
Jacinda Ardern, Boris Johnson and plenty of medical experts fall broadly into this classification.
Anthony Albanese has actually also been pressing the case for more urgent steps now. “If we think we’re going to do something about it next week, we should take that action today,” he says.Then there
are the “progressive steppers” who wish to keep individuals in work for as long as possible.
Scott Morrison, the Premiers and the Chief Medical Officer fall broadly into this category, with some wishing to step more slowly than others. They, too, argue their case on both financial and health grounds.The economic
premises are simple. The more individuals who can remain in work, the better for their own sakes and the sake of an operating economy on the other side of this.
The health premises being put forward by the “gradual steppers” became clearer today too.Without explicitly describing domestic violence, suicide and social breakdown, it’s clear this was the Prime Minister’s severe concern when he offered a plain warning on Tuesday night.”I am extremely concerned about the economic crisis that might also take an excellent toll on individuals’s lives, not simply their livelihoods. The stresses that will place on households. The important things that can happen when families are under tension,” he stated.” I am as concerned about those results as I am about the health outcomes of
managing the outbreak of the coronavirus and it is a fragile job for the National Cabinet to stabilize those two. Lives are at threat in both cases. “It’s a rather more sophisticated variation of Donald Trump’s “we can’t let the remedy be even worse than the problem”
position.It’s a genuine argument Who’s right and who’s wrong? The “full lock-downers “or the” progressive steppers”? It’s challenging to know at this moment, however it’s not fair to accuse those dissenting from the federal government’s position
of playing politics. This is a genuine debate.It must likewise be acknowledged that weighing these threats and making these decisions is an unenviable job. It’s too early to evaluate whether
the Prime Minister has made the right call.Your concerns on coronavirus answered: While the coronavirus curve continues to climb up too steeply in Australia, there have been some fragments of much better news in recent days. The number of brand-new cases each day in NSW and Victoria
has actually fallen slightly.The measures adopted up until now must also begin to have a greater impact in the days ahead. Shutting the border to immigrants and as of today forcing all Australians coming home to spend two weeks locked up in a hotel space ought to also slow the variety of cases being imported. This is still the greatest component of the total caseload.Closing pubs, clubs, cafes and restaurants need to assist slow the spread of the infection. Must the social distancing all over else.The problem is the time lag needed to measure the success of these
actions. According to the Deputy Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly, it’s going to take a minimum of 2 weeks.That indicates we can’t be particular for at least another fortnight whether
tighter restrictions are needed. Already, naturally, it might be too late.The Prime Minister is sounding optimistic.”We are getting on top of this, “he with confidence declared after Friday’s National Cabinet meeting. Time will tell.The state and federal leaders are likewise attempting to work out a way to enable small organisation to go into “hibernation “, by persuading banks, smaller sized lending institutions, power companies and property managers to freeze leas, lease payments and power bills.Thousands of small organisations have currently let their personnel go, have absolutely no income, yet still need to pay the installing bills. They either need a”freeze” or more will cut their losses and fold, leaving a deep hole in the economy on the other side of this crisis.The hibernation strategy will require the cooperation of numerous players and no doubt more funding from the Federal Government and the big banks.Without it, those lines outside the Centrelink offices will still be there when this virus has passed.David Speers is the host of Experts, which airs on ABC TV at 9am on Sunday or on iView.
