Claims former prime minister Kevin Rudd helped Australia’s Pfizer supply have been quashed after a letter from him to PM Scott Morrison appeared to reveal just how Australia’s vaccine rollout went wrong.

Although the virus does not discriminate, policy responses – whether because of conscious or unconscious bias – can. There were no helicopters and police swarming over Bondi when the Delta strain started spreading. There was no cavalry of police in the northern beaches last Christmas. An extra 100 police officers have been deployed across southwest Sydney in response to the growing number of Delta strain Covid cases in greater Sydney.

• VIC broader closed to NSW and ACT
• New vaccine ad campaign
• Nominations open for Victorian Senior of the Year Awards
• New vaccination program to care workers
• Big businesses sites to be vaccination hubs
• Vaccine eligibility for food delivery workers

Worldwide COVID news

Prime Minister Scott Morrison appeared to have made a “captain’s call” last Thursday by encouraging people in New South Wales outbreak areas to have their AstraZeneca booster closer to eight weeks after their initial shot rather than wait for the generally recommended 12 weeks. Whereas according to ATAGI’s concern, and that of some other vaccine experts, is if you have your booster shot earlier than 12 weeks, your body won’t develop enough immunity to reliably protect you from serious disease. Confused? Here is what we know so far.

The 49-year-old doctor has again been called upon to talk about the COVID-19 vaccine to a group of refugees and migrants in Langford, in Perth’s eastern suburbs. Having fielded questions from different cultural groups for the past year, she knows their concerns won’t just be about the risk of rare blood clots.