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Should Australia mandate cancer warnings for alcoholic drinks?

<div class="theconversation-article-body"> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/rachel-visontay-2291993">Rachel Visontay</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/louise-mewton-2292647">Louise Mewton</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a></em></p> <p>Alcohol causes huge harm in Australia, <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/article/S1470-2045(21)00279-5/fulltext">responsible for 5,800 new cancer cases per year</a>. Yet many of us remain in the dark about its health risks.</p> <p>In January, the United States’ Office of the Surgeon General, the country’s leading public health spokesperson, <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/surgeongeneral/priorities/alcohol-cancer/index.html">recommended warnings about alcohol’s cancer risks</a> should be displayed on drink packaging.</p> <p>These messages have already been made obligatory in <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanepe/article/PIIS2666-7762(25)00001-8/fulltext#:%7E:text=In%20May%202026%2C%20Ireland%20will,warnings%20(following%20South%20Korea).">Ireland and South Korea</a>.</p> <p>So, do they work? And should we mandate them here?</p> <h2>Isn’t a glass of wine or two good for me?</h2> <p>Most of us know heavy drinking is unhealthy.</p> <p>Yet the belief a few glasses of wine helps protect against heart disease and other conditions has persisted. That is despite <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/acer.15299">evidence in recent years</a> showing the benefits have been overestimated and the harms underplayed.</p> <p>In fact, <a href="https://www.who.int/europe/news/item/06-11-2023-joint-statement-by-who-europe-and-iarc-to-the-european-parliament---raising-awareness-of-the-link-between-alcohol-and-cancer#:%7E:text=There%20is%20also%20clear%20evidence,for%20cancers%20can%20be%20established.">any level of alcohol</a> use increases the risk for several types of cancer, including colorectal cancer (affecting the large intestine and rectum) and breast cancer.</p> <p>In recent years, the <a href="https://www.ndph.ox.ac.uk/news/new-genetic-study-confirms-that-alcohol-is-a-direct-cause-of-cancer">evidence has strengthened showing alcohol</a> plays a clear, causal role increasing cancer risk and other serious health problems, as well as <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2802963">all-cause mortality</a>.</p> <p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.canep.2021.102049">One study estimated</a> how many new cancer cases will develop across the lifetimes of the 18.8 million Australian adults who were alive in 2016. It predicted a quarter of a million (249,700) new cancers – mostly colorectal – will arise due to alcohol.</p> <p>We know what causes this harm. For example, acetaldehyde – a chemical produced by the body when it processes alcohol – <a href="https://www.cancervic.org.au/cancer-information/preventing-cancer/limit-alcohol/how-alcohol-causes-cancer">is carcinogenic</a>.</p> <p>Alcohol also increases cancer risk through “<a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/oxidative-stress">oxidative stress</a>”, an imbalance in the body’s antioxidants and free radicals which causes damage to DNA and inflammation.</p> <p>It can also affect <a href="https://www.cancervic.org.au/cancer-information/preventing-cancer/limit-alcohol/how-alcohol-causes-cancer">hormone levels</a>, which raises the risk for breast cancer in particular.</p> <h2>Australians unaware of the risk</h2> <p>While the harms are well-known to researchers, many Australians remain unaware.</p> <p>Figures vary, but <a href="https://www.cancercouncil.com.au/news/what-do-you-mean-alcohol-causes-cancer-nsw-communitys-views-on-alcohol-and-alcohol-policy-options/#:%7E:text=In%202022%2C%20we%20surveyed%20the,our%20last%20survey%20in%202019.">at best only 59% of us</a> know about the direct link between alcohol and cancer (and at worst, <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37247850/">just one in five</a> are aware).</p> <p>Perhaps the best evidence this message has failed to sink in is our continued love affair with alcohol.</p> <p>In 2022–23 <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/alcohol/alcohol-tobacco-other-drugs-australia/contents/drug-types/alcohol">69% of us drank alcohol, with one in three</a> doing so at levels deemed risky by the National Health and Medical Research Council. For both men and women, that means <a href="https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/health-advice/alcohol">having more than ten standard drinks per week</a> or more than four in one day.</p> <h2>What are other countries doing?</h2> <p><a href="https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/business/labelling/pregnancy-warning-labels/pregnancy-warning-labels-downloadable-files#faqs">Like Australia</a>, the US already has warnings on alcohol about its impacts on unborn children and a person’s ability to operate cars and machinery.</p> <p>The US Surgeon General wants additional explicit warnings about cancer risk to be compulsory.</p> <p>This follows Ireland, <a href="https://www.wcrf.org/about-us/news-and-blogs/how-ireland-beat-the-odds-to-introduce-cancer-warning-labels-on-alcohol/">the first country</a> to mandate cancer labels for alcohol. From 2026, alcohol packaging will include the warning: “there is a direct link between alcohol and fatal cancers”.</p> <p>Other countries, including Norway and Thailand, are also <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/03/world/alcohol-cancer-warnings-countries.html">reportedly investigating cancer warning labels</a>.</p> <p>Since 2017, alcohol producers in South Korea have had to choose between three compulsory warning labels – <a href="https://iard.org/science-resources/detail/Health-Warning-Labeling-Requirements">two of which warn of cancer risks</a>. However they can instead opt for a label which warns about alcohol’s risks for <a href="https://journals.lww.com/co-psychiatry/abstract/2021/03000/alcohol_use_and_dementia__new_research_directions.15.aspx">dementia</a>, <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(18)31772-0/fulltext?previewDate=09-01-2015+00%3A00+Europe%2FHelsinki%3Fcategory%3Dterveys%2Fapi%2Ffragment%2Fhtml">stroke</a> and <a href="https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/brochures-and-fact-sheets/interrupted-memories-alcohol-induced-blackouts#:%7E:text=Alcohol-related%20blackouts%20are%20gaps,brain%20area%20called%20the%20hippocampus.">memory loss</a>.</p> <h2>Will Australia follow suit?</h2> <p><a href="https://www.cancer.org.au/about-us/policy-and-advocacy/prevention/alcohol">Australian health bodies have been advocating</a> for cancer warnings on drink packaging for <a href="https://fare.org.au/alcohol-product-labelling-health-warning-labels-and-consumer-information/">over a decade</a>.</p> <p>Currently, whether to include warnings about alcohol’s general health risks is at the discretion of the manufacturer.</p> <p>Many use vague “drink responsibly” messages or templates provided by DrinkWise, an organisation <a href="https://drinkwise.org.au/about-us/#:%7E:text=DrinkWise%20is%20funded%20primarily%20through,financial%20and%20in%2Dkind%20support.">funded by the alcohol industry</a>.</p> <p>Pregnancy <a href="https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/business/labelling/pregnancy-warning-labels">warning labels</a> (“Alcohol can cause lifelong harm to your baby”) only became obligatory in 2023. Although this covers just one of alcohol’s established health effects, it has set an important precedent.</p> <p>We now have a template for how introducing cancer and other health warnings might work.</p> <p>With pregnancy labels, the government <a href="https://www.transparency.gov.au/publications/health/food-standards-australia-new-zealand/food-standards-australia-new-zealand-annual-report-2018-19/4.-highlights/pregnancy-warnings-on-alcohol">consulted public health and industry bodies</a> and gave a <a href="https://www.foodstandards.gov.au/business/labelling/pregnancy-warning-labels">three-year transition period</a> for manufacturers to adjust. We even have examples of colour and formatting of required labels that could be adapted.</p> <p>Perhaps most promisingly, <a href="https://www.cancercouncil.com.au/news/what-do-you-mean-alcohol-causes-cancer-nsw-communitys-views-on-alcohol-and-alcohol-policy-options/#:%7E:text=In%202022%2C%20we%20surveyed%20the,our%20last%20survey%20in%202019.">four in five surveyed Australians support</a> adding these cancer-specific warnings.</p> <h2>Would it work?</h2> <p>We know the existing “drink responsibly”-style warnings are not enough. Research shows consumers find these messages <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/16066359.2021.1884229">ambiguous</a>.</p> <p>But would warnings about cancer be an improvement? Ireland’s rules are yet to come into effect, and it’s too early to tell how well South Korea’s policy has worked (there are also limitations give manufacturers can choose a warning not related to cancer).</p> <p>But <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32359056/">a trial</a> of cancer warnings in one Canadian liquor store found they increased knowledge of the alcohol–cancer link by 10% among store customers.</p> <p>Cancer messages would likely increase awareness about risks. But more than that – a 2016 <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4883036/#:%7E:text=The%20results%20of%20the%20present,and%20changes%20in%20drinking%20intentions.">study that tested cancer warnings</a> on a group of 1,680 adults across Australia found they were also effective at reducing people’s intentions to drink.</p> <p>The evidence suggests a similar policy could replicate <a href="https://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/20/5/327">the success of cancer warnings on cigarette packaging</a> – first introduced in the 1970s – at increasing knowledge about risks and reducing consumption. Smoking rates in Australian adults <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4392189/">have declined steadily since these warnings were first introduced</a>.</p> <p>It may take years before Australia changes its rules on alcohol labelling.</p> <p>In the meantime, it’s important to familiarise yourself with the current national <a href="https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/health-advice/alcohol">low-risk drinking guidelines</a>, which aim to minimise harm from alcohol across a range of health conditions.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/246890/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/rachel-visontay-2291993"><em>Rachel Visontay</em></a><em>, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Alcohol and Long-term Health, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/louise-mewton-2292647">Louise Mewton</a>, Associate Professor, Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-sydney-841">University of Sydney</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Shutterstock </em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/should-australia-mandate-cancer-warnings-for-alcoholic-drinks-246890">original article</a>.</em></p> </div>

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Huge news for avid cruisers

<p>Those planning to embark on a cruise can leave their masks behind, as Covid mandates on board have finally been scrapped. </p> <p>NSW premier Chris Minns announced the change of rules for cruise passengers on Monday, saying, “We need to get life back to normal.”</p> <p>Previously, the rules around cruising were quite strict in the face of several Covid outbreaks on ships around the world, with passengers over the age of 12 needing to provide proof of vaccination prior to embarking. </p> <p>Travellers also had to abide by enforced mask-wearing when embarking and disembarking the ship, and had to present a negative Covid test prior to departure.</p> <p>The NSW government announced on Monday that they had formally signed paperwork that removed the rules from the Eastern Seaboard and Western Australian Cruise Protocols, which also covers travellers embarking from Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia.</p> <p>Mr Minns said it was time to “get life back to normal”.</p> <p>“We have scrapped these rules because they aren’t needed anymore,” he said.</p> <p>“Passengers can take their own decisions to look after their health before and during a cruise.”</p> <p>Tourism Minister John Graham welcomed the change in regulations, but also thanked the government for implementing the safety rules at the height of the Covid pandemic. </p> <p>“The 2023 winter cruise season in Sydney is on track to be one of the strongest on record and it is fantastic even more people can now participate,” he said. </p> <p>“These protocols were important after Covid but were not intended to continue in perpetuity and I thank the sector for how they have handled the additional requirements placed upon them.”</p> <p>While the remaining states have yet to formally rescind the rules, the federal health body has advocated for the removal of the Covid public health measures.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p>

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Fran Drescher calls for an end to “bull***t” vaccine mandates

<p dir="ltr">Fran Drescher has divided audiences after using her platform to go on a tirade about bringing an end to “bull***t” vaccine mandates. </p> <p dir="ltr">The former star of <em>The Nanny</em> took to the stage at the 2023 Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards on Sunday, and used the opportunity to voice her controversial opinions about Covid-19 restrictions. </p> <p dir="ltr">“As the nation declares an end to the Covid emergency this May, I hope we will see everyone return to work in equal opportunity,” Drescher, 65, said in her speech during the telecast,<em> <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/02/27/fran-drescher-calls-for-end-to-vaccine-mandate-in-sag-speech/?utm_campaign=SocialFlow&amp;utm_medium=SocialFlow&amp;utm_source=NYPTwitter">Page Six</a></em> reports. </p> <p dir="ltr">The entertainment industry’s pandemic protocols were originally set to end on January 31st, but have been extended until April 1st. </p> <p dir="ltr">Meanwhile, more than 20 US states still enforce vaccine mandates to varying degrees.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Our industry brings billions of production dollars to states across the nation, but if they want our business, let’s wield our financial influence to make governors act in the best interest of freedom, diversity, inclusion and democracy,” Drescher said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“As my character Bobbi Flekman said in <em>This Is Spinal Tap</em> – money talks and bulls**t walks!”</p> <p dir="ltr">Her divisive comments were met with a mixed reaction online, with many viewers claiming it was “irresponsible” for Drescher to use her platform in such a way.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Fran Drescher’s comments on the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CovidVaccine?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CovidVaccine</a> were irresponsible. Using her logic, people wouldn’t be universally vaccinated against diseases like measles and tetanus. Public health is PUBLIC because it takes collective work.</p> <p>— 🇺🇦мег 🇺🇦 (@sassybibrarian) <a href="https://twitter.com/sassybibrarian/status/1630038810095648768?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">God I love Fran Drescher, but her speech at the SAG awards could have been an email.</p> <p>— Francis (@Fusterduster) <a href="https://twitter.com/Fusterduster/status/1630022506668249088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Woody Harrelson and now Fran Drescher. Big weekend for anti-vaxxers.</p> <p>— 𝐓𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐬 ⁽ʷʰᵒ ⁱˢ ᵍᵃʸ⁾ (@cinema_gay) <a href="https://twitter.com/cinema_gay/status/1630021950293655554?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <p dir="ltr">Elsewhere in her speech, Drescher also discussed her efforts to help make Hollywood more environmentally friendly by joining with Green Council with a goal to eliminate single-use plastic both on camera and behind the scenes.</p> <p dir="ltr">She also applauded IMDb for “taking a stand against ageism, stereotyping and gender rigidity by allowing our members to define themselves their way on their profile page – for free.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em><span id="docs-internal-guid-1cf5b55a-7fff-4610-144c-c7e3ae12e9d4"></span></p>

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"Just back off": Karl Stefanovic's fiery outburst

<p dir="ltr">An angry Karl Stefanovic has told politicians to “back off” and allow Aussies to make their own decisions when it comes to Covid.</p> <p dir="ltr">Australia is currently recording on average 40,000 cases of Covid-19 daily and there are renewed calls to bring back some mandates, including masks.</p> <p dir="ltr">Health officials across the country are warning of a third wave in the upcoming weeks from dominant Omicron sub-variants BA.4 and BA.5.</p> <p dir="ltr">But <em>The Today Show</em> co-host has fired up saying it's time for Aussies to move on with their lives, following an appearance from Dr Nick Coatsworth.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I just have to say this, I'm sick of governments being in our lives so much,” Karl said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Just back off. Let us make our own decisions about what we want to do with the families. Even the talk of mandating again, let us make our own decisions.</p> <p dir="ltr">“We've done everything that you wanted. Most of us had at the least two jabs. Back off and let me make my own decisions.</p> <p dir="ltr">“That's my point. My mum reckons, let's go back to where it was. Get it back on. Australia right now, happy days.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Dr Coatsworth concurred with Karl saying it’s time for the government to end the Covid mandates.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I think what many Australians feel and would agree with is that the time for mandating some of these interventions is at an end in July 2022,” he said.</p> <p dir="ltr">Karl pointed out that many people were switching off about Covid while others were open to bring back mandates.</p> <p dir="ltr">“But you've got to move on with this. Especially given the fact that a lot of people have had worse respiratory viruses than Covid was in the first place,” he continued.</p> <p dir="ltr">“They're saying: 'Well damn it. I'm going to get out there. I'm not doing it anymore.'”</p> <p dir="ltr">Dr Coatsworth replied: “I'm surprised in July 2022, Australia as a nation is starting to get really het up about this again.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I think we really need to come together and realise, yes, it's a deal but it's not the same big deal that it was two years ago.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: The Today Show</em></p>

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Airport face mask mandate dropped

<p dir="ltr">Travellers and workers at Australian airports will no longer be required to wear a face mask as health officials drop the mandate. </p> <p dir="ltr">The Australian Health Protection Principal Committee (AHPPC) - a group of the nation's state and territory chief health officers - said face masks were no longer required at airports.</p> <p dir="ltr">The mandate can be dropped from June 17 but masks will still need to be worn on all flights. </p> <p dir="ltr">“The AHPPC notes that all states and territories have relaxed mask mandates in most settings within the community and considers that it is no longer proportionate to mandate mask use in airport terminals," a statement from the committee said.</p> <p dir="ltr">The federal government expects the states to drop the mandate and follow the advice soon. </p> <p dir="ltr">"We anticipate the travelling public will notice this change in the days following Friday as individual state and territory jurisdictions make the necessary changes to their public health orders," a joint statement from Health Minister Mark Butler and Transport Minister Catherine King said.</p> <p dir="ltr">"This changed advice comes after the AHPPC has reviewed the current COVID-19 situation in Australia and considers it no longer proportionate to mandate mask-wearing in the terminals. It has also noted all states and territories have relaxed mask mandates in most community settings."</p> <p dir="ltr">Despite the dropping of the mandate, Aussies are still strongly urged to wear masks to stop the spread of Covid-19 as well as the flu. </p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Shutterstock</em></p>

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Time to remove vaccine mandates? Not so fast – it could have unintended consequences

<p>Several Australian states have used mandates to drive up COVID vaccination rates. Governments justified the mandates on the basis of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=479962466825937&set=pb.100044365632393.-2207520000..&type=3">preventing the spread of disease</a> and <a href="https://statements.qld.gov.au/statements/93754">protecting the vulnerable</a>.</p> <p>Now many states are rolling back these mandates, with Queensland <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-04-05/qld-coronavirus-covid19-vaccination-mandate-eased-april-14/100958850">removing the requirement to show you’re vaccinated</a> before entering cafes, pubs, galleries and other public spaces from tomorrow.</p> <p>It would be nice to think that when mandates have served their purpose, they can be removed. In practice, removing mandates may affect public attitudes about the importance of vaccination and the likelihood of getting boosters.</p> <p><strong>Remind me, what were the mandates?</strong></p> <p><a href="https://theconversation.com/vaccine-passports-are-coming-to-australia-how-will-they-work-and-what-will-you-need-them-for-167531">Public space mandates</a> involve governments mandating that venues (such as restaurants, libraries and sporting venues) check individuals’ vaccination status and <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-it-time-to-rethink-vaccine-mandates-for-dining-fitness-and-events-we-asked-5-experts-176356">exclude the unvaccinated</a>. This is facilitated by <a href="https://theconversation.com/could-a-france-style-vaccine-mandate-for-public-spaces-work-in-australia-legally-yes-but-its-complicated-165814">vaccine passports and certificates</a>.</p> <p><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264410X21015309?via%3Dihub">Government employment mandates</a> involve governments requiring workers in specific industries to be vaccinated. Businesses and organisations may also implement their own policies requiring the vaccination of their staff, their clients, or both.</p> <p>Most states and territories embraced public space mandates and all have required vaccination of aged and health-care workers.</p> <p>But many are on their way out. NSW eased its requirements last year. South Australia has recently revoked mandates for police, teachers and transport workers. Queensland’s new policy is noted above.</p> <p>Victoria, Western Australia, and the Northern Territory are sitting with their existing requirements for now.</p> <p><strong>What could happen next?</strong></p> <p>It’s unclear what impact removing vaccine mandates will have in Australia. However, we can learn from other public health measures and COVID vaccine mandates implemented overseas.</p> <p>Seat-belt laws converted a government requirement into a widespread social norm. Car manufacturers reinforced the norm with vehicles that beep at us when we don’t comply.</p> <p>But just because something has become habitual doesn’t mean we can lose the law. If governments removed the seat-belt law now and expected us to comply because we are informed, educated, and socialised, some people would still conclude that seat belts are no longer important. Removal of a requirement can send a bad message.</p> <p>The Italian government learned this when the region of Veneto suspended childhood vaccine mandates for four childhood vaccines in 2007. Officials thought the region’s wealthy and educated population would continue to vaccinate their children if the regional government provided strong education and messaging.</p> <p>They were <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s11077-021-09427-1">wrong</a>. Their strategy worked until there was a national vaccine scare in 2012. Vaccination rates in Veneto plummeted faster than anywhere else in the country.</p> <p>Eventually, the national government <a href="https://research-repository.uwa.edu.au/en/publications/recent-vaccine-mandates-in-the-united-states-europe-and-australia">mandated more vaccines</a> for the whole country.</p> <p>Other countries have already experimented with introducing, removing, and sometimes re-introducing mandates. Some, such as <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanres/article/PIIS2213-2600(22)00063-7/fulltext">Austria</a> and the <a href="https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainers/vaccine-mandates">United Kingdom</a>, have flip-flopped, providing little opportunity to study the impact of their mandates’ introduction or removal.</p> <p>Israel, which vaccinated its population promptly with Pfizer to the envy of the world, used a “public space” mandate (with an opt-out of a negative COVID test). The mandate has been <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8582817/">switched on and off</a> depending on the disease situation at the time.</p> <p>Unfortunately, Israelis’ uptake of subsequent doses has <a href="https://datadashboard.health.gov.il/COVID-19/general">dropped over time</a>, but its government still <a href="https://www.news.com.au/world/coronavirus/global/israel-rolls-back-green-pass-as-prime-minister-declares-the-covid-wave-is-breaking/news-story/b6f9ce495359166126b16c477af062b3">ended the mandate</a> in February.</p> <p>Mandates are also not without <a href="https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2021/215/11/policy-considerations-mandatory-covid-19-vaccination-collaboration-social">risks and costs</a>. They can provoke reactance, making those who are reluctant to vaccinate more determined not to do so. They may also prompt activism against vaccines and mandates.</p> <p><strong>High vaccination rates help contain COVID</strong></p> <p>One of the biggest challenges is nobody knows what the next phase of COVID will look like. Neither infection nor the current vaccines provide long-lasting immunity. We don’t know whether the next strain will continue the trajectory towards less serious symptoms started by Omicron (and helped by high vaccination rates).</p> <p>Whether we continue to be able to stay on top of COVID and whether the disease continues to remain less severe in most people infected will depend on maintaining high vaccination coverage rates.</p> <p>Governments across the nation and the world have struggled to get third doses into populations at the same level and with the same enthusiasm people showed towards the first two.</p> <p>Uptake in paediatric populations is also lagging in Australia – and there are no mandates.</p> <p>Now adults are being asked to prepare for and accept our fourth doses.</p> <p><strong>Leading the way</strong></p> <p>Western Australia has one of the highest rates of uptake in the country, with 76.7% of people aged over 16 <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=533610064794510&set=a.263657845123068">triple dosed</a>. This compares with the <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/2022/04/covid-19-vaccine-rollout-update-8-april-2022.pdf">national average</a> of 52.3%.</p> <p>It’s no coincidence the state’s employment mandates, which cover 75% of the workforce, require workers have their third dose within a month of becoming eligible.</p> <p>The WA mandate did not contain three doses to begin with, but it was very easy for the government to build it in.</p> <p>Faced with rolling back the mandate or keeping it operational for the fourth dose, the government will have to grapple with whether the population continues to support these measures – and there are definitely people who reluctantly accepted two doses and are not prepared to keep having more.</p> <p>WA’s public space mandate only covers two doses for now.</p> <p>WA’s COVID vaccination experience has shown that mandates, including for third doses, drive high levels of uptake, and are <a href="https://www.ijhpm.com/article_4210.html">easy for governments to implement</a>.</p> <p>However, much of the rest of Australia is moving in an opposite direction to WA in removing its mandates.</p> <p>As we live through the continued natural experiment of living with COVID – and not allowing it to defeat us – we now move into a new phase of making sense of what to do with the policy instruments governments used.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/180781/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /></p> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/katie-attwell-94905" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Katie Attwell</a>, Associate professor, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-western-australia-1067" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The University of Western Australia</a></em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/time-to-remove-vaccine-mandates-not-so-fast-it-could-have-unintended-consequences-180781" target="_blank" rel="noopener">original article</a>.</em></p> <p><em>Image: Getty Images</em></p>

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All the tunes used to repel NZ anti-vaccine mandate protesters

<p dir="ltr">As a protest against vaccine mandates enters its sixth day outside New Zealand’s Parliament House, Speaker of the House Trevor Mallard adopted a rather unconventional way to send protesters packing.</p><p dir="ltr">With the rain and wind brought on by Cyclone Dovi not appearing to deter protesters, Mallard first attempted to shoo them away by turning on the sprinklers.</p><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-f82cf814-7fff-e818-6559-7d38f879e1c9">When that didn’t work either, he <a href="https://theconversation.com/three-unconventional-forms-of-travel-you-should-try-if-you-cant-go-abroad-this-summer-163776" target="_blank" rel="noopener">began blasting</a> widely disliked tunes instead at full volume, along with repeated pro-vaccination messages.</span></p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Last night the lovely govt played on loop Macarena, vax messaging, &amp; Trevor Mallard warning protesters that erecting structures on parliament lawns was unlawful. All night long. Despite this audio torture &amp; the howling gale, the protest continues. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Parliament?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Parliament</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/convoy2022NZ?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#convoy2022NZ</a> <a href="https://t.co/QCtK4T69N7">pic.twitter.com/QCtK4T69N7</a></p>— @victoria_dlV (@victoria_dlV) <a href="https://twitter.com/victoria_dlV/status/1492654821325041668?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 13, 2022</a></blockquote><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-b77720af-7fff-0fcb-4eeb-15ff52cf4603">To start with, Mallard’s playlist featured a selection of <em>Copacabana </em>singer Barry Manilow’s songs, <em>Macarena </em>by Los Del Rio, and the children’s tunes including <em>Baby Shark</em> and <em>Let it Go</em> from Disney film <em>Frozen</em>.</span></p><p> </p><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-612e419e-7fff-31e0-24fb-a66484f0e4cf">As news of the Speaker’s playlist spread online, singer James Blunt even weighed in, taking to Twitter to suggest that the NZ government include his music if Manilow’s proved ineffective.</span></p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Give me a shout if this doesn’t work. <a href="https://twitter.com/nzpolice?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NZPolice</a> <a href="https://t.co/AM2dZ6asMS">https://t.co/AM2dZ6asMS</a></p>— James Blunt (@JamesBlunt) <a href="https://twitter.com/JamesBlunt/status/1492586180226990083?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 12, 2022</a></blockquote><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-ba2a5a6f-7fff-4d23-91b7-5f187d5ada53">Mallard saw Blunt’s “very kind offer” and quickly added the Brit’s smash hit, <em>You’re Beautiful</em>, to the playlist.</span></p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en"><a href="https://twitter.com/JamesBlunt?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JamesBlunt</a> we will take up your very kind offer. My only doubt is whether it is fair to our <a href="https://twitter.com/nzpolice?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nzpolice</a> officers but I think they will be able to cope. <a href="https://t.co/spb1BDK50u">https://t.co/spb1BDK50u</a></p>— Trevor Mallard (@SpeakerTrevor) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpeakerTrevor/status/1492612830935531521?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 12, 2022</a></blockquote><p></p><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-9d371e47-7fff-83cd-8801-ca7e94339b79">Other entries on Mallard’s playlist included a humorous rendition of Celine Dion’s <em>My Heart Will Go On</em>, featuring musician Matt Mulholland playing a recorder quite poorly, as well as Randa’s <em>Vaccinate the Nation</em>.</span></p><p></p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">This is another suggestion………Crybabies Caravan With Full Band <a href="https://t.co/zjxaet7Wn1">https://t.co/zjxaet7Wn1</a> via <a href="https://twitter.com/YouTube?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@YouTube</a></p>— Trevor Mallard (@SpeakerTrevor) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpeakerTrevor/status/1492607298476605440?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 12, 2022</a></blockquote><p><span id="docs-internal-guid-1cbcfc2f-7fff-a4cd-ec9b-49137fb64bc8"></span></p><p dir="ltr">Social media users have also been sending in recommendations for what has been described as Mallard’s “counter protest”, while others have compiled playlists of annoying tunes guaranteed to irritate.</p><p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Getty Images</em></p>

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“That’s rubbish”: Jacqui Lambie slams Pauline Hanson’s discrimination bill

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Independent Senator Jacqui Lambie has dubbed One Nation the “enemy of healthcare workers” after the party proposed a bill banning discrimination against unvaccinated people.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Senator Lambie accused Pauline Hanson, who proposed the bill, of thriving on discrimination regarding immigration and other issues.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“One Nation wants autistic children to be taken out of public schools because, and I quote, they are a ‘strain’ on the rest of the class,” Senator Lambie <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/jacqui-lambie-blasts-pauline-hanson-and-one-nation-over-vaccine-mandate-bill/6447aa2f-2270-4e1a-9780-3b41de21e7e1" target="_blank">said</a>.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“One Nation wants a ban on any immigration from majority Muslim countries, even if the person isn’t Muslim.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“People don’t choose what country they are born in, that is discrimination.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Being held accountable for your own actions isn’t called discrimination, it’s called being - you wouldn’t believe it - a God damn, bloody adult.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“That’s right, it’s being an adult. It’s putting others before yourself. That’s what this country is supposed to be about.”</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Every Australian who's been vaccinated is a hero. You have done your bit to fight for those who can't fight for themselves. <br /><br />That's mateship. It's who we are. <a href="https://t.co/gZdBMbIlG1">pic.twitter.com/gZdBMbIlG1</a></p> — Jacqui Lambie (@JacquiLambie) <a href="https://twitter.com/JacquiLambie/status/1462655811130249216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 22, 2021</a></blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Senator Lambie said state-enforced lockdowns and border restrictions - which have prompted anti-lockdown protests across the country - weren’t fuelled by discrimination.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We don’t have lockdowns and border restrictions because state premiers love discrimination, that’s rubbish,” she said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We have them because they don’t want people dying.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“This is the only weapon we have and we need to do everything we can to keep ourselves safe and our children safe.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Following a heated debate, the Senate halted the progress of the bill by 44 votes to five.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But, the five proponents of the bill included Coalition Senators Matt Canavan, Gerard Rennick, Alex Antic, Concetta Fierravanti-Wells and Sam McMahon.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Prime Minister Scott Morrison defended the five dissenters and insisted that the Liberal-National parties could deal with differing opinions.</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">very strong speech from Jacqui Lambie, bluntly opposing One Nation's vaccine mandate "discrimination" bill:<br /><br />"that's the way it is. We do that to keep people safe. How about that?"<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/auspol?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#auspol</a> <a href="https://t.co/sXv0DZtviq">pic.twitter.com/sXv0DZtviq</a></p> — Josh Butler (@JoshButler) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoshButler/status/1462578638914682882?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 22, 2021</a></blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In Question Time on Monday, Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese questioned Mr Morrison’s decision to mandate vaccinations for some Australians in light of party members opposing mandates.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Why does the Prime Minister claim he is opposed to mandatory vaccinations when he has imposed mandatory vaccinations on aged care workers, Australians returning home, quarantine workers and even journalists attending his own press conferences?” Mr Albanese asked.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Mr Morrison replied that these rules came from following the health advice.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“The government doesn’t oppose mandatory vaccinations for health workers and aged care workers and disability workers,” he said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Mandatory vaccines for healthcare workers, for aged care workers, for those working with vulnerable people was the clear medical advice.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“It has been essential to take a series of decisions to protect Australians (but) there is a time for governments to step back.”</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Images: Getty Images</span></em></p>

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Pauline Hanson calls PM "weak" while moving to ban vaccine mandates

<p><em>Image: Getty </em></p> <p>Prime Minister Scott Morrison is facing a revolt on the floor of Parliament, with five senators breaking ranks to vote with One Nation in support of Pauline Hanson’s recently proposed anti-vaccination mandate bill.</p> <p>Senator Hanson – who remains unvaccinated – warned Morrison that she would cause “havoc” over his legislative agenda this week, including in relation to new religious freedom laws and reforms to demand voters provide ID when they vote.</p> <p>“The Prime Minister is weak, he says there should be no vaccine mandates – then do something about it,” she said.</p> <p>Shortly after 11 am Monday, NSW Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, Northern Territory Senator Sam McMahon, Queensland’s Matt Canavan and Gerard Rennick and South Australia’s Alex Antic all voted with One Nation.</p> <p>The bill was ultimately defeated five votes to 44 in the Senate. The result only included the votes of Coalition MPs who voted with One Nation, because Senator Hanson and her colleague Malcom Roberts were voting remotely.</p> <p>The vote followed warnings from Senator Hanson that the vaccines were “experimental” and governments had “no right to take away the right to choose.”</p> <p>“This legislation is urgently needed to arrest and reverse the pandemic of discrimination that has been unleashed on the Australian people,” she said.</p> <p>“People have a right to choose whether they want to have this vaccination or not. What is the country coming to? If you allow the premiers to have these powers, what will be next? This could lead to anything.”</p> <p>Speaking in Canberra shortly after the vote, the Prime Minister said MPs had a right to vote with their conscience on the matter.</p> <p>“The liberal Party and the National Party, we do not run it as an autocracy,” he said.</p> <p>“We don’t take people out of our party if we happen to disagree on an issue they feel strongly. The Government opposed the bill and the bill has not been success. We do not agree with the measures that were in the bill, which would indeed threaten funding for our hospitals and schools for states. I respect the fact that individual members will express a view and vote accordingly.”</p>

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