Politicians at every level of government across Gosnells and Canning are doing the right thing when it comes to the COVID-19 vaccine.
Last Thursday, Examiner Newspapers contacted every councillor in both cities, with a deadline of 5pm Monday to confirm their vaccination status.
The response from Canning councillors was swift, with Mayor Patrick Hall and councillors Ben Kunze, Lindsay Holland, Paul Tucek, Hardeep Singh, Amanda Spencer-Teo and Mark Bain confirming they were either double vaccinated with a booster, or double vaccinated and waiting to become eligible for the third jab.
Councillor Jesse Jacobs said he had a medical contraindication digital certificate – meaning he is medically exempt from having a COVID vaccination – while councillors Sara Saberi, Craig Sweeney and Steve Parkinson failed to respond.
In Gosnells, Examiner Newspapers received responses from Mayor Terresa Lynes and councillors Emma Zhang, Aaron Adams, David Goode, Glen Dewurst, Adam Hort Sarah Patterson and Caren Baayems, all confirming they had either had or were awaiting their third jab.
Councillors Peter Abetz, Dave Griffiths, Kevin McDonald and Serena Williamson did not respond.
Cr Hort in particular was a fierce advocate for the vaccine, saying that his work had made him increasingly aware of the dangers posed by COVID.
“As you would expect in my position as the Chief Pharmacist for the WA Country Health Services, I am double vaccinated with a booster,” he said.
“I worked at Fiona Stanley Hospital in the height of the pandemic in 2020 and saw first-hand the awful effects SARS-CoV-2 had on our patients.
“Local government councillors are the most available elected officials in Australia and I regularly meet with residents with compromised immune systems, I would feel terrible if I increased their risk of illness.”
On a State level, Terry Healy, Tony Buti, Dr Jags Krishnan, Yaz Mubarakai, Bill Johnson, Matt Swinbourn, Stephen Price, Hugh Jones and Chris Tallentire all confirmed they were fully vaccinated or waiting to be eligible for a booster.
Federally, Ben Morton and Matt Keogh confirmed they were fully vaccinated, while Swan MP Steve Irons failed to respond by deadline.
