Australian PM says no evidence coronavirus originated in Chinese laboratory but urges inquiry
- US President Donald Trump said on Thursday he was confident the coronavirus may have originated in a Chinese virology lab
- ‘We know it started in China, we know it started in Wuhan, the most likely scenario that has been canvassed relates to wildlife wet markets,’ Morrison said
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“What we have before us doesn’t suggest that that is the likely source,” Morrison told a news conference in Canberra when asked about Trump’s comments.
The Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), based in the city where the disease was first identified, has rejected suggestions the coronavirus came from its laboratory.
Most scientists now say the virus originated in wildlife, with bats and pangolins identified as possible host species.
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“That’s why it is just so important to understand what happened, to make sure that we can prevent such a broad-based global catastrophe from happening again,” Morrison said.
Australia has successfully contained the outbreak so far, but measures implemented to do that are set to see unemployment surge, the economy sink into recession for the first time in three decades and government debt increase massively.
The Australian government said on Friday it would meet next Friday, a week ahead of schedule, to decide whether to ease social distancing restrictions, as the numbers of new infections dwindle and pressure mounts for business and schools to reopen.
Australia has reported about 6,700 cases of the new coronavirus and 93 deaths, well below the levels reported in the US and Europe. Growth in new infections has slowed to less than 0.5 per cent a day, compared to 25 per cent a month ago.
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Morrison said it was imperative to lift social distancing restrictions as early as possible as 1.5 million people were now on unemployment benefits and the government forecast the unemployment rate to top 10 per cent within months.
“We need to restart our economy, we need to restart our society. We can’t keep Australia under the doona,” Morrison said, using an Australian word for quilt.
Morrison’s government has pledged spending of more than 10 per cent of GDP to boost the economy but the central bank still warns the country is heading for its worst contraction since the 1930s.
With less than 20 new coronavirus cases discovered each day, Morrison said state and territory lawmakers would meet on May 8 to determine whether to lift restrictions.
“Australians deserve an early mark for the work that they have done,” he told reporters.
Australia attributes its success in slowing the spread of Covid-19 to social distancing restrictions imposed in March, including the forced closures of pubs, restaurants and limiting the size of indoor and outdoor gatherings.
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Morrison said 3.5 million people had downloaded an app on their smartphones designed to help doctors trace people potentially exposed to the virus, though the government is hoping for about 40 per cent of the country’s 25.7 million population to sign up to ensure it is effective.
Cabinet will also decide next week how to restart sport across the country, the prime minister said.
The government says any resumption of sport should not compromise the public health, and recommends a staggered start beginning with small groups that play non-contact sport outdoors.