A majority of Australian voters would be comfortable with vaccination passports as a precondition of future domestic travel, and with entertainment venues requiring proof of inoculation before entry, according to the latest Guardian Essential poll.
With Labor intending to use the resumption of parliament on Tuesday to urge the Morrison government to offer a one-off $300 payment to every fully-vaccinated Australian to increase incentives to get the jab – the latest poll of 1,098 respondents captures the nation in a cautious mood.
The survey shows a majority of people (62%) think 80% or more of the Australian population should be fully vaccinated before Australia reopens its international borders and removes all restrictions resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic.
The data indicates that 72% of respondents would support rules requiring people to prove they are vaccinated before travelling interstate, while 63% would back a requirement that people prove they are fully vaccinated before entering public venues, like restaurants.
With the dangerous Delta strain triggering restrictions that have forced millions of Australians into lockdown, a majority of respondents (67%) oppose the recent anti-lockdown protests, with 57% saying they “strongly” oppose them.
The protests are supported by 18% of respondents. While some Liberal and Nationals MPs fear there is a growing backlash in their base about the lockdowns, 72% of self-identified Coalition voters in the sample say they oppose the protests. Support is highest (31%) among respondents who identify as intending to vote for someone other than the major parties or the Greens.
While a majority of politicians and public health officials are now pleading with the public to get vaccinated as quickly as possible given the current risks, the latest Guardian Essential survey demonstrates there is significant residual hesitancy in the community about taking the AstraZeneca vaccine.
Just under half of respondents (47%) say they would be willing to get the Pfizer vaccine but not AstraZeneca, while 24% say they would be willing to get either jab. Only 3% of the sample say they would be willing to get the AstraZeneca vaccine but not Pfizer, and 14% continue to say they won’t get either.
While some hesitancy remains, 64% of the sample now reports they would get vaccinated as soon as possible, or reports being vaccinated with either one or two doses, with that cohort building steadily since April.
The Morrison government has faced significant political pressure about the slow pace of Australia’s vaccination rollout. Back in February, 65% of respondents approved of the prime minister’s performance. In the latest poll, that’s down to 50%.
The Labor leader Anthony Albanese has suffered a significant drop in voter approval in the latest poll, going from 41% in July to 34% in the latest data – a negative movement outside the survey’s margin of error.
The opposition leader’s disapproval is also up three points to 38%. It is unclear what has prompted the slide, but Labor last week elected to dump its proposed changes to negative gearing and to support the Coalition’s stage three tax cuts that predominantly benefit higher income earners.
Morrison remains comfortably ahead of Albanese on the better prime minister ranking, 45% to 26%, with 29% of respondents saying they don’t know which person would perform better in the top job.
With Sydney still in the grip of the Delta outbreak, the Gladys Berejiklian government has also fallen below 50% voter approval for the first time during the pandemic.
A fortnight ago 54% of respondents approved of the state’s handling of the crisis, and that’s fallen to 47%. Back in March, approval of the state government stood at 75%. Half of the NSW-based respondents in the latest survey also think Berejiklian did not lock down Sydney fast enough to suppress the curve of infections.
Approval of the Victorian government, meanwhile, has edged back over 50% (54% approval).
Ahead of parliament’s resumption on Tuesday, the Morrison government unveiled $100m more in support for the aviation sector. There is majority support in the Guardian Essential survey (66%) for the Coalition to reinstate the jobkeeper wage subsidy, and 59% of respondents say the federal government should provide financial support to people and businesses affected by future lockdowns.
Respondents are split over whether the Morrison government is providing sufficient support to help people manage the impact of the latest restrictions, with 37% of respondents saying not enough, and 47% expressing satisfaction.