Keeping social distancing measures in place is costing the Australian economy $4 billion a week, Prime Minister Scott Morrison revealed at a press conference on May 5. Over 5 million people are on the Jobkeeper payment, with another 1 million claiming their superannuation retirement fund.
“Thousands of Australian lives have been saved, when you look the experience of how the coronavirus has affected so many countries around the world, but we now need to get 1 million Australians back to work, that is the curve we need to address,” Morrison said at a press conference on May 5.