 "Sydney, Australia coronavirus")
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Sunday told state and territory leaders that they owe it to the citizens to reopen domestic borders by Christmas.
Morrison told local media that there was no reason for state borders to remain closed once 80 per cent of adults are fully vaccinated against Covid-19, a milestone the country is expected to reach in the following months, reports Xinhua news agency.
"It's important that we move forward. We can't stay in second gear. We've got to get to top gear in living with the virus," he said.
"My message is more to Australians that what I'd like them to have for Christmas is their lives back."
However, some state premiers push back against the government's four-phase roadmap out of the pandemic as the country continues to battle the third wave of infections.
Under the plan, domestic borders will open when 80 per cent of over-16s have had two vaccine doses.
On Sunday morning, Australia reported 1,765 new locally acquired Covid-19 infections amid lockdowns in some major cities.
With the new cases, the country's overall caseload has increased to 95,807, while the death toll stood at 1,220.
According to the latest data released by the Department of Health, 75.4 per cent of Australians aged 16 and older have received at least one Covid-19 vaccine dose and 50.9 per cent are fully vaccinated.
--IANS
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