Covid 19 coronavirus: Australia falls short of 4m vaccine target by 3.3m

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison had hoped 4 million Australians would have had their Covid-19 jab by now. Photo / AP

Australia is well and truly behind its Covid-19 vaccine schedule, with the nation falling far short of its March goal.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison had hoped that by yesterday, 4 million people would have received their jab.

However, just 670,000 people had received their dose at March 31.

The government has claimed all willing adults will receive the vaccine by October this year, but according to the Australian, "at the current rate, the most vulnerable will not be vaccinated until June 2023 and the full population not until October 2024".

Professor Catherine Bennett, the chair of epidemiology at Deakin University, said the pace of Australia's vaccine rollout could still grow "exponentially".

"That is not what the rest of the rollout is going to look like," she told the Guardian Australia. "If phase 1a took longer than expected, and the government itself said the aged care rollout took longer than expected, it doesn't mean we necessarily have to assume the same from here on in."

Last week, the government said Australia's low infection rates meant that the vaccine rollout did not require urgency.

The country has recorded 909 deaths and 29,304 cases since the pandemic began and currently has just 159 active cases.

Nevertheless, new outbreaks have led to six lockdowns in Australian cities in recent months. Critics said situations like Brisbane's outbreak showed why a quick vaccine programme is still needed.

Brisbane is currently dealing with two separate Covid-19 clusters after a doctor and a nurse at the same hospital contracted the UK strain of the virus from different patients. It was unclear why those health workers had not yet been vaccinated, officials said.

Recent outbreaks have led to six lockdowns in Australian cities. Photo / AP

Australian state leaders have criticised the federal government for the slow vaccine rollout, with NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard demanding an apology from Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt.

But Hunt defended the rollout, saying the federal government was working "constructively" with the states, adding they were doing a "very good job".

Labor leader Anthony Albanese said the government had failed.

"Scott Morrison is always strong on announcement and always weak on delivery," Albanese said in an ABC interview. "He was very confident and then the rhetoric changed halfway through March, whereby we were no longer in a hurry to achieve a rollout of the vaccine."