'You're not a doctor': Scott Morrison slaps down Today's Karl Stefanovic over his calls to close schools because of the coronavirus outbreak - and reminds him being a concerned parent is 'not a competition'
- Karl Stefanovic said there needs to be a common sense response to coronavirus
- The Today Show host questioned the government decision to keep schools open
- Scott Morrison hit back on Monday morning saying Stefanovic was 'not a doctor'
- Federal education minister Dan Tehan said call is based on top medical advice
- A south-western Sydney primary school closed Monday due to the deadly virus
- A person who attended a teachers event at school on Thursday tested positive
- Coronavirus symptoms: what are they and should you see a doctor?
Scott Morrison has hit back at Today's Karl Stefanovic after the morning host criticised the Prime Minister for keeping schools open during the coronavirus outbreak.
Stefanovic said as a parent, he found Mr Morrison's plan of keeping schools open during the pandemic 'confusing' and 'disturbing' because there were more than 500 kids at most schools.
'I don't want my child to get this, okay? It doesn't make sense to me,' he said.
But Mr Morrison strongly disagreed with Stefanovic, reminding him that he was following the advice from the chief medical officer - and that he was a parent also.
'You're not a doctor and neither am I,' Mr Morrison said.
'I'm a parent, you're a parent. We all have the same anxieties about the health of our kids, it's not a competition.'
'My kids are going to school. I trust the medical advice of those who are responsible for the medical health of our nation. They don't consider these things idly, they consider them very carefully.
'It's a fact that younger people are less at risk and there are greater risks in school closures.
Mr Morrison did confirm that some schools may close in the future.
Education Minister Dan Tehan also appeared on the Today show to defend the government's decision to keep Australian children in class despite the spread of COVID-19, with now at least 299 cases with five deaths.
Elsewhere, 61 countries have closed schools.
Mr Tehan reiterated that the government was acting on the best medical advice available, however, Stefanovic wasn't having it, saying that 'even his 14-year-old daughter was telling him students were a lot closer than the recommended 1.5m gap between students at school.
But Mr Tehan said students need to be in class so that medical professionals who are parents will be able to stay in the work force.
He said children could be at risk of spreading the disease to elderly carers while their parents were working, before saying the upcoming Easter school holidays could be extended in response to the pandemic.
Karl Stefanovic questioned the federal government calls to keep schools open despite the coronavirus pandemic
Federal education minister Dan Tehan said the government was operating on the best medical advice available to them
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The Today host noted his contradictory statement, highlighting the confused state of many parents and carers in the governmental response to the virus.
'The differences in advice here and the discrepancies in advice is mind blowing,' he said.
'It's all over the shop. You're saying at one point we need our kids to be at school so they're not running around together and not spreading the virus and then you're saying, hang on a second, we may need to extend the school holidays. Which is it?'
Mr Tehan noted there may be a time for the government to close down schools but that time was not now.
A woman leaving Coles in Waterloo in central Sydney wearing a face mask on Sunday amid the coronavirus outbreak
There are now 298 cases of coronavirus around the country, with five deaths
St Christopher's Catholic Primary School in Panania in south-western Sydney closed on Monday after a person who had attended a professional development event at the school campus on Thursday tested positive for coronavirus.
'We want to take all possible precautions to ensure the continued health and safety of our school community,' Sydney Catholic Schools executive director Tony Farley said at a media conference.
'Closing a school, even for just one day, may seem to be an extraordinary measure but we are living in extraordinary times.'
The school will reopen for students on Tuesday after a thorough cleaning of the library where the event was held.
Scott Morrison's ban for all public gatherings of 500 people or more is now in place, which has resulted in various sporting events, concerts and meetings to be cancelled.
There are 299 cases of coronavirus in Australia, with five deaths.
Sydney Catholic Schools executive director Tony Farley said the school are taking all possible precautions for the safety of the school community
