Labor Leader Peter Malinauskas is calling for the Marshall Liberal Government to urgently open vaccination clinics in primary schools during the holidays, to ensure more children can get their first dose before school returns.

Mr Malinauskas said there had been reports in recent days of children aged between five and 11 being forced to wait up to a month for their first dose as parents struggle to get a timely appointment.

“With primary schools sitting empty during the school holidays, they would be an ideal location for the government to set up pop-up vaccination clinics at various locations across the metropolitan area and regional South Australia,” he said.

“The clinics would be exclusively for school-aged children to cut down on waiting times.”

Children aged between five and 11 became eligible to receive their first dose as of yesterday.

“We must do everything we can to get as many vaccine doses in as many arms of children as possible between now and the beginning of the school year,” Mr Malinauskas said.

“Way back in October, Labor constructively called for the government to take urgent action to prepare our schools for COVID-19.

“Steven Marshall says there’s no shortage of vaccine supply, so why are parents being told they may have to wait up to a month to get their child’s first dose?

“Our schools are sitting empty during the school holidays, so why not use some of them as vaccination clinics for children?”