Argument Analysis: Vaccine Passports Could Really Tear Australia Apart

This analysis examines the argument presented by Andrew Bolt on Sky News Australia about the potential negative impact of vaccine passports on Australia. The premises of the argument are identified and evaluated for biases and fallacies. Credible sources are referenced to support the analysis.

Hunter Collingwood_1154286
Source of the text (article, video or podcast) that you are
analysing.
Provide a link or a reference to where this argument can be
found.
News Video: https://www.skynews.com.au/opinion/andrew-bolt/vaccine-passports-could-really-tear-
australia-apart-andrew-bolt/video/374f6057cb31bb8c666665a44a611912
Identify the conclusion
What is the author/speaker trying to persuade you of?
Vaccine passports are something which could “really tear the country apart”
Construct the argument including both explicit and implicit
premises:
Identify the premises – some may be stated clearly, others may
be unsaid.
Premise 1: Certain implications are causing people to take vaccines they do not even trust
Premise 2: They are giving people a false sense of security
Premise 3: Even if people do get the vaccine, nothing changes for you
Structure and truth of the argument
Identify whether the argument is intended to be deductive or
inductive and explain how you know.
Test for credibility of information used.
This is an argument which has been carefully developed with the opinions and ideas of Andrew bolt,
the news anchor along with panellists such as Genna Tognini and the framework of the argument
went from general ideas which are specific in nature to broad generalizations. This observation paints
the structure of this argument as being logically inductive
Evaluate the argument, using the skills covered in TPP107.
These may include:
 Biases
 Assumptions
 Fallacies
 Relevance
 Clarity
This argument is credible as even though some aspects of the debate can be classified as cherry
picking, there are fundamental wrongs with the object of discussion being vaccine passports and
there is existence of relevant literature which supports the points raised in this argument. There are
reasonable biases and the topic is very relevant with little fallacies.
Premise 1: They are coming in one way or another, in fact, they are already sneaking in
This premise is authentic and contains genuine cause of concern for the people of Australia as the
COVID-19 vaccine rollout has struggled in Australia and the people of the country have suffered a lot.
In this growing environment riddled with fear and chaos, the arrival of vaccine passports has been
sudden without much consultation. The argument presented by Andrew Bolt centred on the idea that
the certificate which is currently being generated and given to people who are getting jabbed with the
vaccine are just another form of passport which can be used to instil divide and needless restrictions
on the population of Australia. This holds true as the government has indeed gone on record and
made it official for certificates of vaccinations to be provided upon getting pricked which will have
variety of uses going forward. According to Paul Karp, 2021, the national cabinet of Australia has

decided that several of the country’s states will be integrating the COVID-19 certificates in their inner
departmental operations and will be combining them with their smartphones for easy scanning and
labelling of people into the vaccinated and non-vaccinated (Vaccine passports in Australia: who will
impose them and how will they work?, 2022). This decision proves that the advent of COVID-19
vaccination passports might already be here.
Premise 2: For some, vaccine passports are a way to open our economies to people who have been
vaccinated, so are much less likely to be infected and infectious
This premise aims to argue in the favour of vaccine passports as something positive for the people of
Australia and its economy which is cherry-picking and an overreach in critical insight as this is simply
not true. One of the major arguments raised in this TV debate by both the anchors and the group of
panellist is centred around the fact that the fallacy of COVID-19 virus being fully treatable with proper
precaution being taken and staying inside homes has been a lie which has led to unnecessary fear and
chaos. This holds true in the current context as according to Shabir A. Madhi, 2021, the concept of
herd immunity that has been fed to the masses is a lie and vaccines being administered even twice
cannot guarantee that people will not contract the virus ever again. It is a known fact that the
vaccines can only reduce the chances of catching the coronavirus but outright cure is not available
(COVID-19 herd immunity? It’s not going to happen, so what next?, 2022).
This also brings into light the false effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine passports as how can such a
concept be applied to multiple aspects of life such as schooling and travel when there is little to no
guarantee of complete cure from the disease. According to Michael Emran, 2021, the newly mutated
variants of COVID-19 such as Omicron might not get effectively treated unless a booster is
administered to people alongside double doses of vaccine which once again raises question on the
reliability of both the vaccine and the inevitable passport ( U.S. study suggests vaccines may be
ineffective against Omicron without booster, 2022).
Premise 3: For others, they are just a way for governments to get even more control over our lives,
and force people to take vaccines they do not trust.
This premise exists in a little grey area as it throws he government completely until the bus by
assuming a false premise however through secondary research and evaluation, there are valid
reasons to feel this sentiment for the people of Australia and the area of Vaccines not being trusted
also holds weight. The people of Australia have been treated harshly by their government as there has
been constant mishandling, lack of vaccination drives and constant lockdowns under the pretence of
removing COVID which is once again a lie. According to Tim Soutphommasane and Marc Stears, 2021,

the government tried isolating itself from the wold which backfired and made people not trust the
government (How failure on Covid-19 has exposed the dangerous delusion of “Fortress Australia”,
2022).
As far as vaccines are concerned, there is also valid reasons for not trusting them as they do not
guarantee complete care from the disease despite many governments run campaigns claiming to do
so. According to Lăzăroiu, G., Mihăilă, R. and Branişte, L., 2021, there are patterns which lead to
hesitation against getting vaccinated and they cannot be trusted as there have also been cases of
neglect and many side effects (Lăzăroiu, Mihăilă and Branişte, 2021). Existence of vaccine passports
can also lead to gatekeeping and social divide in this case which is also stated by Vinay Prasad (Vax
Passports Are a Bad Idea, 2022).
References
Your reference list should be in correct Harvard format.
Remember to reference the argument you are analysing. You
should have a minimum of four references here – the text of
the argument itself, and a minimum of three credible sources,
including two academic texts you have used for your analysis.
Vaccine passports in Australia: who will impose them and how will they work?, 2022 [online] available
through https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/sep/25/vaccine-passports-in-australia-
who-will-impose-them-and-how-will-they-work
COVID-19 herd immunity? It’s not going to happen, so what next?, 2022 [online] available through
<https://theconversation.com/covid-19-herd-immunity-its-not-going-to-happen-so-what-next-
165471>
U.S. study suggests vaccines may be ineffective against Omicron without booster, 2022 [online]
available through < https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/us-study-
suggests-covid-19-vaccines-may-be-ineffective-against-omicron-without-2021-12-14/>
How failure on Covid-19 has exposed the dangerous delusion of “Fortress Australia”, 2022 [online]
available through https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2021/07/how-failure-covid-19-has-
exposed-dangerous-delusion-fortress-australia
Lăzăroiu, G., Mihăilă, R. and Branişte, L., 2021. The language of misinformation literacy: COVID-19
vaccine hesitancy attitudes, behaviors, and perceptions. Linguistic and Philosophical Investigations,
20, pp.85-94.
Vax Passports Are a Bad Idea, 2022 [online] available through <
https://www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/vinay-prasad/92107>