OUR SAY: Get it all together on COVID-19 messaging or it all falls apart

Prime Minister Scott Morrison had plenty of what he probably considered reasonable arguments for the next step in our pandemic plan when he fronted the media on Friday.

The issue with that, of course, is that so much of what he says is couched in what one commentator referred to as "more hot-air catchphrase nothingness from a Prime Minister out of his depth".

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That might seem exceedingly harsh given the fact that Australian has, at the very least, worked hard to keep the COVID-19 pandemic at bay since early last year.

Nevertheless, those glory days really are well behind us, as the Delta strain of the virus is now threatening in such a way that the federal government's incompetent role in the vaccination roll-out could become abundantly clear.

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And it could happen any day, such is the precarious nature of this enormous battle, and even despite the incredible work being done - largely by state governments.

"It's not a race" is the phrase that Mr Morrison surely has come to regret in these concerning times, yet the simple fact of the matter is that it always was.

Getting as many people vaccinated against COVID-19 one day or one month earlier than might have been predicted is always going to be better for those lives not lost by not doing just that.

The limited contract sign-ups for different vaccines has certainly come to haunt the federal government, which with the Astrazeneca jab has meant constantly shifting the goal posts and a plethora of often ambiguous advice on which age groups should take it up.

But it's not the extremely rare blood clotting disorder associated with Astrazeneca that is the issue; rather, it's the muddled messaging on what we all should do.

And so while the prime minister might be trying to show leadership with his latest pronouncements, the fact is its absence is a hand-brake on us all, especially now with the vaccination-focused bickering among the states.