West Australian (WA) Premier Mark McGowan has suggested the state will continue to pursue a zero-COVID strategy even when 80 percent of the population has been vaccinated. This is despite agreeing to a national cabinet plan to relax restrictions once that benchmark was reached. It also follows a decision by the WA government to impose hard borders on visitors from New South Wales (NSW). “We will do what’s required to keep the people of our state safe,” the premier told reporters on Aug. 16. “We are following the national roadmap. It’s there in black and white,” he added. “If we have 80 percent vaccination, we still have 20 percent of eligible people (in Western Australia) unvaccinated.” “That’s 400,000 people (in Western Australia),” McGowan said. “Some of them may well be very vulnerable.” “My view is people in this state want the right to stay safe.” In late July, the national …