We’re going to wrap this up for the evening. Here are the key moments from today:
- A 42-year-old man became the youngest person to die of Covid-19 in Australia. The man was a national of the Philippines and a crew member on the Artania cruise ship. He died in Perth.
- The prime minister, Scott Morrison, has suggested a tracking app for coronavirus could be mandatory but “Plan A” is for it to be voluntary.
- Western Australia has said it will start reopening schools on 29 April.
- A database that reports racist incidents against Asian Australians has received 178 responses in just two weeks since it launched – roughly 12 incidents a day.
- South Australia said it recorded just one new coronavirus case overnight, which its chief public health officer said was “really excellent news”.
- The federal government announced it would spent $165m to underwrite Qantas and Virgin Australia to conduct domestic flights for at least eight weeks.
- The number of people who have contracted Covid-19 in the Anglicare Newmarch aged care home in western Sydney rose to 20 residents and 10 staff.
- Tasmania’s premier, Peter Gutwein, said he is considering strengthening lockdown measures in the state’s north-west.
Stay safe and we will be back with you tomorrow.
Updated
Suspension of mutual obligations requirements for people on income support operates until Monday April 27.
— Rachel Siewert (@SenatorSiewert) April 17, 2020
I will be asking the Minister to take a public health approach to this issue and suspend mutual obligations for the next six months. #COVID19 #Centrelink
The Department of Home Affairs has provided a brief response to questions from Guardian Australia about the Ruby Princess inquiry that will be led by Bret Walker.
“The Department of Home Affairs will cooperate with the NSW Special Commission of Inquiry into the Ruby Princess where appropriate and will not be providing further comment at this time,” a spokesperson said.
From AAP, here is the latest snapshot of Covid-19 cases nationally:
- More than 6,500 Australians have caught the virus and about 58% of them have recovered.
- Australian deaths: 65 (26 in New South Wales, 14 in Victoria, four in Queensland, seven in Western Australia, seven in Tasmania, three in the Australian Capital Territory and four in South Australia). Nineteen were passengers on the Ruby Princess cruise ship.
- 29 people connected to Anglicare’s Newmarch House in NSW have tested positive after a worker attended the facility for six days with a sore throat.
- Half of all 4,884 virus tests carried out nationwide during the past 24 hours were conducted in Queensland.
Updated
I’ll now be handing over the blog to my colleague Lisa Cox, who will keep you updated for the rest of the evening. Thanks for following along, and stay safe.
The board that regulates Australia’s doctors has told patients to report instances of racist treatment from their doctors during the Covid-19 pandemic, after three instances of discrimination against Indigenous Australians.
The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency today said there was “no place for racism in healthcare”.
The Australian Indigenous Doctors’ Association revealed there were three cases in rural New South Wales and Western Australia where doctors refused to treat Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients over “racist stereotypes [about] not practising self-hygiene”.
Ahpra is encouraging Indigenous people who have experienced racist or “culturally unsafe incidents of care” to submit a complaint to the agency.
Teachers in WA have criticised unclear aspects of the premier’s announcement today that schools will effectively be open to all students who wish to attend within 12 days.
The president of the State School Teachers’ Union of WA, Pat Byrne, told AAP there should be limits on classroom numbers.
“Schools will have no idea how many students will attend, how many will need online materials or how many will need hard copy packages,” she said. “Planning will be extremely difficult.”
New restrictions were announced today for schools when they return, such as no excursions, and staggered start times so there are fewer students in contact with each other.
In more media news, there are three confirmed parties interested in buying the Australian Associated Press newswire, and the final bids are due in a week.
Just in: AAP CEO Bruce Davidson says three parties have confirmed their interest in the entire operation and, subject to further discussions and inquiries next week, will be submitting final bids by April 24.
— Gus McCubbing (@GusMcCubbing) April 17, 2020
Some media outlets are jumping the gun, using confusing language to say that rural areas are “Covid-free” and could end lockdown restrictions.
To be clear, that is not the case.
So @Mamamia is saying people in rural areas in Australia can come out of lockdown now as they're Covid-free. Haven't seen this info in any regional media, which is strange. Where is this coming from? pic.twitter.com/L9iKWohQJ2
— Eliza Berlage (@verbaliza) April 17, 2020
It appears @Mamamia has removed this from their Instagram
— Eliza Berlage (@verbaliza) April 17, 2020
Also earlier today, South Australia announced it had bought 10 new machines that can deliver rapid coronavirus test results in 45 minutes.
The state has invested $600,000 in the machines, and hopes to test 300 people a week, SA Pathology boss Tom Dodd said.
Traditional Covid-19 testing takes about 16 hours to provide a result, AAP reports.
Updated
In more cruise news, a ship off the coast of Darwin has agreed to leave, according to AAP.
The Caledonian Sky cruise ship earlier took the government to court after it directed all foreign ships to leave. The ship’s operator, Australia Pacific Touring, took legal action in the federal court saying this was in contravention of treaties on safety of life at sea.
However, the parties settled the matter out of court, with an agreement that the Caledonian Sky leave Australian territory by Tuesday.
The Bahamas-flagged ship is carrying 68 crew members but no passengers.
Updated
42-year-old man becomes youngest person to die of Covid-19 in Australia
A crew member from the Artania cruise ship has died in Perth, becoming the youngest person to die from Covid-19 in Australia.
The 42-year-old man was a national of the Philippines and died on Thursday at Royal Perth Hospital.
WA health minister Roger Cook announced the death on Friday. “His family have been notified and were put in contact with that crew member via translators and the shipping company, and they were able to reach out to him in his dying days,” he said.
The Artania is docked in Fremantle but is expected to leave on Saturday.
Updated
178 racist incidents reported in two weeks
A database that reports racist incidents against Asian Australians has received 178 responses in only two weeks since it launched – roughly 12 incidents a day.
And Queensland police say there have been 22 incidents of racially motivated offences against Asian Australians in recent weeks. In one case, a 15-year-old girl was charged with allegedly punching a 26-year-old woman in the face in Brisbane’s Queen Street Mall after she accused her of having Covid-19.
Victoria police are also investigating video footage of two international students who were punched and kicked on Thursday, allegedly after being threatened over coronavirus fears.
According to the self-reporting survey, the majority of the 178 racist incidents were committed against women (62%) and 86.5% of in-person racist incidents were committed by strangers.
The Queensland police commissioner said racist offences were being underreported to police.
Read the full story here:
Updated
The share market has closed higher today, narrowly missing a one-month high.
The ASX200 finished up 71.2 points, or 1.31%, at 5,487.5 – just 0.6 points shy of the one-month closing high set on Tuesday, AAP reports.
Updated
New IR rules will be reversed if employers abuse changes, ACTU says
However, McManus said Porter has promised to reverse the changes if employers are found to be abusing them.
“We talk most days,” McManus says. “[Today] he listened to that and said that if it’s true, what we’re saying, and if employers do abuse this, that he is prepared to reverse the regulation.”
She also said workers should just vote ‘no’ on any changes they are given under the new 24-hour deadline.
“If you’re presented with changes and you are given 24 hours’ notice of it, and then to vote, and you haven’t got time to look through it, to seek advice, vote no. You would be crazy to vote yes.
“You would basically be voting to change your conditions totally blind without the benefit of advice from experts, without probably even the ability to talk to your employer properly, let alone your fellow colleagues.”
McManus said employers could still give workers more time – beyond 24 hours – if they did need to make changes.
“It just doesn’t make sense,” she said.
“On one hand, big business is saying, ‘We need to cut the time from seven days to 24 hours’, and on the other hand this pandemic, the big economic consequences for business have been happening for three whole weeks. What have those businesses been doing for the last three weeks? They could have already consulted their workers.”
Updated
Sally McManus, the secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, has said that industrial relations minister Christian Porter did not consult unions before announcing yesterday’s big employment law changes.
Earlier in this coronavirus pandemic, Porter and McManus achieved an unprecedented level of cooperation.
“I think he [Porter] even described you to The Australian as his new BFF,” says host Patricia Karvelas on the ABC. “Is that relationship now broken?”
“It has been tested,” McManus says. “He made a really bad decision yesterday to make those changes. That’s likely to affect a whole lot of workers in a negative way and we’ve told him that directly. Not only was the decision bad – he didn’t consult us about it.”
Yesterday Porter’s announcement meant that workers would only have 24 hours to decide whether to accept or reject changes to their enterprise bargaining agreements, if their employers tried to change them.
Previously, they had seven days.
Updated
SA records one new coronavirus case
SA chief public health officer, Dr Nicola Spurrier, says there has been only one new case of Covid-19 overnight. That brings the state total to 435 people, but 76% (331 people) “have recovered fully”.
She says this is “really excellent news”. The state now has 104 active cases.
The new case was a person in their 50s and Spurrier said they were confident they picked it up through overseas travel.
Here’s an infographic from the premier’s office. That plan will be reviewed after three weeks.
There will be new measures in schools. Cleaners will “work continuously throughout the day, including cleaning and disinfecting all high contact items regularly including school play equipment,” McGowan said.
School swimming pools will be closed, excursions will be banned, and schools will use staggered start times and lunch times to limit contact between students.
The last few weeks have been nothing like we have experienced before, and I know everyone is eager to have some certainty for the coming few months and beyond.
— Mark McGowan (@MarkMcGowanMP) April 17, 2020
Today, I can provide details for parents and teachers with regards to the start of Term 2 at WA public schools. pic.twitter.com/KmXQnw1V5W
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WA schools to reopen 29 April
WA premier Mark McGowan has announced what he calls “a soft school opening” effective from Wednesday 29 April.
All students whose parents want them to attend school in person will be able to. Those who do not can still keep their children at home.
“On Tuesday, April 28, staff will return to school to finalise learning arrangements for term two,” McGowan says. “This will be a pupil free day for students.
“On Wednesday, April 29 schools will be open for all children to go to school and be taught. All parents and carers can choose to send their children to school. If parents don’t feel comfortable sending their kids to school for whatever reason they will not be obligated to do so. However year 11 and 12 students are strongly encouraged to attend.”
He says the reopening will be combined with more intense cleaning at schools, and stricter physical distancing. For example, parents can drop children at the school gate but can’t enter the school grounds.
Updated
The deputy chief medical officer has criticised the World Health Organisation for being too slow to declare a pandemic, but said countries should still provide it with funding during the coronavirus crisis.
Kelly said a financially robust WHO was “crucial”. But he offered some clear criticism.
“The WHO has had a chequered history in some issues in the past and was criticised early on in relation to its closeness perhaps with China,” he says. “And its reluctance to call it a pandemic when it clearly was.
“[But] they definitely need funding and they need to be accountable for those funds ... they cannot do that work particularly in middle-income countries who are likely to be severely affected [without funds].”
Updated
Kelly says that national cabinet will next week consider the issue of restarting some elective surgeries.
As for other restrictions he says: “I would imagine that starting small and building up would be the general principle that would be taken.”
He flags a potential lifting of the 4 square metres per person rule, if the infection rate continues to slow.
“Again it is a government decision, but if we look at what is happening in Europe at the moment and proposals in North America, they are sensing they are coming out of their much bigger and much more frightening epidemic then we have so fa experienced in Australia and they are the sort of approaches being done.”
Updated
Kelly also said the app would be “based on what was used in Singapore”.
“What the app adds to [contact tracing], would be totally a consent-based process. They would have to download it. That phone would through Bluetooth technology would be able to identify other phones who have gone through that consent process, who have been in close proximity with someone who becomes a case.
“Again, with the consent process, that information could be uploaded immediately to the public health unit, where the person who normally would have asked those questions, sometimes taken several hours to ask that question.”
Kelly says voluntary app downloads are "the way to go"
Paul Kelly, the deputy chief medical officer, has just said that the downloading of a potential coronavirus tracking app would be “totally consent-based”.
Earlier today, prime minister Scott Morrison did not rule out making it mandatory, but said his “preference” was for people to do so voluntarily.
“I’ve always been a believer in the Australian people making the right decision so I think the voluntary approach at first is the way to go,” Kelly said.
“We have work to do to make sure this is as good andsafe and cover of privacy concerns and so forth. We will start with voluntary and see where it goes.”
He also said that the app was just the technological extension of what is “standard practice for public health practitioners” already. He says we have contact tracing doctors – “disease detectives” – in “every public health unit in every state and territory”.
Updated
Deputy chief medical officer Paul Kelly is speaking now.
“We continue to be having less cases per day than in previous weeks,” he says. “We had the peak of the epidemic towards the end of last month”
But he says the advice from the APPHC is “still to stay the course” when it comes to restrictions.
“This is not the time for us to decrease the things that we have done so far to successfully flatten that curve,” he says. “The next four weeks gives us some time to increase the capacity we have to cope with this disease.”
Hi all, Naaman Zhou here with the blog. Thanks to Amy Remeikis, as always, for her hard work.
AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan has spoken today to radio station 3AW about a potential “hub plan” to restart the league. That plan would split the league up into three groups, where teams are isolated in different states but can play each other.
McLachlan said: “I don’t know where we’ll land on [hubs], there are a range of options.”
AAP reports that McLachlan did attempt to dispel misconceptions about the potential plan.
“But I do feel that hubs mean different things to different people and it can be applied differently,” he said. “People have thoughts of remote islands and different stuff but in its simplest form it’s enhanced quarantine measures for if and when we get back on the park.”
It’s been a slower day than we have seen this week, with Australia well into the suppression stage of its response.
Cases may be dropping, but we have seen how quickly flare ups can happen – such as the Newmarch Anglicare house in western Sydney, and north-west Tasmania.
I’ll hand you over to Naaman Zhou, who will take you through the afternoon briefing from Paul Kelly, who will give the national update in about 15 minutes.
I’ll be back next week. Thank you again for joining me this week. Take care of you.
WA is still running its trial of offering empty hotel rooms to the homeless and vulnerable.
Now it looks like NSW has a similar program underway. From AAP:
Women and children fleeing domestic violence and those sleeping rough in NSW during the COVID-19 outbreak will now have greater access to temporary accommodation.
Hotels can now register available rooms through a centralised online forum launched by Homelessness NSW, Y Foundations and Domestic Violence NSW.
It comes as support services and frontline workers warn the COVID-19 restrictions will result in a rise of domestic violence.
Domestic Violence NSW said it received an overwhelming response from hotels offering accommodation.
“More resources and therapeutic supports have moved online, whilst refuges are safe, have vacancies and are providing intensive levels of wrap-around support,” spokeswoman Renata Field said in a statement on Friday.
Ms Field said the additional accommodation would help relieve pressure points while helping refuges and shelters that need more rooms to meet social distancing and self-isolation requirements.
Anyone seeking temporary accommodation who is not already in contact with a support service worker is advised to contact Link2Home, who will have access to the database of available rooms.
The NSW opposition leader, Jodi McKay says the NSW government has a humanitarian responsibility to ensure that all members of the Ruby Princess crew are well, before the cruise ship is ordered to leave NSW waters.
Australia's death toll now stands at 64
Tasmanian man’s death brings national toll to 64.
Updated
72-year-old Tasmanian man dies after contracting Covid-19
Yet another awful reminder of why Tasmania is going so hard with restrictions in its north-west coast, where a Covid-19 outbreak has the community under lockdown.
Tasmania has recorded its seventh coronavirus death, a 72yo man at the Mersey Community Hospital #politas #covid19tas
— Emily Baker (@emlybkr) April 17, 2020
Updated
Australia is not entertaining the “herd immunity” option.
But that hasn’t stopped some people commenting on it, or wishing for it.
Perhaps they should read this, written by, as our opinion editor Bridie Jabour says, someone who actually has expertise on herd immunity (and if that is not enough, take a look at what is occurring in Sweden):
Updated
Tony Burke has weighed in on the fair work regulation change Christian Porter announced yesterday, which the ACTU is also against, despite the unlikely working friendship which has developed between Porter and Sally McManus.
The regulation means employers just have to give employees one day’s notice of a change to enterprise bargaining agreements, instead of a week, before a vote occurs.
Burke says it’s not necessary.
While the government insists its new regulation will expire after six months – the changes made to EBAs under that regulation during that time will not.
The new regulation slashes the consultation period for EBA changes from one week to one day. That means employers will be able to tell their workers about proposed changes to pay and conditions one day, and then force them to vote on those changes the very next day.
That means workers will be required to vote on often complex changes without time to properly consider what effect they might have – or time to consult with their colleagues or their union.
Some employers will no doubt insist those changes – which will include cuts to pay and conditions – are necessary to keep people employed during the coronavirus crisis.
But once the business emerges from the crisis any changes made will persist until there’s another vote.
Just last month Christian Porter insisted he would not allow employer bodies or unions to use this crisis to push their agendas for permanent changes to our industrial relations system.
But by caving to this business body demand he has given employers the power to embed permanent changes that will leave workers worse off.
There has been tremendous goodwill between unions and employer bodies during this crisis. Why is the government trying to undermine that goodwill with this terrible decision?
Just a few weeks ago the government was insisting there were no unions and employers anymore – that we were all on Team Australia. Decisions like this suggest that was just empty rhetoric.
Updated
Researchers from the Royal Women’s hospital in Melbourne and Monash Health have created a national registry of pregnant women in Australia diagnosed with Covid-19.
The registry includes 28 hospitals across Australia and will give health workers insight into how mothers and babies are impacted by this virus.
Clinicians at each participating hospital are collecting data on women who test positive in their care and entering it into a secure database. Researchers will seek follow up data on each woman’s pregnancy and baby outcomes and report on the impact of the virus on the mother’s health, as well as any risks to the baby in the womb or after birth.
Dr Clare Whitehead from the Women’s said there was limited evidence on the impact of the novel coronavirus on mothers and babies.
“We currently do not have a national platform that can collect information on pregnant women and report the information back to clinicians in a timely manner to help improve the management of pregnant women and their babies,” she said.
“We’ve been able to very quickly set this research up to capture as many pregnant women as possible during this pandemic.”
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As part of the update yesterday, Scott Morrison and Brendan Murphy said that next week the national cabinet and medical expert panel will look at whether or not the elective surgery restrictions can be lifted (which would include IVF treatments).
The Australian Society of Anaesthetists (ASA) has urged that a return to non-urgent elective surgery proceeds with caution, in a statement it released today.
The ASA president, Dr Suzi Nou, says the group has spoken to the chief medical officer’s office about the concerns:
“All of the efforts to ‘flatten the curve’ in Australia are to be commended and have allowed healthcare workers much-needed time to more adequately prepare for the Covid-19 pandemic in our hospitals. Five weeks ago, the ASA called for a cessation of non-urgent surgery but as more health services have been able to undertake planning for the pandemic, we would like to see a relaxation of the restrictions and a safe return to elective surgery.
“We understand that people will be keen to have surgery and do not want to prolong any unnecessary delays but we do want surgery to proceed safely for individuals, their families and for healthcare workers. “We do not encourage elective surgery be performed unless the health service has completed scenario planning for Covid-19 patients and that all relevant staff have adequate supply of PPE and are proficient in its use. Only once these issues have been addressed should we consider performing elective surgery that cannot be safely deferred until the pandemic is over.
“An additional measure that will ensure the safety of healthcare workers and patients would see a defined perioperative quarantine period of 14 days prior to surgery.
“The public have made a concerted effort to socially isolate and reduce transmission of Covid-19 in our community and in our healthcare system. We would hope that patients planning to undergo elective surgery would continue to protect themselves, their families and the healthcare workers looking after them with a period of quarantine before their surgery.”
Updated
NBN Co is now publishing weekly updates on how the network is handling the additional load of so many people working and studying at home, before going to another room to stream content until the screaming in our minds can’t be heard (we are all Clarice now).
You’ll find those updates, here.
- Weekly upload throughput peak of 1.06 Terabits per second (Tbps) recorded on Friday 10 April during the Evening Busy Hours.
- Weekly download throughput peak of 13.8Tbps recorded on Wednesday 8 April during the Evening Busy Hours.
- Download throughput peak of 11.6Tbps on 8 April recorded during the daytime business hours surpassed pre-Covid-19 baseline evening peak for the first time.
Updated
The deputy chief medical officer, Prof Paul Kelly, will give today’s national update on the Covid situation.
That will happen at 3.15.
Updated
The Loki Foundation, which describes itself as Australia’s first privacy tech not for profit, has written an open letter on the issue of the tracing app the government wants people to download (and may, depending on download rates, make mandatory – something Scott Morrison did not rule out today, saying only it was “not my preference”).
The foundation doesn’t have a problem with the model Apple and Google are working on.
Updated
Public and private hospitals in the NT and SA will now be able to work together, under a new interim authorisation granted by the consumer watchdog this afternoon:
Private hospitals and health agencies in the Northern Territory and South Australia respectively will be able to cooperate in responding to the Covid-19 pandemic, following separate interim authorisations granted by the ACCC today.
Today’s interim authorisations granted to each of the Northern Territory and the state of South Australia follow similar authorisations granted to Victoria and Queensland earlier this month.
State and territory governments are seeking to increase the capacity of their health systems during the pandemic by integrating the operations of public and private hospitals. This has also ensured private hospitals are funded and remain viable after most non-urgent elective surgery was suspended last month.
The ACCC’s interim authorisations granted today will allow public and private hospital operators in each jurisdiction to work with each other and relevant health agencies during the current health crisis by, for example, discussing expected capacity and demand for services, jointly procuring and distributing medical equipment and supplies, and sharing staff.
Updated
You may remember from yesterday that the NZ deputy prime minister, Winston Peters, is keen to restart trans-Tasman travel, once both countries begin loosening restrictions.
He is still keen.
But Australian authorities are a bit more cool on it, and say it won’t be on the agenda for the foreseeable future.
Updated
AAP has an update on New Zealand’s Covid-19 situation:
Two elderly New Zealanders have died after contracting coronavirus, bringing the country’s overall death tally to 11.
A South Island woman in her 80s became the seventh person to die linked to the Rosewood rest home in Christchurch.
A man in his 90s died at Waikato hospital in Hamilton.
His case was linked to a cluster at Matamata, where a local pub held a St Patrick’s Day celebration on March 17.
“The fact we knew we would lose some New Zealanders to Covid-19 doesn’t lessen the shock or sadness when it happens,” finance minister Grant Robertson said.
Another possible death linked to coronavirus, of an Invercargill man in his 70s who died at home, is being investigated by health officials.
New Zealand recorded its lowest daily increase in a month on Friday, with just eight new cases.
The country’s overall case count is 1,409.
Updated
Bret Walker just spoke to the ABC about the NSW commission of inquiry he has been asked to head, looking at what happened with the Ruby Princess.
He was asked about his jurisdiction to compel witnesses internationally, which is going to be an element of the inquiry, given the ship itself is registered in Bermuda.
Walker answers:
Well, a cat may look at a king - I can make inquiries from anybody I like. It’s whether they can be compelled to answer, is the real question. My jurisdictional power doesn’t extend outside Australia. But you’re right - it may well involve making requests for information and hoping that there will be a degree of cooperation.
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This is about the change in fair work regulations announced yesterday, where employers only have to give employees one days notice, instead of seven, about changes to enterprise bargaining agreements.
I am worried about Liberal mission creep.
— Adam Bandt (@AdamBandt) April 17, 2020
When Parliament resumes at the foreshadowed May sitting, the Greens will move in the Senate to disallow the Government’s regulation shortening the notice required to change enterprise agreements.
Anthony Albanese was asked during his press conference about his thoughts on whether or not the tracing app the government wants people to download, once it is available, should be mandatory.
Scott Morrison, when speaking to Hobart radio Triple M said it was “not his preference” to make the app or carrying your phone mandatory, so he would see how “Plan A” – people doing it voluntarily – would go.
Albanese said it was concerning to hear a mandatory download was not ruled out:
One of the things that would occur, if that was the government response, would be people would simply stop taking their phone to places,” he said.
It’s up to the government, frankly, to explain exactly what it has in mind with this app and to be very clear with the Australian public about whether it is going to be voluntary or whether it is going to be some level of compulsion involved.
Updated
Scott Morrison wants you to know that he is really, really not interested in anything in Malcolm Turnbull’s book.
This was the exchange on the Ten Network today:
Host: We’ve all learned so many new technical terms during this time. I’ll tell you what. Now, I’ve got to ask, how do you feel about Malcolm Turnbull releasing his memoir, attacking you in the middle of this crisis?
Morrison: Not interested.
Host: Not even, he released a personal message that you’d given him? You know, there’s a lot of stuff in there when, when the nation really is focussed on other stuff?
Morrison: Yeah, I don’t care.
Host: Prime Minister it’s your birthday next month, if someone gave you a copy of the book …
Morrison: Cheers!
Host: Would you regift it? Or would you read it?
Morrison: I wouldn’t notice it.
Host: Return to sender hey. I think you’ve made yourself pretty clear on that one.
Morrison: I think so.
The man is dealing with a global pandemic. But it is nice to see a bit of usual Australian politics injected back into things.
Updated
That Ai Group statement comes after the government, following reports, including from Mayo MP Rebekha Sharkie, that some employers were asking their employees to hand back some of the wage subsidy payment, in exchange for their registering for jobkeeper.
Updated
The Ai Group have put out this statement on the government’s wage subsidy ‘jobkeeper’ scheme:
Some employees appear to have a misguided view that they can choose not to come to work if their employer is accessing the jobkeeper scheme. If the employee is not stood down or on approved or authorised leave, the employee must comply with any lawful and reasonable direction given by their employer.
This includes any reasonable and safe direction to carry out work,” Innes Willox, Chief Executive of the national employer association Ai Group, said.
In addition, employees are only entitled to take personal/carer’s leave if they are sick or if they are caring for a member of their immediate family or household who is sick or injured, or due to an unexpected emergency. The employer can insist that an employee provide evidence if the employer is not convinced that a claim for personal/carer’s leave is genuine.
Given the necessary speed with which the jobkeeper scheme has been implemented, it is not surprising that employers and employees may not fully understand their rights and obligations at this early stage. However, the notion that an employee can simply choose not to come to work and still get paid is not correct, and not in anyone’s interests.
Virgin in 'crisis mode'
Virgin Australia chief operating officer Stuart Aggs has also been speaking at today’s industry roundtable.
“We are clearly in crisis mode,” he said.
“We are an airline and an industry under significant scrutiny, almost on an hourly basis.”
He said that after the collapse of Ansett it took 20 years for Virgin Blue, as it then was, to build itself into a true competitor to Qantas - and even then it held only 30% of the market.
“Is the government prepared to wait 20 years for that experience to be built back up from a competitive point of view?
“I suspect not.”
The roundtable also heard from one of the industry superannuation industry’s pioneers, IFM Investors founder Garry Weaven, who addressed the idea that Virgin Australia’s existing shareholders might bail out the airline.
He said Virgin Australia was 90% owned by big foreign investors, including the government of Abu Dhabi through its state airline, Etihad.
“If they’re not in a position to recapitalise the company ... then who is?” he asked.
“Really, the answer is that only the government is in a position to do that.”
He said he was “a little bit surprised” by prime minister Scott Morrison’s comments on TV last night suggesting industry super funds could buy Virgin Australia.
Fund trustees that did so would probably be attacked by members of Morrison’s own government for failing to put returns to members first, as required by the super law, he said.
“I think that’s a bit of a furphy, that question,” he said.
And we also got an answer about whether anyone from Qantas was invited to the confab, courtesy of a question to ACTU president Michele O’Neil from the federal secretary of the union representing licensed aircraft engineers, Steve Purvinas.
“Yes, Qantas was invited, Alan Joyce specifically,” O’Neil said.
“They decided for their own reasons not to [accept].”
Updated
Asked what would happen if venture capitalists bought Virgin in order to break it up, Michael McCormack says:
There is no reason that they cannot come out of Covid-19 and get more assets.
We don’t want to see the cutback of services for Virgin. They were well provided prior to the virus and, certainly for regional areas, they have provided competition.
They have provided competition on the domestic and international markets.
We want to see that but they’ve also ensured that for some of those regional routes that there were services available that perhaps would not have been made available.
I want to see a solution. I want to see both airlines come through Covid-19.
We will be monitoring the situation and I will be continuing to talk, as I have done on a daily basis, with the key airline executives.
I want to make sure that they both get through this and that is why we have put more than $1 billion on the table. And Virgin have been assisted by the measures that we have announced so far. Certainly, they are benefiting from today’s announcement.
Updated
Deputy PM talking about govt assistance measures providing immediate cash flow to airlines. As yet Qantas and Virgin Australia have not received $1 from $715m “fee relief” package. #aviation #coronavirus
— Robyn Ironside (@ironsider) April 17, 2020
Michael McCormack:
You know that there was the announcement on March 18 where we made sure that there was the waiving of fuel excise fees, the waving of air services Australia fees, the waiving indeed of regional security and other security fees that are imposed normally by government. [They] were waived and backdated to the 1 February, and so what that meant was the fact that there was immediate cash flow for the airlines, and particularly for Virgin and Qantas, they were able to engage in that.
And of course, 10 days later I announced the regional subsidisation of funds, to the tune of $198 million, for those 138 centres which are reliant on aviation; that they were able to partake in that and we underwrite the airlines to the tune of $100 million.
Today’s $165 million announcement is going to make the world of difference for those commuters who have come in from overseas, done their 14 days of quarantine. Let me tell you, if they landed in Sydney and are required to get back to Perth with very limited services available, it is a long drive in a hire car, so that is going to make a difference for them.
Updated
More on that press conference earlier today on the Ruby Princess.
NSW police say that the physical investigation of the ship is complete and there is “nothing from an investigative point of view” stopping it from leaving Australia on Sunday.
Earlier in the week, police commissioner Mick Fuller said he was “hopeful” the virus-stricken ship would leave on Sunday.
But there was no definite guarantee today that that is still the case.
As previously mentioned, they also announced that all passengers on both of the Ruby Princess’s voyages will be sent a questionnaire.
“The questionnaire will let us zero in on elements of the cruise we are interested in,” police said.
“Obviously that goes hand in hand with the forensic investigation of the telemetry box on the ship.”
Updated
The University of Melbourne has been taking a regular “pulse of the nation” with surveys.
Updated
Michael McCormack has muddled his way through a press conference on the $165m underwriting package the government has put forward to keep the domestic aviation industry together during the Covid crisis.
Asked about the future of Virgin, he said:
We want to see a market resolution and a market solution for Virgin.
Yes, Virgin were not going as well as Qantas prior to Covid-19 hitting.
Qantas’s balance sheets were quite healthy. Of course, we will remember back in 2013-14 that when Qantas were struggling, they wanted some assistance.
Fortunately, they were able to get that capital and were able to re-energise and through good management led by Alan Joyce, they were able to get their books back in the black and very healthy.
We want to see that situation for Virgin too. But I know and am confident there is a market solution for Virgin.
We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it but that is a bit hypothetical. Let’s see what happens.
I know, if you read reports today, that there are some people who are interested in capitalising Virgin and we hope that comes off.
Updated
TWU national secretary Michael Kaine has described as “bizarre” prime minister Scott Morrison’s suggestion that the super fund affiliated with his union buy stricken airline Virgin Australia.
Speaking on ABC TV last night, Morrison said that the government didn’t want to “get in the way of a commercial solution, like the TWU super fund. I mean, the industry super funds in this country have got $3 trillion dollars worth of assets [and] here we’ve got a company that needs capital”.
But appearing this morning at an aviation industry round table organised by the union movement, Kaine said such a move would be contrary to all prudential standards.
He also again slammed Qantas for campaigning against a Virgin Australia bailout.
“Qantas wants no intervention because it wants to see Virgin go down,” he said.
Virgin Australia chief executive Paul Scurrah again repeated his call for an industry-wide solution, saying 600,000 people in the tourism sector needed a competitive airline sector.
“We should put rivalry aside to make sure we get through this together,” he said.
But while Scurrah and the chief executive of air services company dnata, Hiranjan Aloysius, were prepared to stand virtual shoulder-to-shoulder with union leaders at today’s video hookup, Qantas boss Alan Joyce has been conspicuous by his absence.
Updated
Anthony Albanese was asked about Scott Morrison’s suggestion that industry superfunds step in and bail Virgin out, and said (sarcastically) that he “liked the fact the government has spent a fair bit of time attacking the transport workers union and attacking industry superannuation and now feels as though they are in a position to dictate to those organisation what they do with their investment”.
What the government is trying to do is to shake its responsibility. It has a responsibility because of the imposition, quite rightly, of constraints that are supported across the country, that is why there are particular circumstances for the airline industry.
It is a direct result of the coronavirus and the constraints that have been put on.
So industry super funds will make decisions based upon their members, but the prime minister shouldn’t abrogate the government’s responsibility there.
Updated
[cont from previous post]
Anthony Albanese:
That is one of the reasons why you don’t say in five years’ time tax cuts will occur, without knowing what the economy looks like at that point in time, and without having an economic reform agenda, there’s been no economic reform under this government, they have given up on productivity, we know that wages have been not keeping up with where they should be, and the Reserve Bank was warning for the whole of last year that wages being lower was a real issue.
If the government’s response post this crisis is to further undermine our unions and to attack wages and conditions of working people, then that will not help the recovery, it will not help growth.
Anthony Albanese:
What we don’t want, is when we get through this crisis, is for the government to just return to its old ideological position of attacking the rights of working people.
That is what we don’t want. This government didn’t have a large economic agenda or a reform agenda prior to the bushfires and the coronavirus crisis.
This government had presided over a doubling of the debt, and it presided over productivity going backwards for two quarters in a row.
Consumer demand flatlining.
Circumstances whereby the Reserve Bank had intervened to cut interest rates on multiple occasions, and an economy that was really going nowhere, and the government has been involved in a victory lap since May 2019, since they won the election.
There haven’t been many changes at all.
And you would recall that during the tax debate, Labor warned that it was premature and a triumphant of hope over experience to say that the government could know what the economy look like in 2023- 2024 and to legislate tax cuts then.
That was an extraordinary position that the government took and it was unwise, it certainly wasn’t prudent, and I think that Labor’s comments at that time have stood the test of time, unlike the government.
Anthony Albanese is asked about Scott Morrison’s comments yesterday, in his press conference, that acknowledged, for what seemed the first time, that yes, economically, it will not be business as usual on the other side of the Covid restrictions (yes, it seems obvious, but publicly at least, the government was sticking to the “snap back” we will be sticking to our election commitments lines.
This is what Scott Morrison said yesterday:
They [RBA, Grattan Institute] also highlighted, though, the need to ensure that on the other side of the virus, as we make our road out, that any sense of business-as-usual when it comes to the policy frameworks that we had prior to the election will need to be reconsidered on the other side to ensure that we can achieve the growth that will be necessary in our economy to get people back into work, to get our economy back on track.
It will be a different world on the other side of the virus and there’ll be many challenges.
Updated
Throwing this in again, for the people who missed it this morning.
Angela Merkel has a doctorate in quantum chemistry, and worked as a research scientist. Which may explain why she has been able to offer the best explanation we have seen of why any easing of restrictions has to be controlled.
She gets numbers. She understands the science. And she knows how to explain it.
This is how Angela Merkel explained the effect of a higher #covid19 infection rate on the country's health system.
— Benjamin Alvarez (@BenjAlvarez1) April 15, 2020
This part of today's press conf was great, so I just added English subtitels for all non-German speakers. #flattenthecurve pic.twitter.com/VzBLdh16kR
Kristina Keneally has responded to the Biloela family federal court judgement:
Labor respects the federal court’s decision in regard to the Tamil family from Biloela.
It is now incumbent on the government and the minister for home affairs to respect the decision, deal in good faith with the family’s lawyers over the next seven days and give effect to the federal court’s judgment.
Labor is relieved the family will not be deported from Australia whilst this is taking place – particularly given the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on all countries and people across the globe.
Nades, Priya and their two children have built a life in Biloela in regional Queensland – they’ve worked hard, paid taxes, contributed to their community and have been supported by their friends and neighbours, even after callously being moved to Christmas Island.
As has always been the case, home affairs minister Peter Dutton could bring this whole process to an end by using his discretion under the Migration Act and allow the family to return home to Biloela.”
NSW police minister David Elliott says NSW will be working with international agencies in the Ruby Princess investigation, in order to interview international passengers.
It is sending out a survey to the Ruby Princess passengers as a way of gathering information about who knew what, when.
“This is no rule book when it comes to these sorts of inquiries, it is unusual for something this large, covering so many jurisdictions to be put in the lap of one person.”
The NSW police investigation has 30 investigators attached to Strikeforce Bast.
The NSW Police Minister David Elliott is speaking about the Ruby Princess investigation https://t.co/DthjcjzMYX
— SBS News (@SBSNews) April 17, 2020
Scott Morrison has been asked by everyone:
"I'll let that one go through to the keeper" @ScottMorrisonMP laughs when Alan Jones asks about claims in @TurnbullMalcolm's memoir #auspol @SBSNews
— Brett Mason (@BrettMasonNews) April 16, 2020
"Not interested" PM @ScottMorrisonMP tells @Studio10au "I don't care" #auspol @SBSNews
— Brett Mason (@BrettMasonNews) April 17, 2020
In between coronavirus, government ministers have been asked about Malcolm Turnbull’s book, which is out next week.
Greg Hunt was asked about his portrayal, by Michael Rowland:
MR: He is making lots of interesting remarks to senior government figures. Greg Hunt, he said all too often you used abusive and vulgar language toward others. Did you?
GH:
Look, none of us are perfect. I’m focused on the coronavirus. I’m absolutely focused on that. I haven’t had the chance to read any of the books written about the last election or the last couple of years. I suspect that I’m not going to have much time to do that. So my job, really my job is to focus on saving lives and protecting lives. All the things that have led Australia to where we are. I suspect that that’s not something I’m going to have a chance to get to.
MR: He has every right to publish this, he obviously feels, by the way he was treated by what he describes as the rightwing terrorists within the Liberal party?
GH:
Well, it is not a term that has been applied to me previously before, as far as I can tell. Anyway, it is a free country and people are absolutely entitled to write what they want. For me, my genuine focus, my deep focus in the midst of what has been the most significant health crisis since World War II in Australia, has been on getting the numbers down and the fact that we are doing that, that’s what really matters to me. That’s what I think matters to the vast majority of Australians, and I will say at the end of what’s been a difficult month since these restrictions came into being, Australians have done a magnificent job and that’s the good news for Australians. It gives us a pathway to the future.
Updated
Australia has been invited to sit on a special “G20 energy ministers’ focus group”, which will look at the globe’s energy security during the coronavirus pandemic.
Angus Taylor is chuffed:
Affordable energy and an uninterrupted supply is crucial to ensure essential services such as health and food supplies, and a stable and secure market will also help nations as they emerge from the economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
I look forward to Australia making a solid contribution to the G20 Energy Ministers Focus Group.
Updated
The Courier Mail’s tireless health reporter, Janelle Miles, reports the Cairns hospital pathology lab has had to close, after a staff member tested positive for Covid-19. Contact tracing is under way, but at this point, it looks like the employee was infected from another known case.
The lab’s staff have been put into a 14-day quarantine.
Updated
Daniel Andrews gave Victoria’s update just a few moments ago:
There were 2,700 tests that were completed over the last 24 hours with just one positive result.
That, I think, gives you a really clear indication that this strategy is working.
We’re seeing some stability, significant stability, to these numbers and that is the product of some tough rules and the fact that the vast majority of Victorians are following those rules, and I thank them - each and every one of them - for the part they’re playing in protecting our health system and saving lives.
Now, for those small number of Victorians who are doing the wrong thing, I can report that 540 spot-checks were undertaken yesterday and some 67 fines were issued.
Anglicare confirms 20 Newmarch aged care home residents tested Covid-19 positive
The NSW chief health officer, Dr Kerry Chant, announced more cases had been diagnosed in the western Sydney aged care home this morning (you’ll find her quotes a little further down).
Anglicare have now confirmed that 20 residents and 10 staff have tested positive for Covid-19:
The NSW Public Health Unit are investigating the source of these cases. As a precaution, residents who tested negative are being re-tested again.
We have contacted all relatives of our residents infected. Our staff that have tested positive are self-isolating at home on full pay.
Anglicare has deployed a specially trained team of staff assigned to care for the residents who have tested positive.
This team is wearing full personal protective equipment (PPE), follow strict infection control procedures and care solely for these residents.
We continue to closely monitor all our residents and staff at Newmarch. We are grateful to the support provided to us by NSW Health and Australian Health Departments.
Since the outbreak at Newmarch House was first confirmed to us at 10.40pm on Saturday 11 April, Anglicare has been working closely with NSW Health as well as auditing and reassessing our procedures that have been in place since the beginning of March 2020.
The safety, health and wellbeing of our residents, staff and volunteers is our number one priority during this challenging time.
Updated
PM won't rule out making tracing app mandatory
Asked in that same interview whether or not he would make downloading the tracing app, and traveling with phones, mandatory, Scott Morrison says:
My preference is not to do that, my preference is to give Australians the go of getting it right.
... I don’t want to be drawn on that [making it mandatory], I want to give Australians the opportunity to get it right. That is my objective, that is my Plan A and I really want Plan A to work.
I will be calling on Australians to do it, frankly, as a matter of national service, to do it in the same way that people used to buy war bonds back in the war times, to come together to support the effort.
I know this would be something they might not normally do in an ordinary time, but this is not an ordinary time. If you download this app, you’ll be helping to save someone’s life and I think Australians will respond to that.
Asked about privacy concerns, Morrison says they will be dealt with, but says:
Here is the simple deal. If people download the app, and more people have got it, the sooner we can start easing of some of these restrictions.
Updated
Scott Morrison says Tasmanian health worker wasn't truthful about movements
Further to that press conference from Peter Gutwein, Scott Morrison spoke to Hobart radio Triple M this morning and spoke about a health worker in the north-west, using it as an example of why the tracking app was necessary:
The case in north-west Tasmania is a classic case of why we need this.
We’ve had someone down there not tell the truth to the contact tracers about where they’d been and who they’d been with and that means that a lot of people have been put at risk in north-west Tasmania.
... They have been working in the health system more broadly, in the aged-care system, so this has been very unhelpful.
Morrison said it had nothing to do with the rumours of what chief medical officer Brendan Murphy referred to as an “illegal dinner party” (for which there is no evidence).
Updated
The Tasmanian parliament will resume from the 27 April – but with a reduced weekly schedule.
Updated
Peter Gutwein on the north-west localised restrictions:
Yesterday, and I’ll just make this point and, again, it beggars belief, overnight I’ve been notified of people that were shopping at Spotlight in Launceston from the north west coast.
People shopping at Bunnings.
Please be sensible about this.
The rules that we’re putting in place are there to protect you.
The rules that we’re putting in place are there to protect your family.
The rules that we’re putting in place are there to protect your community.
I understand that this is tough. I understand that this is hard. But at the end of the day, the virus travels with people and it’s important that we all limit our movements.
The simplest way that you can help us to get on top of this is to limit your movements if you live on the north west coast, allowed us to increase our testing, allow us to do our contract tracing and allow us to get on top of this and crush it. I would ask that you work with us to do that and Tasmanian Police will be doing everything they can to make sure the rules are abided.
The #hometobilo case has been decided in the federal court today.
Josh Taylor is covering it
Breaking: Federal Court dismisses #hometobilo case on first ground (on whether bar had been lifted so it wasn't a valid application) but upholds case on second ground (that she wasn't given procedural fairness)
— Josh Taylor (@joshgnosis) April 16, 2020
*For now, until final orders are made. Depending on what form they take.
— Josh Taylor (@joshgnosis) April 16, 2020
Updated
Tasmania considering stricter restrictions for north-west coast
Peter Gutwein says Tasmania may strengthen its stay at home order for the north-west of the state:
Today, the stay at home order, unless you are leaving for work, essential supplies or medical services, or to exercise will be strictly policed.
In terms of the north-west coast, the current orders are very clear but I’ve asked for them to be reviewed this morning and, if necessary, they will be strengthened to ensure that we can contain this virus and this outbreak to the north-west coast.
I want to be clear if you’re traveling on the north-west coast today, you should expect to be stopped and questioned about the purpose of your trip.
Don’t be surprised if there is a roadblock or a checkpoint which is being used. Tasmania Police will ask you the purposes of your trip and if it’s not for essential purposes, then you’ll be asked to return home.
The most sensible thing that people on the north-west coast can do right now is to stay home, work with us, and help us to save lives.
Updated
The news out of north-west Tasmania continues to be worrying.
Peter Gutwein has confirmed a health worker who tested positive, who worked in the two closed hospitals, also worked at three aged care homes.
There is currently one resident displaying mild respiratory symptoms.
I know this is very concerning news for families, friends and the loved ones of those being cared for in these facilities and it’s important that we do everything that we can to get on top of this and provide clarity as soon as we can.
All residents and staffs in these three homes will be tested today with the assistance and support of the federal government.
Enhanced testing over and above what is available in the north-west will be implemented across the coast today with the support of the Federal Government
Melbourne’s La Trobe university plans to let go all “non essential” casual staff from the start of next month as it braces for “severe” financial difficulties.
In an email to staff, the vice chancellor Prof John Dewar also asked staff to consider donating part of the pay back to the university or handing back time-off-in-lieu entitlements.
Although he stressed that staff should not “feel any compulsion to take part”, Dewar warned the university expected a $120m and $150m decline in revenue in 2020 and that further measures such as forced redundancies could still be in the pipeline.
“To put that in perspective, our budgeted operating surplus for the year was $30m,” Dewar said.
“That is a very big hit indeed,” he added.
It comes as the tertiary education union faces a revolt over a confidential plan to negotiate with university management on staff pay cuts during the Covid-19 crisis.
Dewar said the university would introduce a range of cost saving measures, which included letting go non-essential casual staff from 1 May.
These employees will only be retained if they are signed off by senior staff as “essential”, but some were frustrated no further details were given as to how this would be defined.
Dewar also floated a range of voluntary measures, such as asking staff to donate between 5-20% of their base salary back to the university.
Dewar said he could not guarantee the voluntary measures would be “enough to prevent the need for workforce changes, including stand down or even forced redundancies at some stage”.
“No-one should feel any compulsion to take part,” he said. “I know that many of you are simply not able to help now, and I completely understand that. For those of you that can help, I strongly encourage you to think about these options.”
Senior executives have agreed to a voluntary 20% salary cut.
Given we are going to be hearing A LOT about this app in the coming month, you might find this helpful.
Explainer: Australia's coronavirus contact tracing app: what we know so far https://t.co/5v5J43osFG
— Lenore Taylor (@lenoretaylor) April 16, 2020
Updated
On top of the $165m to underwrite domestic flight trunk routes, the government is also providing $150m to internet providers.
The Government has today announced that NBN Co will provide $150 million in financial relief to internet providers so they can assist Australian families and businesses in accessing the NBN during COVID-19 @MathiasCormann @PaulFletcherMP #auspol pic.twitter.com/yJJ1NAl7NW
— Political Alert (@political_alert) April 16, 2020
Updated
If that wasn’t blunt enough, Peter Dutton followed those comments up with this:
I think people who have a relative who’s died – I mean, we’ve got over 60 Australians who have died – people say that’s a low number, every one of those cases involves a tragedy of somebody very close to you being lost.
Hundreds of people obviously very gravely ill as a result in our country – look at the loss overseas. All of those families would demand answers and transparency.
And, I don’t think it’s too much to ask. It would certainly be demanded of us, if Australia was at the epicentre of this virus making its way into society.
So I think it is incumbent upon China to answer those questions and provide the information, so that people can have clarity about exactly what happened because we don’t want it to be repeated. And, we know that this is not the first instance of a virus being spread from the wildlife wet markets and we need to be honest about that.
Updated
Peter Dutton also had some things to say about China, while on the Nine Network today:
Well, the US is saying they’ve got documentation which demonstrates that the virus had a particular path or origin. I think they’ll detail all of that information. But, look, I do think there will be a reset about the way in which the world interacts with China. We do want more transparency.
China can have their economy grow, lift people out of poverty and that’s a wonderful thing, but when you’ve got a Communist party that doesn’t have the transparency that other comparable economies have, then that is a problem.
And, when you see their involvement in foreign interference, when you see their involvement in cyber, all of these aspects need to, I think, be looked at again. And, I think it is a good thing that there’s transparency and hopefully you can have China answering these questions, that are reasonably put and people can have more confidence.
Updated
Things are so dire in punting land, one of the major betting agencies is now hosting wagers on the colour of Scott Morrison’s tie.
Maybe just have another cup of tea and stare at a wall like the rest of us are doing.
Scott Morrison has done the morning radio rounds this morning.
Anthony Albanese will hold his press conference at 10.40.
Updated
And the Ruby Princess is still docked in NSW. Mick Fuller says police are still working towards a Sunday departure date:
In terms of the Ruby I am waiting for a health report some time today to give me an idea whether Sunday is still a realistic target for the Ruby Princess to leave Port Kembla.
If the health advice is I need to wait another couple of days then no doubt Border Force and New South Wales police will honour that. We will continue to work with the ship and Carnival to make sure that anyone who can come off and be repatriated can be but, obviously, the safety of the crew is still paramount to us.
Updated
Scott Morrison announced yesterday that, all things continuing as they are, parliament will be called back for a normal sitting as a “trial” next month.
Jim Chalmers responded this morning and said it was an opportunity to talk to Australians about where their budget was at:
While we acknowledge and accept the difficulties of handing down a full budget in the current circumstances, for weeks now Labor has been calling on the government to bring forward updated figures on the budget position and economic forecasts.
Australians should not have to wait 10 months from last December’s update to a budget in October without the government being upfront with them about the impact of this virus, and their response to it, on the economy.
In the same week that the International Monetary Fund published sobering forecasts for the Australian economy and echoed Labor’s calls for greater transparency in economic planning, it has been disappointing that the Liberals and Nationals continue to withhold a comprehensive update.
Updated
The NSW police commissioner, Mick Fuller, gave his update this morning:
We are seeing an increase in the reports of domestic and family violence incidents, which means police are responding to more calls.
However, reports of DV assaults are actually down. Alcohol-related crime is still down, street crime is still down. So in terms of our side of isolation is that we are going very well as a state.
Can I say one road message, one concerning statistic we are seeing a significant increase in speeding, particularly over 30km and over 45km an hour. Speeds of over 45km an hour have increased over 40% on the same time last year.
Because there are less cars on the road it doesn’t give you the opportunity to drive recklessly and put other people’s lives in danger. It is a time where we need to protect our health system and that sort of driving behaviour will not be tolerated.
Please call 1800RESPECT if you feel unsafe, or need to talk.
Updated
Good to see Peter V’Landys continuing to win friends and influence people.
Meanwhile, Sam Newman marched to the Victorian parliament to protest because he can’t play golf – but at least he isn’t in charge of anything any more.
Updated
The NRL chairman, Peter V’Landys, has also been on RN Breakfast this morning insisting the league will push ahead with its plan to resume playing by 28 May.
Despite the NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, saying earlier that the code had not been given the green light to resume playing, V’Landys continues to insist the NRL could resume tomorrow if it wanted to because the state’s public health orders provide exemptions for sports.
He said the league would demonstrate it could resume safely through the self-isolation of players, temperature checking and biosecurity at venues:
Not one player has tested positive to the virus, all our players have been following our self-isolation rules and not interacting with the community. [Our] social distancing measures have certainly helped. We’ve got six weeks, as I say, to see how the infection rate is going. If the infection rate spikes, well, naturally, we will [choose] another date.
Updated
The western Sydney nursing home which has been hit by a Covid outbreak has seen positive cases increase from 15 to 29 in the last 24 hours.
An employee who was not displaying any symptoms inadvertently caused the outbreak. After learning she had been in contact with a positive case, she was tested and returned a positive test herself.
Tests have been increased at the Anglicare Newmarch House centre.
The NSW chief medical officer, Dr Kerry Chant, has urged all aged care workers to get tested:
Obviously there has been extensive testing in that aged care facility and we may see new cases be reported.
A strong focus on anyone who works with vulnerable people, aged care worker, health care workers, even with minimal symptoms ... please come forward to testing.
Updated
There is a nice dose of social guilt being applied to how the government sells the tracing app it wants people to download.
Greg Hunt delivered a masterclass in it while speaking to the ABC this morning about the privacy concerns surrounding the technology:
I do think this is a very important question but what we are doing is making sure that there are very strong privacy protections.
It’s about making – giving all of us the capacity to protect ourselves and to protect those around us.
It is voluntary.
We want to encourage as many people as possible – I will be downloading the app – but encourage as many people as possible to do that but we respect absolutely that this is an individual choice but as part of the community we want to encourage it.
It enhances our capacity to protect each other, to make sure that if I’ve been in contact with somebody unknowingly who had the virus, I would want to know that.
I think of it that way. I would want to know that so I could not just protect myself but in particular my family, my 88-year-old Italian mother-in-law who lives with us, she is in an absolutely vulnerable age group and for me to know I have been in contact with somebody, even though I might not know them personally, but I have been in a room, spent time, that’s really important information that can help save lives and protect lives.
Updated
Having experienced the virus first hand, Peter Dutton is not chomping at the bit to have all the restrictions lifted:
No, and if you look at cases around the world, but Singapore I think is the most recent, where they’re now experiencing the second wave and if you’re getting 10% growth day on day where it was next to zero before, or we see what’s happened in the United Kingdom and parts of the United States, Italy, etc, that’s the fine balancing act the prime minister and premiers are trying to find now.
People are desperate to get back out – we want the economy to restart, reboot.
We want kids back at school andwe want a normal environment to prevail but if we do it too quickly we will see the sort of horror scenario we’ve seen overseas.
It is about trying to get the balance right and this is unprecedented. There is no textbook on this.
We’ve got to take the advice of not just the chief medical officers from the commonwealth and states but also the chief economists from the Reserve Bank, etc. about how it is we can get people back because we don’t want to end up in a very severe recession and want to make sure people are healthy.
Updated
Peter Dutton was on the Nine Network’s Today program this morning, explaining why the second week of having the virus is the one to watch:
That second week, people have got to be careful about that.
I felt on top of the world after about five days and day seven or eight it really hit me and I was really short of breath, almost to the point where I went back to hospital.
Anyway, I’ve got over it and was eventually released by Queensland Health. They did a great job so I’m very grateful.
Dutton is back at work after a month recovering from the virus.
Updated
Stuart Robert was sent out this morning to talk about the tracing app the government wants people to download as part of its conditions for loosening physical restrictions.
There are privacy concerns. Robert told the Seven Network it was “about peace of mind”.
The government won’t have information regarding you.
Let’s say you have on your phone and as you went through your life and over a course rolling 21 days you were within close proximity, 1.5 metres for 15 minutes, with five people those numbers will be on your phone, nowhere else, encrypted – you can’t access them, no one else can.
And if you tested positive the authorities would ask you to consent and that would be uploaded to a secure server where health authorities would call those people. That’s it.
No one has access to your data, no one is tracking you, there’s no surveillance.
This is simply a digital way of a current manual process and it makes it quicker, and frankly, it will give you a peace of mind when you’re out and about if someone with the virus is close to you, health authorities will call you.
Updated
The New South Wales premier, Gladys Berejiklian, has told RN Breakfast that classrooms will “certainly not be full” when schools begin operating next term, saying students will return to schools via rosters.
The prime minister, Scott Morrison, has been pushing for classroom lessons to resume across Australia once school holidays ended.
Berejiklian has flagged that students in NSW would begin returning in the third week of term two on 11 May. On Friday she told the ABC taht the government wouldn’t allow all students to return at once, saying students would likely be invited back through a “some type of roster”.
“It is fair to say NSW is looking at some type of roster,” she said. “I don’t want any teachers, parents or students for that matter to be concerned [we] do not mean full classrooms and that won’t happen for a fair time to come, unfortunately.”
Berejiklian was also asked about the potential resumption of the NRL at the end of May.
She said the “short answer” was that the league had not been granted approval to resume but that it would have the opportunity show it could operate within health guidelines.
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So, because it still seems that some people are still confused, when it comes to schools, listen to your state or territory leader.
Each jurisdiction has slightly different rules. In general, schools are open for essential workers (anyone with a job) and parents who have no other choice.
If you can keep your kids at home, you should.
Schools are run by the states and territories. So if you’re in Queensland, it doesn’t matter to you what Gladys Berejiklian says.
So far we know:
Victoria – schools are pupil-free. Keep your kids at home if you can. Laptops and sim cards can be loaned out.
Queensland – schools are pupil-free until at least 22 May. Keep your kids at home if you can. Laptops and sim cards can be borrowed. Speak to your school principal if you are unsure of whether or not you should send your child to school.
NSW – schools are pupil-free. Keep your kids at home if you can. Tools can be borrowed. A roster system is being considered, to increase face-to-face time, but full school attendance is not being considered until term three.
NT – schools are open. If you want to keep your child at home, and can, you may.
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Seven-week-old baby diagnosed with Covid-19
The NSW chief medical officer, Dr Kerry Chant, says among the 29 new cases of Covid-19, was an infant boy:
We’ve had a seven-week-old baby boy who has tested Covid-positive and the baby is a close contact of known cases.
The source of that infection for that family cluster is not known but the patient was admitted to hospital and assessed but was actually not admitted .
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NSW considers on-site school rostering system
Gladys Berejiklian says while NSW is looking at increasing face-to-face time between teachers and students this term, that does not mean a return to normal.
As we reported yesterday, anything resembling normal won’t be in place until at least term three.
But with students (and some of their parents) struggling with isolation, and teachers trying to keep everything connected through a screen, NSW is looking at a rotation system to keep numbers on-site low but to ensure that all students, parents and teachers are getting some face-to-face time.
What it does mean is that New South Wales is considering a roster system to provide at least some aspect of face-to-face for each student. Can I stress we aren’t proposing and supporting at that stage, full classrooms and every single student going back at the same time.
We are considering our options around a rostering system which will have some students go back on a particular day to increase that level of face-to-face because the alternative is that unfortunately students could face up to a year or longer at home and we don’t think that’s appropriate.
So we do need to take these initial steps on how we can introduce face-to-face teaching at some level in term two and we are having those discussions as we speak with all of our stakeholder, our school communities to make sure we get that right.
But I wanted to assure everybody going back to face-to-face reaching in week 3 of term 3 does not mean full classrooms. It does not mean back to normal.
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It’s Gladys Berejiklian o’clock.
Twenty-nine people were diagnosed with Covid-19 in NSW in the last 24 hours.
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Last night, when asked about what to do with Virgin, Scott Morrison told Leigh Sales that a government bailout was not on the cards – suggesting industry super funds step up:
But what’s very important is that we don’t get in the way of a commercial solution, like the TWU super fund, I mean, the industry super funds in this country have got $3tn dollars worth of assets here – we’ve got a company that needs capital. Its own workers have been paying in to industry funds and there are funds out there, in these super funds that could be investing in a number of companies.
Now, I appreciate that comes in a different risk premium, but this is their own contributors that are involved here.
And I’d like to see the industry and broader superannuation fund playing a more active role in dealing with the economic issues that we’re dealing with at the moment. I mean, the government, the taxpayer, is not the only economic actor in this event. There are many others.
Michael McCormack followed that up this morning on ABC radio by suggesting the airline’s employees look at their own super:
We want to see a market resolution for this and if Virgin can’t raise the capital through its shareholders ... then let’s see what happens.
We want to see two airlines out the back of the Covid-19 and I think we can and we will.
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Good morning
It took until the end of the week, but Virgin and Qantas got their underwriting for trunk routes.
$165m for domestic routes, as the nation sits through at least four more weeks of physical restrictions.
After the four weeks, we know the government is looking at moving out of these restrictions, as it works towards an aggressive “test, trace and isolate” system as the pathway out.
Why does it have to be done so carefully?
Angela Merkel manages to explain it perfectly:
This is how Angela Merkel explained the effect of a higher #covid19 infection rate on the country's health system.
— Benjamin Alvarez (@BenjAlvarez1) April 15, 2020
This part of today's press conf was great, so I just added English subtitels for all non-German speakers. #flattenthecurve pic.twitter.com/VzBLdh16kR
Everyone is doing interviews at once this morning.
We’ll bring you that, and everything else, as the day rolls on. You have Amy Remeikis with you for what I think is a Friday. Who knows.
Ready?
Let’s get into it.
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