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The Guardian - AU
National
Nino Bucci and Mostafa Rachwani (earlier)

NSW region to go into lockdown as state records highest number of infections – as it happened

A pop-up Covid clinic at Roselands shopping centre in Sydney.
A pop-up Covid clinic at Roselands shopping centre in Sydney. NSW reported 319 new Covid cases on Saturday. Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP

What we learned today, Saturday 7 August

That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Here’s a recap of the day’s main stories:

  • New South Wales reported 319 cases, the highest daily total ever recorded in the state. There were five more deaths, meaning 27 people have now died in this outbreak.
  • Victoria recorded 29 new cases – all linked to existing cases – but the source of the outbreak which has sparked its sixth lockdown remains unknown.
  • Queensland recorded 13 new cases, at least 12 of which were in isolation for their entire infectious period, but health authorities will wait until Sunday before determining if lockdown can lift as planned.
  • Tougher Covid-19 restrictions will be in place for the next week in Armidale after several positive cases were recorded in the NSW local government area. Residents will now be subject to the same restrictions as those in greater Sydney.
  • A public housing tower that was locked down during Victoria’s second wave has again been subject to a Covid-19 outbreak, after a family of eight linked to Al-Taqwa College tested positive.
  • No positive cases were recorded in any other Australian jurisdiction.

Updated

Cricket Victoria’s indoor training centre in St Kilda has been identified as a tier one exposure site, after a positive case attended on Wednesday night, according to the latest health department update: https://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/exposure-sites

And NSW Health has also confirmed some details about the earlier news that tighter restrictions are being enforced for the next week in Armidale:

Updated

NSW Health is reporting there’s some new venues of concern in the state:

Updated

The fact YouTube had to step in and do what Acma should have done a year ago is an indictment of a broken system, Denis Muller writes about Sky News Australia:

Updated

I fancy myself a federationist, but when Victoria closed down, I am ashamed to admit that the old serpent of NSW schadenfreude re-awoke in me:

Updated

Here is a full wrap on the situation in Queensland from AAP:

Queenslanders have been warned to expect more Covid-19 cases as residents in the south-east wait to hear if their lockdown will end.

The chief health officer, Jeannette Young, will review Sunday’s case numbers before deciding if she can safely lift the region’s eight-day lockdown as planned at 4pm.

That’s looking increasingly likely if Sunday’s results mirror those of the past few days.

While cases have continued to grow, all new infections have been linked to the Indooroopilly cluster, and most if not all new cases have been isolating while infectious.

Queensland recorded 13 new locally acquired cases on Saturday, all associated with the schools at Indooroopilly, Spring Hill and St Lucia on the northern side of the Brisbane River.

All were in isolation while infectious.

Three are linked to a karate club that trains at Indooroopilly state high school, and four are household contacts linked to cases at the high school.

Five others are household contacts linked to Ironside state school, and one is a close contact associated with Brisbane Boys Grammar school.

There are now 102 cases linked to the so-called Indooroopilly cluster.

Young has warned others will emerge among the more than 10,000 people currently in home quarantine.

Some families face extended periods in isolation as the virus jumps from one member to the next, resetting the two-week quarantine clock each time.

“This is going to be a lengthy time for some of those people, because as each person in the household becomes positive, quarantine then extends for another 14 days from that point,” Young said on Saturday.

“It is absolutely critical that no one from any of those households goes out into the community.”

With case numbers in NSW hitting a record of 319 on Saturday, Queensland police have repeated warnings that anyone crossing the border will face intense scrutiny.

Steven Miles and Dr Jeannette Young leaving a press conference on Friday.
Health minister Steven Miles and chief health officer Jeannette Young leaving a press conference on Friday. Photograph: Darren England/AAP

The health minister, Yvette D’Ath, expressed her disgust after two paramedics were forced into isolation after coming into contact with an unauthorised arrival from NSW.

“If you turn up at the border without the proper exemptions you will end up in hotel quarantine,” she told would-be travellers from NSW and Victoria.

Meanwhile, police have caught a woman who escaped from a quarantine hotel on the Gold Coast on Tuesday.

Officers say she had been in a Covid hotspot in NSW before she illegally entered Queensland.

She was caught at Caboolture, north of Brisbane on Saturday, after a tip-off from the public.

Young hopes the risk is low because the woman returned a negative test before she escaped from the hotel by forcing open a glass door.

Meanwhile, two people have copped hefty fines after they left lockdown in the south-east corner and travelled to Mackay to attend a party.

In the regional city of Rockhampton, there are encouraging signs the virus has not been widely transmitted after an infected woman travelled there for work.

All her close contacts have so far tested negative, five days into their quarantine period.

But Young is less comfortable about the situation in Cairns, where a reef pilot was recently active in the community while infectious.

She wants anyone who is unwell in the Cairns area to immediately get tested so she can be more confident the virus isn’t spreading unchecked there.

The premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, is due to be released from hotel quarantine on Sunday morning after she returned a final negative test following her trip to Tokyo for the Olympics.

There were 40,835 tests carried out in Queensland in the 24 hours to 6am Saturday, and police patrolling the border intercepted more than 10,000 vehicles.

Updated

Queensland police have arrested a woman accused of illegally entering the state and then breaking out of hotel quarantine, AAP reports.

Officers found her on Saturday afternoon at Caboolture, north of Brisbane, after receiving a tip-off from a member of the public.

She is now assisting police with their inquiries.

Updated

New South Wales has recorded its worst ever daily increase in Covid infections, at 319 new locally acquired cases, as the state continues to grapple with a deepening crisis.

The state also recorded five deaths, three of which are linked to an outbreak at Liverpool hospital in Sydney’s west, which was sparked by a health worker becoming infected and transferring coronavirus to patients.

Five deaths have been linked to the hospital outbreak, and the latest deaths were a woman in her 80s, a man in his 80s and a man in his 90s. Another man in his 60s and a man in his 80s from the inner west have also died.

Here’s the full story:

Updated

New exposure sites in Queensland:

Updated

It is a tale of two lockdowns: Victorians, in the second day of their sixth lockdown, were slugged with news there were 29 new cases. Queenslanders, in the second last day of their lockdown, heard positive news about their outbreak, but will have to wait until Sunday to know if it will end as planned.

In both states, the messaging from politicians and health officials was nothing if not numbingly familiar.

Here’s our full story:

Updated

Here is an update from AAP about the situation in Tasmania, where a man in quarantine has tested positive:

Tasmania has conducted almost 2,000 Covid-19 tests, all of them negative, following a man in quarantine in Launceston testing positive to the virus after returning to NSW.

The premier, Peter Gutwein, says it’s been confirmed the 31-year-old had the Delta coronavirus variant and every precaution has been taken to make sure the virulent strain doesn’t get into the state.

“The Tasmanian government’s number one priority is to keep Tasmanians safe and secure, and pleasingly out of the 1,888 laboratory tests undertaken yesterday, all results have again returned negative,” he said in a statement on Saturday.

All 189 of the man’s contacts have been notified and 139 of them are in quarantine and being tested, Gutwein said.

The remaining 50 have been assessed as low risk and are not required to quarantine.

Wastewater testing results have also so far returned negatives, including those for Launceston, the premier said.

Tasmania has border restrictions in place for all of Victoria and NSW, and 11 local government areas in Queensland, in addition to high-risk premises in Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia and Cairns.

“We will continue to monitor the situation in these states and adjust our border settings if necessary,” Gutwein said.

He said the authorities had picked up the man without an endorsed G2G pass and he was immediately sent into hotel quarantine.

Peter Gutwein speaks to media in Hobart this week.
Tasmanian premier Peter Gutwein speaks to media in Hobart this week. Photograph: Ethan James/AAP

Updated

I’m seeing a few posts on the interwebs that seem to suggest Sydney folks went berko for AstraZeneca jabs today at several mass vaccination sites:

Updated

There is a hotel quarantine “fugitive” on the loose in Queensland, AAP reports:

A woman who illegally entered Queensland from a NSW hotspot remains on the run four days after breaking out of hotel quarantine.

The 24-year-old escaped from the Gold Coast hotel where she was being held on Tuesday.

She took her mobile phone but abandoned all of her other possessions and so far police have been unable to find her.

The chief health officer, Jeannette Young, has expressed concern but hopes the risk of the woman spreading Covid-19 in Queensland is low.

“She’s already tested negative once. Police will find her and then we’ll be able to test her again,” Young told reporters on Saturday.

She said anyone in border zone communities must get tested if they develop any symptoms.

Police have appealed for public help to find the woman, who was forced into hotel quarantine after being intercepted at a border checkpoint last Saturday.

She forced open a glass door to escape her quarantine room. She remains on the run despite family and friends being grilled about her whereabouts.

It’s believed she may be in the Caboolture or Narangba area, north of Brisbane.

“Please give yourself up,” the police deputy commissioner, Steve Gollschewski, told the woman during Saturday’s daily coronavirus briefing.

“She does not want to be caught. Unfortunately in policing we deal with these fugitive situations a lot.”

The health minister, Yvette D’Ath, said it was alarming that southerners who’ve been in coronavirus hotspots are continuing to enter Queensland in defiance of health orders.

“If you turn up at the border without the proper exemptions you will end up in hotel quarantine,” she told would-be travellers from NSW and Victoria.

“There is no point getting in your car and trying to come into Queensland if you don’t have the right border pass.”

Queensland police intercepted more than 10,000 vehicles on Saturday to make sure cross-border travellers have the right passes, and to ensure people are only moving around during the current lockdown for valid reasons.

Updated

Interesting to see if this trend continues while Victoria is in lockdown (after all, it is one of the five reasons you can leave your house).

The Victorian department of health has uploaded a bunch of exposure sites today. There are now 109 in the state. The majority of new sites (unsurprisingly, given where we know the positive cases are from) are in Melbourne’s outer-west.

Full list is here: https://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/exposure-sites

And so my time on today’s blog comes to an end (again), and handing it back over to Nino Bucci for the rest of the evening. Thanks for reading.

Updated

Queensland Health has updated its exposure sites list, to include Woolworths at Mudgeeraba on 2 August between 2.55pm and 3.20pm.

If you’ve visited then, you’re considered a casual contact and must get tested and isolate until you get a negative result.

Updated

WA has recorded zero new cases again today, but the health department is urging people in Broome to get tested, after Covid fragments were found in the town’s wastewater.

They say the detection is likely a result of someone who had the virus previously, and is no longer infectious, but as a precaution, have asked people to get tested.

Updated

It appears panic buying has hit Armidale:

The regional town will be in lockdown from 5pm tonight, for at least a week.

Updated

Earlier today, Queensland police said they were seeking public assistance to find someone who has escaped hotel quarantine on the Gold Coast.

Police say the 24-year-old was placed in quarantine after being intercepted on the border on 31 July.

She escaped on Tuesday, with police saying they believe she may be in the Caboolture or Narangba areas.

Anyone with information is urged to contact police.

Updated

Tasmania’s strict border closure with high-risk mainland areas will continue, with premier Peter Gutwein saying the state will “throw the book” at anyone attempting to sneak in.

If you’re thinking of sneaking through, that you can arrive here after you’ve been rejected, we will throw the book at you.

If you turn up and you’ve asked to come in, if you don’t have a valid pass, or your pass has been rejected, we will throw the book at you.

It comes after the attempted entry of a 31-year-old man who had been carrying the Delta strain.

Updated

Good afternoon, thanks for your coverage Nino, I’m back off the bench and will be bringing you the news this afternoon.

I will pass you all back to Mostafa Rachwani now for a few hours, be good and be safe!

For some lockdown escapism I can recommend our Olympics live blog:

Some Covid graphs!

Victoria:

And NSW:

Now the press conference is over, let’s take a look at some other news.

Updated

Andrews gives a rendition of a classic hit (“this won’t last any longer than it needs to”) shortly before the Victoria media conference ends.

Daniel Andrews is asked about the response to the previous Flemington public housing tower outbreak, which was criticised by the Victorian ombudsman. He says that intervention was absolutely necessary and saved lives.

Daniel Andrews speaks to the media at Saturday’s Covid press conference
Daniel Andrews speaks to the media at Saturday’s Covid press conference. Photograph: Michael Currie/Speed Media/Rex/Shutterstock

Updated

Weimar confirms that regarding the Flemington public housing tower outbreak: it is a single household of eight people, one of whom is a student at Al-Taqwa College. That household has moved out of the tower to isolate.

Updated

Victoria’s Covid briefing is winding up now. Jeroen Weimar is making clear there are a number of leads into the outbreak, including the people who came from NSW hotel quarantine to Victoria on 15 July and later tested positive.

He says there are a number of potential scenarios, but “we are now in the world of wild speculation”.

Not every genomic sequencing gives all the information they want, Weimar says.

Updated

Andrews is asked whether teachers will be prioritised in the vaccine rollout, given the recent outbreak has again included clusters in schools, and he has secured more doses of Pfizer:

We’ll have more to say about where the extra doses will go, and I’m not inviting you to assume that they’re going to go to teachers. It’s only 150,000. It’s better than not having it, but it’s not 1.5 million. You know, we’ve got limited supply. I made the point the other day, and I’m not critical of any group who mounts the case that they should be higher up the queue than they are now. There’s literally hundreds and thousands of groups that can mount a really compelling argument. The problem is that we don’t have the stock. We just don’t have the supply.

Updated

Andrews likes to mention things that don’t work against the virus. Today he has confirmed that anger does not work against the virus:

I’ll make this point – getting angry doesn’t work against this virus. If it did, it would have ended a long time ago.

Daniel Andrews speaks to the media about the 29 new Covid cases in Victoria
Daniel Andrews speaks to the media about the 29 new Covid cases in Victoria. Photograph: Michael Currie/Speed Media/Rex/Shutterstock

Updated

Andrews is asked about regional Victoria being in lockdown. He said on Thursday that there had been a wastewater detection in Wangaratta, and used that detection to justify why country areas were being locked down. But yesterday it became clear the Wangaratta detection was a false positive:

What I would say to people in regional Victoria, whether it is Wangaratta where I grew up, or any other part of regional Victoria, there are mystery cases. When don’t know where it is. We have wastewater in Benalla and Healesville separate to Wangaratta. We try to get the best information as quickly as we can. Nothing is perfect. No one has ever pretended that it is.

He says no decision has been made about whether regional VIctoria will be spared from future lockdowns.

I’ll always take advice on whether that should be part of Melbourne, all of Melbourne, all of the state. I wouldn’t draw any further conclusions on that. If I get the advice, we follow the advice. It served us well. And there’s really no alternative.

Updated

Daniel Andrews wants to make a point about achieving zero positive Covid-19 cases:

I would make the point for those listening at home and watching at home. Zero is always the aim. But it’s not zero cases. It’s zero cases that is were out and about potentially infecting others. So a doughnut day, always terrific. But it’s not necessarily ... you could have four or five or 20 cases, but if they were all tucked away from other people ... that’s as good as a zero day.

Jeroen Weimar and Daniel Andrews at Saturday’s Covid briefing in Melbourne
Jeroen Weimar and Daniel Andrews at Saturday’s Covid briefing in Melbourne. Photograph: Michael Currie/Speed Media/Rex/Shutterstock

Updated

Jeroen Weimar is asked about the Flemington public housing tower, the whole of which is now classified as a tier two site, meaning people must get a test and isolate until receiving a negative result. The floor the positive cases were located on is a tier one site, meaning people on that floor must be tested on day one and day 13 before being released from isolation.

Weimar:

I was briefly at Flemington this morning before I joined the premier here. So we have an existing and well-established community testing and public health team that are based at Flemington. They’ve been based at Flemington for many months and working closely with the community. During the course of today, we’ll be testing for the people and neighbours residents who live on the same floor as the positive cases who have left the building. The positive cases left the building over the last two days in two separate tranches. All other residents of the building, we will also provide additional testing capacity for. There’s a dedicated testing centre being set up on site as we speak. Other residents of the building on the other floors will progressively be asked to ... get tested over the course of today and tomorrow. And as a whole community-led, council-led, supported by us, welfare and support team in place to ensure that everybody has everything that they need in terms of food and supplies and the other support that we provide, as we have done for the last three to four months in terms of that.

Here is a little more background on the previous outbreak in those towers.

Updated

One of the working theories as to how this Victorian outbreak has started is that it is linked to a 15 July flight that contained two people from Sydney. Andrews says:

No one is alleging that they’ve done anything wrong or that there’s any deficiency in the way that they exited quarantine. It’s a part of a puzzle and a piece in a jigsaw puzzle. It may come to nothing but we’re sufficiently concerned that we need more testing and no more or no less than that. It may be part of the puzzle. It may not be. As soon as we have more clarity, we’ll be the first to tell you.

REPORTER: Are you concerned that there could be unconfirmed cases in the community. If they were positive from the 15th?

What I would say to you is whenever you’ve got a mystery case, regardless of those two people and their history and the work that we’re doing to try to fill in some of the blanks with them, whenever you’ve got mystery cases, you’ve always got a concern. In fact, you know that there are other cases out there that have not been tested, that are not detected, that are not locked down. Whose close contacts are not locked down. That’s why mystery cases are so, so challenging. Even if you’ve got one or two of them. That’s enough with Delta to cause really significant concern. And that’s why, because you don’t know where it is, that’s why the whole state is locked down.

Updated

Andrews confirms the public housing tower that has eight residents who have tested positive is one of the Flemington towers that was locked down swiftly last year:

I would say that people know and understand that the steps that were taken and the steps being taken this time are all about saving lives and keeping people safe. I did a Zoom meeting with a number of multicultural leaders – many of whom are also wearing a different hat as a leader in that local public housing world in terms of individual towers or within public housing tenants. And the response is very positive and we’re working very closely with them and we will continue to do that in their interests and in the interests of everybody’s health.

Those towers were closed last year at the same time as another outbreak at Al-Taqwa College.

Updated

Andrews says it is too early to say if seven days will be the extent of Victoria’s sixth lockdown:

It’s too early for us to say. I’d much rather have no cases than 29 cases. But at the same time, this is an exercise in finding cases. So if they’re there, we want to find them. We want to find them quickly and our contact tracers are doing a great job and so are the Victorians getting tested and coming forward and being part of the process. There are many thousands of people, 3,000-plus, who are at home now. Many of whom will be for 14 days. And we’re very grateful to them and we’ll support them.

I want to make this point as well. You know, it is pleasing that we don’t have another seven mystery cases or even one mystery case. There are linkages. The question is – how many days out in the community have those cases spent? Who else have they infected? Are all of those infected people coming forward?

Daniel Andrews answers reporters’ questions at Saturday’s Covid update
Daniel Andrews answers reporters’ questions at Saturday’s Covid update. Photograph: Michael Currie/Speed Media/Rex/Shutterstock

Updated

Despite Jeroen Weimar saying there hasn’t been a clear genomic match found between the current outbreak and any other previous case, Daniel Andrews says “it’s definitely NSW and it’s definitely Delta”.

Updated

Back to Daniel Andrews, he is asking all the journalists there to emphasise in their coverage that there is financial assistance available for those who have to isolate after testing ($450) or who have missed shifts ($1,500).

Those payments are very important and I would commend them to anybody who is eligible.

You know, it’s a pretty easy process to receive those payments because the value of you staying at home far exceeds $450 or $1,500. In fact, it’s worth everything to everyone. It’s how we get the place opened up again.

Updated

Weimar says of the positive cases in the current Victorian cluster, eight are linked to a public housing tower, but those people have been moved out of the building. He says:

We will undertake full testing of the rest of that housing building. That work is under way. Residents have been informed this morning and will continue to work over the coming days as we always do with complex apartment buildings, we will provide for food and welfare support for the community. They will complete isolation, get tested and do the right thing.

Weimar says there are wastewater detections across the state, including in Benalla, Healesville and upper Moonee Ponds.

Updated

In Victoria, Jeroen Weimar says there has been no direct genomic match between the current cluster and other known clusters, but it is a close match to the NSW outbreak.

He has given a breakdown of the 29 new cases:

  • Four linked to City of Maribyrnong cluster, which now stands at eight.
  • The other 25 linked to the City of Hobsons Bay cluster.
  • There are now 14 students, one staff member, and a household member of a student who are positive linked to Al-Taqwa College.

Weimar thanks everyone at Al-Taqwa for all their work so far. Three quarters of close contacts in isolation have returned a negative test, he says.

Updated

NSW press conference: Back in NSW, we’re discussing Liverpool hospital now, with a journalist asking how many wards have been affected, and how many people in the ICU are linked to the outbreak.

Dr Jeremy McAnulty says he doesn’t have the information on the ICU, but says four staff members and 29 patients from the geriatric wards have been infected:

Condolences go out to those families for those people who have died. The hospital takes this very seriously, this is a tragedy to occur, and everyone is working very hard at the facility and across NSW Health to protect patients and staff members.

So there were are a range of measures that take place when we have cases, or exposure to cases in hospitals or other health settings, of which we have had many of this outbreak, added to that is a careful review of infection control, and making sure that people who have been exposed are given the right information about what they need to do in terms of isolation, and further testing.

Updated

Andrews:

The final point from me, but if any Victorian is unconvinced and comes to a conclusion that ‘I am fit and healthy and won’t get Covid-19’, it is not just Covid-19 patients that will struggle to find the machine or a bed or a nurse that isn’t furloughed to care for them or a hospital that is open to care for them, it will be people who have suffered strokes, people who have had premature babies, people who have cancer and need urgent surgery, people who have heart attacks. All of that part of our health system would be compromised as well. That is why there is only one option. As painful and difficult as it is.

Updated

Andrews is speaking about the 29 new cases. He says that while they are all linked to known outbreaks, it is still unclear how these outbreaks started:

This is why if you are asked to stay home and isolate, please follow the instructions provided to you. And to the broader community, these rules are in place, as painful and as challenging as they are, they are in place to drive cases down. If we don’t abide by these rules, we will, through our own choices, drive cases up. That is not what we want. It is not how we get through this and get open again.

This will go where the vaccine isn’t. We don’t have enough people vaccinated. We’ll finish with younger people in hospital, otherwise fit and healthy people. The system will be overrun if we don’t bring this under control. That is why these rules are there and where we all have a part to play. I couldn’t be more proud of Victoria.

Updated

The Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, says the prime minister, Scott Morrison, told him last night the state would receive an extra 150,000 doses of Pfizer.

Andrews says 1.76m vaccine doses have now been administered in Victorian state clinics, and 22,000 were administered yesterday.

Updated

NSW press conference: We are back on about compliance at the NSW press conference, with a journalist now being specific, saying that Prof Paul Kelly specifically called for compliance to be “wrapped up” in the state.

The journalist referred to people congregating in supermarkets as an example of compliance needing to be stamped out. My only addition is how, exactly, are people supposed to survive if they can’t buy groceries?

Anyways, I digress, here is what Hazzard had to say:

There is absolutely no way that we can have a police officer outside of every house on every street corner, outside of every shop. We want people to take responsibility for their own actions, we want them to make a decision. I do not have to have the police come along ... and issue penalty infringement notice.

Quite clearly, what we are seeing is, of the smaller shops, and also the larger shops, but the smaller shops, the butchers, the grocery shops, though smaller shops in some of these places around Sydney, and south-west Sydney, the classic example is the coffee shop, where so many people want to go and get a cup of coffee, me included, but there is a personal responsibility to wear a mask, to make your order, to move back away, to get your coffee, and a leave.

Updated

Daniel Andrews gives Victorian Covid update

The Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, and Covid-19 commander, Jeroen Weimar, are speaking from Melbourne.

They are providing an update on the 29 cases recorded in the state today.

Updated

NSW press conference: Another GP clinic has been found to be charging patients for vaccination consultations, and Hazzard has been asked if it’s time to introduce a fine. He says its a federal responsibility, but warned GPs doing that would face consequences:

GPs are regulated by the federal government of the State Government, we managed hospitals and community health centre. But it is very disappointing to see any GP, who is otherwise they are generally to look after us, would also dip their finger or hand in somebody else’s pocket to get money they should not have.

Minister Hunt has indicated that the federal government who is jumping on every case that they get reported to, and making sure that there was appropriate dealings with those particular GPs. I would say also to GPs away from the situation, do not forget that that may well be considered to be unprofessional practice, and you may well be referred to the federal body by the federal government.

Updated

We’re doing a mid-conference handover. Nino Bucci will be taking you through the Victoria’s press conference while I will continue with Sydney’s.

Updated

When pushed about why numbers are still rising in Canterbury-Bankstown, Hazzard has turned to talking about compliance:

We are seeing in Canterbury Bankstown that people are not necessarily complying but Canterbury-Bankstown is a major area for workplaces, smaller workplaces and bigger ones.

What we are seeing in larger workplaces, particularly with attribution centres, the larger ones, in that area we have Woolworths and Coles, they are doing a fantastic job.

They are insuring the COVID-safe plans are well complied with and also taken steps to ensure their staff get vaccinated. Some of the smaller businesses, not so good.

NSW health minister Brad Hazzard speaks to the media during Saturday’s Covid briefing in Sydney
NSW health minister Brad Hazzard speaks to the media during Saturday’s Covid briefing in Sydney. Photograph: Bianca de Marchi/AAP

Updated

A journalist has asked if it is realistic to assume that NSW has already seen its last ever Covid-zero days:

I still haven’t lost hope that we’ll get back to zero. Delta is a pretty wild variant of the virus. It is wreaking havoc across the world. What we need is our community to back each other in.

It is almost a level of self-entitlement to think that you don’t have to have the vaccine but your neighbours do. No, you will have to. We all do. Every one of us. If you get the vaccine and don’t follow the rules, it makes it more difficult to get back to zero but I’m still hopeful.

Updated

A reporter has asked if any of the cases are linked to the anti-lockdown protests held a fortnight ago.

Hazzard has said it’s unclear:

There is no clarity on that at this stage because the difficulty is, I wish it was easy, but people who have come into be tested don’t necessarily tell us they were at the rally. As you would expect. The police would take more of an interest in that.

It is continuing to be a disappointment. I have my suspicions that we might be seeing some increases as a result of that because there were people there from south-west Sydney but there is no clarity on that. It is concerning.

Updated

Brad Hazzard says NSW residents 'not complying' with rules

As per usual, we have a question asking for tougher restrictions.

Here was Hazzard’s response, which included reference to Paul Kelly’s comments yesterday calling for a “circuit breaker”:

We have the toughest lockdown in the country at the present time. What is not happening is people are not complying ... If people don’t comply, the community will continue to suffer. I saw Paul Kelly’s comments. He hasn’t told us what that circuit breaker would be.

It expresses the concerns we all have. The circuit breaker in NSW and Sydney is for people to comply with the rules. It is simple. Stay home.

Updated

OK we’re starting to get to a point where we can get a clearer picture of the situation (Hazzard did not help).

Dr McAnulty has clarified that three of the deaths have come via the Liverpool hospital outbreak (this is also the first we hear of it as an outbreak).

He also clarified that they were not vaccinated, and that Canterbury-Bankstown has become the epicentre of the outbreak.

Dr Jeremy McAnulty speaks to the media during Saturday’s Covid briefing in Sydney
Dr Jeremy McAnulty speaks to the media during Saturday’s Covid briefing in Sydney. Photograph: Bianca de Marchi/AAP

Updated

Lockdown of Armidale LGA from 5pm today

Hazzard has continued his epic opening monologue, and has now said that there have been two cases recorded in Armidale, which means the town will be put into lockdown:

Those came in again late last night, under the Armidale region or LGA, local government area, which includes the major city of Armidale that is about 25,000 people ... Two are smaller towns.

On the advice of a public health unit, and Dr Chant’s team, the Armidale LGA will have to be put into a lockdown from 5pm tonight.

Health minister Brad Hazzard says NSW recorded 319 new locally-acquired Covid cases in the 24 hours to 8pm Friday
Health minister Brad Hazzard says NSW recorded 319 new locally acquired Covid cases in the 24 hours to 8pm Friday. Photograph: Bianca de Marchi/AAP

Updated

NSW has recorded five more deaths

The state recorded five new deaths overnight, bringing the total number of deaths in the outbreak to 27.

Updated

Hazzard has said that, again, most of the cases come from west and south-west Sydney, and is urging a basic message: that people need to stay home.

That presents challenges for our health staff. That is why I’m saying to the community, you have a really got to get serious about staying at home. You cannot leave our health staff continually having to search where you have been, what you have been doing, it is not fair to the community, it is not fair to yourself, it is not to anybody.

Updated

Health minister Brad Hazzard has had a rambling start to the presser, going through vaccination numbers, encouraging HSC students to take up the vaccination offer at Qudos Arena, reminding people of Covid restrictions in workplaces, and so on.

Perhaps this is the best reflection of how serious the situation is. NSW has never recorded over 300 cases, ever.

Updated

Victoria’s press conference will also be at 11.30am.

NSW records 319 locally acquired Covid cases

NSW has recorded 319 locally acquired cases to 8pm last night, 125 are linked to previous cases, 108 are contacts of households and 17 are close contacts of previous cases, but 194 are under investigation.

In the meantime, NSW has also reached another milestone: the state has nearly reached 50% first dose vaccinations. Not a bad way to start the presser.

Updated

NSW health minister Brad Hazard has stepped up to give a Covid update.

NSW Health’s Dr Jeremy McAnulty, health minister Brad Hazzard and police deputy commissioner Gary Worboys speak to the media
NSW Health’s Dr Jeremy McAnulty, health minister Brad Hazzard and police deputy commissioner Gary Worboys speak to the media. Photograph: Bianca de Marchi/AAP

Updated

Tasmania will also be holding a press conference at 11.30am (yay to presser crossover)

NSW to give 11am Covid update

We are expecting the Covid update from NSW in around 10 mins, but it is still unclear when the Victorian update will be held.

Updated

Two students at Newcastle uni test positive

The University of Newcastle has released a statement, saying two of its students at the Callaghan Campus have tested positive.

NSW Health advised the university of the cases, who were living in on-campus accomodation, and transferred them to “their care” to be isolated and tested.

The university said:

Several close contacts of these students have been identified by NSW Health, and these students have been contacted, tested, and moved into self-isolation tonight. NSW Health and the University is staying in close contact with these students to help monitor their health and support their wellbeing during their period of isolation.

Updated

And with that, the Queensland presser comes to a close, and it looks like it won’t be until tomorrow before we know if the lockdown will be lifted.

Updated

Yvette D’Ath is asked about online shopping waiting times, with a reporter saying some people have had to wait up to five days for groceries:

If anyone needs any assistance and are unable to have friends, family or neighbours assist them and they are unable to get direct delivery because of delays with the supermarkets, we certainly want to make sure people are getting any assistance they can. We do want them ... ringing the 134 COVID number.

Jeannette Young says Queensland lockdown depends on Sunday's numbers

Young has been asked specifically if the lockdown will be lifted tomorrow. She said that, essentially, it comes down to tomorrow’s numbers:

It depends on what the numbers are tomorrow morning. Today’s numbers are encouraging, but I really can’t predict what tomorrow will do. I need those numbers before we have a decision.

Updated

Deputy police commissioner Steve Gollschewski has just announced that there were four arrests made yesterday, with two people in Noosaville who refused to check in and refused to wear a mask:

Unfortunately, we also saw four arrests yesterday. We had two persons at Noosaville who not only refused to check in with the check-in app, then refused to wear masks and then decided to have an argument with police and resist.

That kind of behaviour is not going to be tolerated.

Updated

Lots of positive vibes from Queensland today, with health minister Yvette D’Ath chiming in, and welcoming the addition of pharmacies to the vaccination network:

Great work Queensland. Keep staying home, get tested if you are unwell and get vaccinated. Yesterday we recorded the second day in a row of the highest vaccination rates across the country.

I want to thank all of our clinics that are doing vaccinations and our GPs and of course our pharmacies came online yesterday.

Updated

Queensland’s chief health officer, Dr Jeannette Young, has not given a direct statement on whether the lockdown will be lifted tomorrow, as was initially scheduled:

We now have another two days, today until 4pm tomorrow, just continue to see how we go. It is important to continue that testing, that is very important so we can make sure there are no unknown cases out there.

This outbreak has only been going for a short period. There could still be cases there, very important to keep testing going. Very, very important to keep wearing masks, that is critical as we go forward.

Updated

Miles has announced that Queensland’s premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, will have completed her isolation and be able to join the press conferences from tomorrow. Good timing.

Updated

Queensland’s numbers today indicate a “good result” says the deputy premier, but that the state is still cautious about cases being out in community:

Across the metrics that we are looking to, good results. All cases are linked, limited community exposure and a continuing high testing rate above the 40,000 goal we set for ourselves. It is important to know we will see continued cases, many people in households with a case will continue to catch the virus in the coming days and weeks.

What is most important is that they are not outside of their household, they are not infectious in the community, there are 10,000 plus people subject to home quarantine direction right now. That is the cohort that we are monitoring.

Updated

Queensland records 13 new Covid cases

Queensland has recorded 13 new locally acquired cases today.

All cases are linked to the Delta outbreak that started at a Brisbane school, 12 were not infectious in community but the 13th case is still under investigation.

Updated

Queensland’s deputy premier, Steven Miles, has just stepped up to give a Covid update.

Updated

Second out the gates will be the NSW press conference, set for 11am.

Katharine Murphy never misses, and her latest column is again essential reading:

First out the gates for the day’s press conferences is Queensland, whose deputy premier and CHO will speak at 10am.

Updated

Need some pick-me-up for the day? Fear not, the Olympics are still going! It’s day 15 today, and a whole host of Australians are in action, from golf to diving, water polo and athletics.

You can check out all the times for all the Australians in action today here.

And you can check out our excellent live blog at the link below. Hoping for our record-breaking gold today!

Updated

Yesterday, it was announced that expats living abroad would not be able to leave the country to visit family or friends, and some spoke to the Guardian, saying it was a “cruel” move.

US-based Australian Erin Gregor said:

The thing that is most cruel about this is that you’re asking people to choose between being able to see their family in Australia for the last time and possibly losing their right to live and work with other loved ones wherever they’re now living.

Hong Kong based Australian Daniel Stokes-McKeon said:

It’s not a lighthearted or cheap decision just to come back for a visit. It annoys me that the government is framing this as closing a loophole that was being abused – as if people like me have been going back every month for a visit.

You can read more on the story here:

Victoria records 29 new cases

Well, this is not a good way to start the day.

Victoria has released their daily numbers, with 29 new locally acquired cases recorded today, all linked to previously reported cases, and none in quarantine during their infectious period:

Updated

The Sydney Morning Herald is reporting that another school student in Melbourne has tested positive.

The Islamic College of Melbourne is being deep cleaned after a confirmed case attended in July, and all staff must get tested and isolate until they receive a negative result.

Principal Dr Abdul M Karmareddine said in a letter sent to parents on late Friday night that the South-East Public Health Unit is investigating.

“The department will close the college from [Friday] until further notice to enable further risk assessment to be made and for an environmental clean to be undertaken,” he said.

“We will not be able to offer on school supervision as of Monday ... we await further instruction from the Department of Health.“

The school is the fourth to be affected by this outbreak, which includes Al-Taqwa College, Heathdale Christian College and a specialist school.

Updated

An interesting story emerged yesterday, where the Fair Work Ombudsman confirmed that it planned to updated its guidance to allow high risk businesses in coronavirus hotspots to mandate vaccinations for their staff.

This comes after the NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, was asked about companies mandating vaccinations yesterday, where she said that companies were free to make their own choices on the matter.

“Workplaces have the right to mandate vaccination, if they decide they have a particular policy of who is allowed to work in their workplace under a pandemic during a lockdown, that is a matter for them,” she told reporters yesterday.

It will be interesting to see what happens at today’s presser, and if more companies will begin taking up the chance to mandate vaccinations.

Updated

Liverpool apartment building in lockdown

Another Sydney apartment building is in lockdown after 14 people tested positive to Covid-19 as the city’s virus battle continues amid warnings of higher daily case numbers.

The Liverpool building’s remaining residents have been deemed close contacts and ordered to isolate for 14 days, with police and private security monitoring the multi-storey complex.

NSW Health is working to determine how many households are affected within the units at Liverpool.

Updated

Good morning all, it’s Mostafa Rachwani with you today for Australia’s coronavirus liveblog.

We begin on the east coast, where Australia’s most populous cities are currently in lockdown.

It is particularly grim in New South Wales, which recorded a new daily high of 291 on Friday, with the premier, Gladys Berejiklian, warning the worst has yet to come.

In Victoria, a snap seven-day lockdown is in day two, with the health minister, Martin Foley, saying the state was in a “precarious position” as it headed into the weekend, as authorities scramble to get on top of a series of mystery cases.

Queensland is supposed to emerge from its lockdown on Sunday, after it recorded a “very encouraging result” on Friday, with only 10 cases, all of which were household contacts of a previously reported case.

We will be bringing you the stream of press conferences as they come in, as well as covering anything else that emerges today. There is still much to get stuck into, so let’s dive in.

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