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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Mostafa Rachwani and Matilda Boseley

NSW reports 1,220 cases and eight deaths; Victoria premier attacks ‘secret’ vaccine allocations to Sydney – As it happened

What we learned, Tuesday 7 September

That’s where I will leave you for today. Here’s a wrap of what we learned:

  • New South Wales recorded 1,220 new locally acquired cases overnight, as well as recording eight deaths.
  • NSW CHO Dr Kerry Chant said she believed a 90% vaccination rate was possible, and said recipients of the Pfizer doses from Poland have been asked to wait eight weeks between doses.
  • Victoria recorded 246 new locally acquired cases, 90 of which are linked to previous cases.
  • Victorian premier Daniel Andrews slammed the federal government’s vaccine allocations to NSW.
  • The ACT has recorded 19 new cases, with 13 of them linked, and six under investigation.
  • PM Scott Morrison was criticised today for taking a trip to Sydney for father’s day, but defended his actions on Sky News, saying he did not receive any “special treatment.”
  • Mathew Guy has returned to the leadership of the Victorian Liberal party, after a leadership spill removed Michael O’Brien earlier today.
  • NSW Police has introduced a vaccine mandate for all its staff.
  • Federal health minister Greg Hunt announced that the government has secured an additional 1.7m vaccine doses from Singapore.

Updated

Need an explainer on the criss-crossing discourse on vaccine allocations to states? Look no further, Sarah Martin has you covered:

A robotic dog is roaming the streets of Adelaide, monitoring power lines for damage. Yes, this is real, and unfortunately the dog does not have a dog-like face though.

Utility company SA Power Networks has been teaching “Spot” to look out for damaged infrastructure and other issues in its poles and wires network.

You can read more on the cute yellow robot dog here:

Updated

The ACTU has launched a national vaccination campaign to “encourage Australians to get vaccinated to support essential workers”.

The campaign includes a 30-second ad that will run on TV, YouTube and other social media platforms.

ACTU Secretary Sally McManus said it was important people get vaccinated as a means of supporting essential workers who “keep this country running”:

The union movement is encouraging all eligible Australians to get vaccinated to support the working people of our country: essential workers who expose themselves every day to keep the country running, hospital workers who face being overwhelmed with unvaccinated people and workers who have lost their jobs because of lockdowns.

We need our workplaces and communities to be as safe as possible and high rates of vaccination is the only way to achieve this. High vaccination rates are also the only way to avoid the crippling lockdowns which have cost working people big time.

Updated

If you want a rundown of everything said and not said around the PM’s trip to Sydney, Paul Karp has you covered:

“Living with covid” has become an often repeated sentiment these days, but what does it actually, practically mean?

The brilliant team over at Full Story have spoken to Melissa Davey on the realities of living with covid, and the future of variants, vaccines and treatments:

In some good news, once again Western Australia and the Northern Territory have both recorded no new cases today.

Police surround Melbourne synagogue where more than 100 worshippers gathered

Police have surrounded a synagogue in Melbourne, where more than 100 worshippers have reportedly been celebrating Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.

The Age is reporting that members of the Orthodox Jewish congregation entered the synagogue around 5am this morning and have been refusing to leave until sunset.

An officer told the paper police would not force their way in, but would wait until worshippers leave before any action is taken.

Police have reportedly blocked two lanes behind the Ripponlea synagogue, but it is still unclear whether the worshippers will face any action.

Updated

Federal shadow assistant treasurer, Stephen Jones, has backed the Victorian premier’s claims that NSW was receiving more than its fair share of vaccine doses.

Jones said Victoria was supposed to get 82% of what NSW is receiving, but is actually receiving 62%:

Victoria is supposed to be getting 82% of what NSW is receiving - [it’s] actually getting 62%, shortchanged by 20%.

Yes, I want NSW to get every drop of vaccine that it needs. It should not be at the expense of other states.

Let’s be clear: if a state does not hit those targets [of 70 to 80% of people aged over 16 being fully vaccinated] and they have not received the vaccine that they deserve, the blame rests fairly and squarely on Scott Morrison, who has botched his job of the vaccine rollout.

Updated

Liberal MP Dave Sharma has defended prime minister Scott Morrison’s travel exemption to come to Sydney for fathers day, saying he has “a lot of sympathy” for the PM:

I have a lot of sympathy for the prime minister’s position. It would not matter if it was the Labor prime minister or another prime minister. I think we ask a lot of our prime ministers ... We expect them to govern the country effectively. That is fine. They volunteer for this job, I know, but I think we can make some allowances.

If we are in any other country, I do not think we would have this debate. The fact that our prime minister quarantines for two weeks when he returns from overseas is actually quite unusual by world standards. You do not find foreign heads of government returning to their countries, even if the rest of the population has to quarantine, and then having to do the same thing.

The prime minister clearly spent time with family, came back, there was no health risk and the Chief Health Officer ticked off on it and he has been away from his family for an immense amount of time. He has been away from his family for a lengthy amount of time. As a person I feel for him.

Updated

Anne Ruston, federal Minister for Women’s Safety, has denied the government has rejected the 55 recommendations of the Respect@Work national inquiry into workplace sexual harassment.

Only six of those recommendations have been enacted so far, with Ruston saying the government has not acted on the centrepiece recommendation to impose a new legal obligation on employers to prevent sexual harassment, because it apparently already exists:

My understanding is that currently within the Work Heath and Safety Act that there is an affirmative requirement of employers to do that already.

I know the Attorney-General [Michaelia Cash] is currently consulting on this particular aspect and a number of other issues that are still yet to be resolved in relation to the delivery of those recommendations to make sure we have the regulations or the legislation to make sure that we have the safest workplaces we possibly can.

In no way has the government ever said that we do not want to have the strongest possible provisions in place to make women, or anybody for that matter, feel safe at work and be safe at work.

Ruston was on the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing, and said that “my target is towards zero” when asked about the target of reducing violence against women by 80 per cent by 2031.

Updated

South Australia has recorded six new positive cases in hotel quarantine.

They include two children, three teenagers and a woman in her 30s, who have all been in a medi-hotel since arriving from overseas.

Updated

The Reserve Bank will maintain interest rates at a record low level of 0.1%, but said it would look to roll back pandemic stimulus measures in the medium to long term.

The RBA is hoping for a strong economic recovery once the lockdowns in NSW and Victoria end, with RBA governor Philip Lowe saying they expected the economy to resume growing through the December quarter.

This setback to the economic expansion is expected to be only temporary. The Delta outbreak is expected to delay, but not derail, the recovery.

As vaccination rates increase further and restrictions are eased, the economy should bounce back.

There is, however, uncertainty about the timing and pace of this bounce back, and it is likely to be slower than that earlier in the year.

Updated

WA Police have announced they have charged a woman for allegedly breaching quarantine.

The woman had arrived in WA on a flight from Queensland on Thursday, and was told to self-quarantine at a suitable premises for 14 days.

When police arrived for a random routine check yesterday, the woman was allegedly not at home.

She was found, arrested, charged with four counts of failing to comply with a direction and refused bail.

Police allege the woman breached quarantine four times between Friday and Monday, including visiting a pawnbroker in Perth and visiting family members in Fremantle.

A school in Sydney’s inner west has shut down “immediately” after a member of the school community tested positive.

Alexandria Park Community School has been closed “effective immediately” because of the positive case.

NSW Education informed the school community at around 2:30pm today that it would be shut for cleaning and contact tracing.

The closure includes the on-site services of Camp Australia, Wunanbiri Preschool and the Alexandria Park Community Centre.

The school joins Crawford Public School, in western Sydney, and Cringila Public School, in Wollongong, in being closed today after positive cases were recorded.

Updated

I’d like to interrupt the seemingly endless stream of news to share an amazing story.

An Australian musk duck has been recorded apparently saying “you bloody fool”, and you can hear the recording yourself at the link below.

The recording is the first comprehensively documented instance of a duck mimicking human sounds. Worth a look:

Hunt has dismissed criticism from Victorian premier Daniel Andrews, that the most recent vaccine allocation was unfairly distributed.

He said Victoria and Queensland have both received additional vaccines, above their per capita share, and stood by the government’s distrubtion:

The critical thing here is to save lives and protect lives.

It would be almost unimaginable not to be providing the support ... to those most in need at their time of greatest need.

As we have had outbreaks, we have prioritised those areas to save lives. In particular, we started with prioritising Victoria when there was a Victorian outbreak.

Every state and every territory receives a per capita allocation, and where there is ... an outbreak, as we did with Victoria, which we prioritised when they had an outbreak, we made sure that saving lives has been at the heart of what we are doing.

Hunt has continued, saying that the TGA has approved 450,000 of the doses secured from the UK, announced last week.

He said the first 500,000 that were secured from Singapore are currently being distributed, with a further 300,000 doses coming from the UK.

It means that over the course of the next week, the Australian government will inject a further 1.7m doses into support for states, territories, GPs and, ultimately, the Australian public.

This is on top of the existing doses which were already coming - 4.6m Pfizer as well as 1m a week available for AstraZeneca.

Updated

1.7m additional vaccines coming from Singapore

Health minister Greg Hunt has stepped up now, and has announced that the federal government has secured an additional 1.7m doses from Singapore.

Updated

So, we are still on standby for that press conference, and I will bring you the updates as soon as it starts, but earlier today, 400 ICU nurses in NSW signed an open letter to premier Gladys Berejiklian, saying the hospital system was “in crisis.”

The nurses used the letter to ask the premier to guarantee the standard ratio of one nurse to each patient in ICU:

Given the chronic unsafe staffing conditions, exacerbated by Covid-19, we cannot deliver the care you expect us to provide and the level of critical care our patients rightly deserve.

We are extremely concerned about our ability to provide safe nursing care under the current staffing levels afforded by the NSW government to ICUs around this state.

Never before has there been such a crucial time in NSW where ICUs should be properly staffed to avoid preventable patient outcomes.

We urge you and your government to urgently fix the ICU staffing crisis. It cannot wait.

Updated

We are on standby now to hear from federal health minister Greg Hunt.

Northern Territory chief minister Michael Gunner was on the radio this morning, saying he expected the hard border with NSW and Victoria to be maintained over Christmas.

Speaking to ABC Radio Darwin, Gunner said Territorians who travel to both those states would likely face quarantine upon their return.

He said he couldn’t see the outbreaks in NSW and Victoria “cooling down” before the end of the year:

I can’t see — certainly in New South Wales — I can’t see that clearing up before Christmas.

It’s more the method of quarantine and whether they’re hotspots or not. I can’t see that cooling before Christmas.

Gunner also signalled that vaccinated Territorians could enjoy more freedoms under any potential future lockdowns, describing future restrictions as “lockouts”, rather than lockdowns.

Updated

A senior foreign affairs official has signalled that Australia will remain firm amid ongoing tensions with China, as he warned against “lurching from one policy position to the other”.

Justin Hayhurst, who as a deputy secretary at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is a key source of advice to the government on the Indo-Pacific region, said Australia would be “steady” and “ready” for dialogue with China.

In a panel discussion today, Hayhurst said Australia’s trade with China in some sectors had been “severely interrupted” by measures that appeared to be politically driven, and it was “not an easy situation” to resolve. He told the ANU Crawford Leadership Forum:

“And slowly we have to work through these challenges and I think the government of Australia, as you’ve seen, isn’t going to lurch from one policy position to the other. We want to be steady, we want to be ready for conversations [with] no preconditions, and our companies are very competitive, very reliable and are willing to supply markets wherever they can find them.”

Hayhurst said the push for dialogue “will take some time – and when China’s ready, Australia will be ready”.

Michèle Flournoy, a senior Obama administration official who was a leading contender to be defence secretary under Joe Biden, said allies needed to “back each other up”, but she acknowledged some American exporters may have gained from Australia’s woes:

“I’m not sure that the White House can control Napa Valley exports of wines to China.”

Updated

Morrison was also asked about how he expected so-called vaccine passports to work under the national plan signed off by states and territories.

He said the plan made clear that domestic restrictions should be lifted for vaccinated people once rates reached more than 80%, and the use of QR codes and home quarantine would facilitate this.

“We’re not talking about willy nilly movement of people unvaccinated around the country,” Morrison said.

“We’re not talking about plane loads of Covid going from one state to the next that’s a nonsense, that’s not what is under contemplation, and I don’t think any premier thinks that’s the case.”

He said that while every state came from a different place, all states would end up allowing similar freedoms to allow vaccinated people to move around.

“Home quarantine needs to work, and the QR code readers that the states have, they need to work to be able to show whether someone has been vaccinated or not,” he said.

Morrison said he expected this to be the norm not only for travel, but for access to pubs and restaurants and special events.

Updated

That wraps up the state press conferences (so far?) but we have just heard that federal health minister Greg Hunt will be providing an update at 2:00pm.

First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria co-chair and Bangerang/Wiradjuri woman Geraldine Atkinson is speaking at the virtual handover of the Tyerri Yoo-rrook report to the Yoo-rrook Justice Commission.

She thanks her 31 Assembly members and the Aboriginal community for months of consultation through Covid lockdowns, and says what results from the commission must lead to meaningful change:

The Yoo-rrook enquiry should strengthen First Peoples’ rights to strength and justice by holding the state responsible for ongoing harm. This is an essential foundation on the path to self determination for Treaties in Victoria. For too long, the trauma of past policies have been covered up and denied. We heard the community should be able to tell their history and have it told in their own terms.

The process should allow for a full story in our own words ... to examine the range of injustices our diverse community have endured and survived ... the truth of our resilience, resistance, interconnection and courage that is our culture and collective story. My mother told me the stories about what happened to her at Cummeragunja mission, her life growing up, and the cruelty they experienced, but she also told us about the strength and resilience of her community for their rights to country.

That’s what motivates me in teaching my own grandchildren. Grounded in self determination, this process should look different to previous royal commissions we’ve seen in this country. What results must lead to meaningful change.

Updated

NSW Police mandate vaccine for all staff

NSW Police have announced they will make the vaccine mandatory for all police employees.

All NSW Police force members must have at least one dose by 30 September, and both doses by 30 November 2021.

They will also demand evidence of vaccination, to “guide deployment, welfare and safety management”.

In a statement, NSW Police said more than 17,000 police employees are already partially or fully vaccinated, and they want to work towards a “safe workplace for all”.

Corporate services deputy commissioner Karen Webb APM said the risk and consequences of transmission were just too high:

We know that the delta strain of this virus poses a significant risk to police officers and staff. Each day, we ask our officers to front up and perform their vital policing functions in this extremely challenging environment.

The only way to face that risk is by ensuring that Covid-19 vaccines are administered to all staff.

Updated

Barr says Morrison's Father's Day trip 'not a particularly good look'

The ACT chief minister, Andrew Barr, has been asked about the exemption granted to Morrison to come to Canberra after he went to Sydney over the father’s day weekend.

Barr told reporters in Canberra that he can “understand community frustration about what they perceive the prime minister has done” but noted people are free to leave the ACT.

Barr explained the reasons supplied by Morrison for an “essential work” exemption to come to Canberra were a national security meeting of cabinet and the women’s summit – and that ACT Health essentially had to “take it on trust from the commonwealth” that these were necessary.

Barr said the prime minister’s role is “unique” and the ACT needs a functioning system of exemptions for MPs it to be the seat of the federal government, but directed further questions to Morrison.

“I’m not the prime minister’s keeper,” Barr said, before eventually venturing a personal opinion that it was “not a particularly good look”.

The ACT chief health officer, Kerryn Coleman, refused to comment on Morrison’s specific case, but she said as a public health official it was not up to her to “judge the essentiality” of work, and ACT Health relies on advice from industry when granting exemptions.

Coleman said there was no evidence the trip and the restrictions that mean Morrison can only attend his workplace and residence (the Lodge) were unsafe.

Updated

The press conference in the ACT has wrapped up, but not before chief health officer Kerryn Coleman was asked about Scott Morrison’s trip to Sydney, this time asked why he was granted an exemption:

It’s not a health officer position to be assessing the essentiality of whether their business needs to be conducted in the ACT. That is why we have a conversation and put the onus on them to identify what is essential business. In many ways it is a trust relationship.

Updated

The prime minister was also asked about a report on 730 about the allocation of Pfizer doses that showed NSW had received greater than its per capita share.

Morrison claimed that the additional doses that had gone to NSW were largely from the extra doses that the commonwealth had secured from Poland, and claimed he had personally refused a request from the NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian to divert extra doses to the state.

Daniel Andrews was particularly unhappy with the suggestion NSW had received more Pfizer vaccinations, and called on the federal government to remedy the imbalance.

“The argument was being put forward that New South Wales should take doses from other states, well, I’ll tell you who said no to that, it was me. It wasn’t the states and territories,” Morrison said.

“I wasn’t going to have doses moved from other states to New South Wales, I went out and got more doses from Poland and that’s where the additional doses came from.”

Updated

Yorta Yorta and Dja Dja Wurrung man Trent Nelson is kicking off virtual proceedings as the First Nations’ Assembly of Victoria passes its inaugural Tyerri Yoo-rrook report to the Yoo-rrook Justice Commission.

With the statutory powers of a royal commission, the Yoo-rrook Justice Commission will investigate the injustices experienced by First Peoples since colonisation and run parallel to Victoria’s treaty process.

Nelson:

This is a new step towards our future, to right the wrongs of the past. For us as traditional owners as well as the wider community, we have to come together, we have to sit down, we have to yarn, we have to talk about the good times and the traumatic times because that’s the only way we’re going to move forward, for future generations. For us, in what we do, it’s about walking in the footsteps of our ancestors. Our ancestors spirit. That’s what brings us together, that’s what brings me here today. For us as a people, we have to start coming together. It’s the only way future generations are going to grow and build and understand who they are and where they come from, and be proud, and speak their language.

Updated

So, the ACT chief minister Andre Barr has waded into the discussion around the prime minister’s trip to Sydney for Father’s day.

The crux of his answer: the PM answers to the Australian people.

It’s a decision the prime minister has taken. Is it a cause of concern for many in the community? Well, clearly it is.

... I’m not the prime minister’s keeper. I don’t offer political advice to the prime minister very often, and he probably wouldn’t listen to me anyway. I think these are questions that are probably best posed to him.

Updated

Morrison is also asked about the likely strain on the NSW hospital system, saying that it is a necessary phase to go through to enable living with Covid.

This comes after the NSW government released modelling yesterday that showed Sydney’s intensive care units were expected to become overwhelmed by November.

The PM said that “of course” the health system would come under more pressure, but the state government was prepared for the demand.

“Of course it will, as it has all around the world, but this is part of our passage through to living with this virus, and that’s the challenge all states and territories will have, if we want to move forward and live with the virus,” Morrison said.

“This is one of the things we’re going to have to pass through.”

Scott Morrison says he got no special treatment for Father's Day trip

The prime minister, Scott Morrison, is speaking to Sky News.

First up, he is asked about his trip to Sydney where he spent Father’s Day.

Morrison denies he has been given special treatment, saying there was an exemption in place for federal MPs who were deemed essential workers.

”I live in Sydney, I often have to be here for work, there was no requirement to get an exemption to go to Sydney,” he said.

He said that the ACT had provided an exemption for him to be in Canberra, as was provided to all members of parliament.

“The suggestion that this somehow was an unusual arrangement for members of parliament and ministers just would not be true.”

He said his family had not been given any special treatment and remained in lockdown in Sydney, and rejected suggestions that he had tried to cover up the trip to Sydney in a social media post which included a photograph of him with his family from several months ago.

“You know, in politics, people like to take a lot of swings at you, and you get pretty used to that, but sometimes those jabs can be low blows.”

The prime minister also said criticism from Bill Shorten was “a cheap shot”, saying the former opposition leader was aware.

“Bill knows full well what these rules are, in fact, he took advantage of them,” Morrison said.

Scott Morrison
Scott Morrison says criticism from Bill Shorten is a ‘cheap shot’. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

Updated

Good afternoon everyone, and just a quick thanks to the incomparable Matilda for guiding us through another hectic morning. There is still much going on around the country, so let’s dive in.

Updated

With that, I shall leave you in the capable hands of Mostafa Rachwani, who will take you through the afternoon’s news.

See you all tomorrow, bright and early.

Canberra has recorded 19 new coronavirus cases with the Delta variant continuing to circulate in the nation’s capital.

Of the new infections, 13 have been linked to current exposure sites or contacts while six are under investigation, reports AAP.

Eleven of the people were in quarantine for the duration of their infectious period, six spent some time in the community and two remain under investigation.

The number of people in hospital fell to eight with one remaining in intensive care on a ventilator.

ACT chief minister Andrew Barr said he was pleased with an increase in testing with more than 3500 people coming forward to be checked in the past 24 hours.

There are 230 active cases in Canberra, where the outbreak has infected more than 400 people.

ACT chief minister Andrew Barr speaks to the media on Tuesday.
ACT chief minister Andrew Barr speaks to the media on Tuesday. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

Updated

Andrews:

The next comment [from the federal government] is, don’t worry, you will get yours later on.

Well, we can’t wait. This is a race.

This notion of it is all fine and will square up at the end, well, the longer it takes us to get to 70 and 80[%], the longer we will be locked down. I’m not very big on that. I’d prefer us to get to 70 and 80 really fast.

Updated

Andrews has called for the federal government to at least partially make up for other state’s shortfalls in vaccines by shuffling the allocation of the extra doses out of the new Pfizer shipments from the UK.

What you could do is, of the million doses from London that’s coming to our state, instead of doing 60/40, so 60% GPs and 40% to the state clinics, maybe we could have half of that.

That won’t change the total amount but it will get into people’s arms faster.

If you only got accredited last week or you are in the process of getting accredited that will take a little bit of time. We could maybe get those jabs into arms faster is all I am saying. That is not a square-up but just an allocation thing.

This is not what we wanted to see happen and it needs to stop.

Updated

Daniel Andrews has accused the federal government of backgrounding against Victoria’s vaccine rollout for not being up to par with NSW.

Andrews:

We have all this kind of chatter out of a number of federal ministers who it seems have nothing else to do but ring journalists and background about how Victoria is not vaccinating people fast enough.

I have struggled these past few weeks to try to work out why are our GPs so far behind New South Wales?

This needs to stop and there needs to be a square-up for the doses that have not come to us. Beyond that, I’m not interested in having a debate about it. These are the facts. No amount of talk will change them. They are the facts.

They were faithfully reported last night. They are not what we signed up for and it needs to be fixed, that is what we should focus on. Let’s stop this from happening and let’s make sure that the national plan in fact supports the nation, not one part of the nation.

We are talking about other decisions that have seen hundreds of thousands of doses go into Sydney at the expense of other parts of our nation. That means that it’s going to take us longer, despite our best efforts, they will get to their 70 and 80 first because they had more vaccine to do it.

Updated

OK back to Daniel Andrews slamming the federal government.

Reporter: “On the vaccine issue, I want to understand what you mean by the secret allocations? Is it your view now that you didn’t know how many more GPs were being brought online and how much more those allocations were.”

Andrews:

Absolutely. And General Frewen has confirmed this, so let’s not have any of this - I’m sure you’re all getting lots of texts and lots of phone calls with lots of figures from the commonwealth government, let’s not be fooled by any of that.

General Frewen has confirmed last night that what’s happened is, with all due respect to the general... he has confirmed that he had extra points of presence as they call them, and it wasn’t like, here is the national pool, you are going to have more points of presence but you have to share your share amongst a greater number of spots.

No, each and every one of the increased spots were fully allocated. Fully allocated. They received well more than a population share. And the Polish doses, do not get led down that alleyway, the Polish doses do not account for this.

Updated

Ahhh OK, back Victoria.

Victorian chief health officer prof Brett Sutton is hitting us with the facts (then we will get back to the political dog fight, I promise).

So 214 of today’s 246 cases are in only eight local government areas. 97 in Hume, where 48.2% of people have had their first dose of vaccine, 31 cases in Moreland where 54.7% of people have had their first dose, 23 cases in Whittlesea where that number is 49.8%, 17 cases in Wyndham at 58.5%, 15 paces in Hobson’s Bay at 61.4%, 13 cases in Darebin at 54%, 11 cases in Brimbank at 51.5% and 7 cases in Melton at 53.7% first dose.

So largely stable in the west of Melbourne in terms of case numbers. We have seen a really significant uptick in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. So it does tell you that the west of Melbourne did what we asked of them a couple of weeks ago.

These numbers reflect the change in behaviour, the isolation, quarantine testing and following the rules. That needs to continue.

The threat is still there in the west of Melbourne and the emergent risks in the north of Melbourne should not be forgotten. Those cases have almost doubled in just three days. These vaccination numbers also tell you that there’s a way to go.

Updated

Oooph! Scott Morrison seems to be copping it from all sides today. Here is federal Darwin MP Luke Gosling.

Updated

Andrews:

I want to be pretty plain-spoken on these things. I’m not about getting angry for its own sake, that achieves nothing, but these things need to be called out because that’s why we are pushing through 60% and we still have a way to go on 70 and 80. We would be further along if not for these things.

They can’t be changed but they have to stop and then there has to be additional allocations made to our state. Our state hubs are doing an amazing job. Those GPs that are accredited and have got supply they are doing a great job too. The only thing is there are a lot more of them accredited and fully supplied in Sydney at the expense of everybody else.

That is just not fair and I would not be doing my job if I didn’t call that out.

Berejiklian in a sprint and other leaders in 'egg and spoon' race: Andrews

Andrews:

I don’t begrudge any other state getting their fair share but that’s predicated on us getting our fair share and, you know, we are a nation and the national plan - which we helped to write and which we have been absolutely 100% faithful to and that won’t change - the national plan is predicated on us all moving together.

Some don’t like to see this as a race but a race it surely is. What I didn’t know was that premier Gladys Berejiklian’s in a sprint while the rest of us are supposed to do some sort of egg and spoon thing.

No, we want our fair share. These allocations, which are totally unfair and were under the table need to stop and we need to get a make-good. We need to get those doses we didn’t get fast-tracked to us. That is as constructive as I can be.

Victorian premier Daniel Andrews speaks to the media on Tuesday.
Victorian premier Daniel Andrews speaks to the media on Tuesday. Photograph: James Ross/AAP

Updated

Andrews continues, his tone becoming increasingly enraged:

There is something like 340,000 doses that have not come to Victoria that ought to have. It would mean we were closer to 70% or 80% or closer to ending these lockdowns. So you can see a sense of frustration and in others a sense of anger.

We are talking about otherwise secret arrangements that are just not right. They need to stop and there needs to be additional supplies provided to Victoria and other states who have missed out.

That’s as constructive and as clear as I can be. Getting angry about it won’t fix it. Only the commonwealth government can fix it and I would anticipate minister [Greg] Hunt who has quite a lot to say, quite often – quite often had a lot to say last year for instance – I would hope that he would sit and answer all your questions about how this has unfolded and how he is going to remedy it.

Updated

Victorian premier slams federal government's vaccine allocations to NSW

Andrews has now turned to reports that NSW received 45% of the Pfizer vaccines allocated to GPs last month.

Let’s just say, he is not happy.

Now, I want to make a couple of comments in relation to some reporting in relation to vaccines and Victoria’s fair share. I don’t do this with a sense of anger*, although Victorians would be excused for being quite angry. Only a change in policy from the commonwealth government will fix this for in the future.

I signed up to a national plan to vaccinate our nation, not a national plan to vaccinate Sydney. We’ve seen hundreds of thousands of vaccines that should have come going into Sydney, into GP practices and into New South Wales.

Now I have been very clear all along the way, some extra allocations – well, we don’t begrudge that, Sydney are in a very difficult set of circumstances but they were known, they were announced.

*Fact check, he for sure has a sense of anger.

Updated

'This is a race': Andrews says more than 11,000 vaccine appointments available

Andrews says there are more than 11,000 vaccination appointments currently free.

This is a race. And the sooner we get to 80% double dose the sooner we can be open and free doing the things that we love, seeing each other, participating in something approaching as normal as can be, the Victorian economy and indeed the Victorian community.

11,400 of those appointments are available right now.

None of the people we’ve talked about today that are in hospital, to whom of course we send our best wishes, none of those people have the two doses. And only a small number have the one. So this works. These vaccines are safe and they protect you against very, very serious illness.

Health staff observe people as they wait 15 minutes in the waiting area after receiving a Covid vaccination at the Melbourne Museum.
Health staff observe people as they wait 15 minutes in the waiting area after receiving a Covid vaccination at the Melbourne Museum. Photograph: Daniel Pockett/AAP

Updated

Andrews says Victoria is ahead of schedule when it comes to vaccinations, with 61.4% of the eligible population having received at least one jab.

Oh and also he has a subtle dig at the federal government while he is at it.

There were 32,300 vaccinations administered yesterday.

I would just make the point, when we first signed up to this, we were due to do 25% of the work. We’re doing 50% of the work and it’s a credit to the teams working at those 55 designated state run hubs.

We pushed through that important 60% first dose barrier as it were. And we’re well on our way to not just meeting our target of 1 million vaccinations over five weeks, but we’re ahead of schedule. It looks like we’ll meet the one million a bit earlier than we thought.

Updated

Victorian press conference: Daniel Andrews says 30 people in ICU

Victoria recorded 246 local Covid-19 cases overnight, with just 90 so far linked to known outbreaks.

Premier Daniel Andrews is giving the age breakdown of the state’s active cases now:

That takes us to a total of 1,786 cases, all but four of those are local.

[Of those], 273 are aged zero to nine, 284 are aged 10-19, 456 are aged in their 20s and 284 are aged in their 30s.

There’s 110 people in hospital, 30 of those are in ICU, 14 on a ventilator.

To give people a clear sense and hopefully remove any doubt this is everybody’s business, the age range of those ventilated patients is 17 years of age through to 76 years of age. And there are people in their 40s, 50s, and 60s in between.

So, anyone can fall ill to this. Anyone can become seriously ill to this virus.

Updated

Okay, that’s about it for the NSW press conference, over to Victoria where premier Daniel Andrews has just stepped up.

Berejiklian is asked if she is sure of her plan to eventually relax restrictions despite modelling showing the need for significant surge capacity in ICU beds in the coming weeks.

There’s no doubt there’s challenges ahead. But this is the strategy that we know will see New South Wales through this difficult period. This is part of the challenge of living with Covid and part of the challenge that every state has to go through.

We know that living with Covid is challenging for everybody around the world. But we have a very planned and safe approach. And we are confident that the people of New South Wales will welcome those freedoms they’ll experience once we get to those high rates of vaccination.

Updated

ACT records 19 new Covid-19 cases overnight

The Australian Capital Territory has recorded 19 new local Covid-19 cases overnight.

Eleven of those were in isolation for their entire infectious period, six spent at least some time in the community and two are still being investigated.

Updated

Now a sharp turn around to asking Gladys Berejiklian about singer Guy Sebastian!

The artist came under fire after publishing this video, apologising for inadvertently taking part in a pro-vaccination campaign.

Reporter:

Apparently, premier, this is a slightly old one, but Guy Sebastian came out ... saying people shouldn’t be told what to do when it comes to vaccinations. He obviously has an enormous number of fans. Does this message concern you?

Berejiklian:

Look, it’s a democracy and people have views. You heard Dr Chant and myself talk about the importance of getting vaccinated and we need to rely on the health experts at this time. We don’t want to see anyone end up in intensive care, anyone lose loved ones because people aren’t getting vaccinated.

Updated

OK, just fact-checking Berejiklian’s comment that she has never “never commented on matters relating to their investigation” and therefore implying that it is not unusual that she will not go as far as denying she is under investigation by Icac.

However, according to this article from the ABC, her office has previously stated the following:

The premier was not under investigation nor was she an adversely affected person for the purpose of the [ICAC] investigation.

Updated

Reporter:

You were previously willing to say that you weren’t under investigation by the Icac.

Berejiklian:

These are matters for the integrity agency. I have never commented on matters relating to their investigation. That’s for them to undertake.

Updated

OK, it’s time to talk about the premier’s past relationship with controversial MP Daryl Mcguire, who has come under investigation from Icac.

Here is the exchange.

Reporter:

The Icac is examining about potential corrupt allegations against Daryl Maguire.

The Icac has described the briefings as directly relevant. Why didn’t you declare a conflict of interest to your department?

Did you breach the Icac Act, and you previously said you’re not under investigation by the Icac, or an adversely affected perch by the investigation. Does that remain the case?

Berejiklian:

I’ll let the agency do its work.

Reporter:

Are you under investigation by the Icac, premier?

Berjiklian:

That’s a matter for the agency to do their important work. It would be inappropriate for anyone to comment publicly on that work.

Reporter:

You have previously commented you’re not under investigation by the Icac. Why do you no longer say that?

Berejiklian:

I have said this as a consistent response, it is not appropriate for anyone to comment on activity that the integrity agency is undertaking. I have nothing to add.

Updated

John Barilaro is back up and he is being asked about these much-hinted-at trials of the recovery roadmap.

Reporter: “Can we ask you about the trials of the road map trials – we’re expecting them at the start of October. Is that right? What are the [areas] you’re looking at? One LGA in Sydney and one LGA regionally?”

Barilaro:

No decisions have been made in relation to the roadmap.

If there’s going to be trials, where those trials are, what they may look like. The minister for customer service, whenever he looks at new technology and the new technology that sits in behind the QR codes for vaccination, we’ll need some level of trial. It could be external or internal.

Updated

Recipients of Pfizer jabs from Poland asked to wait eight weeks between doses

NSW chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant has confirmed recipients of the Pfizer vaccines from Poland have been asked to wait eight weeks for their second dose, rather than the regular three.

Reporter: “A lot of people who have the Pfizer, the Polish Pfizer, have been told they’ve got eight weeks to wait. Are we shifting [the timing of] second doses?”

Chant:

The use of the 530,000 doses to particularly lift up the vaccination coverage in the highly mobile 16- to 50-year-old age group in south-western Sydney was a deliberate strategy. It was shown to give us the greatest impact on transmission by getting a dose into people.

When we made those decisions about the interval that was because of the supply the commonwealth had procured in relation to vaccine. We knew that in the end of October that’s when we can get a vaccine into individuals.

We have a choice: hold supply, versus get 530,000 on the path to vaccination. And the modelling showed that was the better outcome for us.

As vaccine supply increases, then we will, you know, we’ll encourage people to get vaccinated earlier. Pending supply.

Updated

By the way, we are expecting to hear from Victorian health leaders at 11.45am today.

Chant mentioned before she was concerned that there was still a large number of over-70s who were unvaccinated. Now she is following up with where those vaccination levels are at:

It’s been improving. The ACT probably has the highest coverage of over-70s. We’ve got fairly high, I think it’s approximately a bit over 90% for first dose. But we’re still not at 90% for double doses, which is what I would like it to be at.

In terms of the over 50s, again, it’s above the average, it’s above 74% from my recollection, but that needs to be higher and we need to get the second doses.

Updated

Chant believes 90% vaccination is possible in NSW

Following that question, Dr Kerry Chant has been asked if she believes a 90% vaccination rate will actually be possible in NSW.

I actually think that we can. Maybe I’m being too optimistic, but I actually think we can.

And what I would like the community to do is to be with us. I would love to see us get over 80% by early next week and I think we can do it. And I like to see those numbers pushed up as high as we can. We’ve got access to incredibly effective vaccines.

Will we need boosters? Of course we will. Will there be new variants? Yes. But we’ve a great system for administering vaccines, for giving our boosters, and we generally are a community that embraces the opportunities afforded by vaccines in preventing infectious diseases.

A nurse administers a Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine at Qudos Bank Arena vaccination clinic in Sydney.
A nurse administers a Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine at Qudos Bank Arena vaccination clinic in Sydney. Photograph: Brendon Thorne/AAP

Updated

Here is the thing about Covid-19 vaccinations though – they don’t last forever, and Dr Kerry Chant has been asked if the “vaccine passport” system will have an inbuilt expiry. For example, saying people aren’t allowed to enter venues after 12 months unless they have had the booster shot.

Chant:

As I said before, we’re going to be in a cycle of being vaccinated for Covid into the future.

We have to work through the details. At the moment the majority of people have been vaccinated in a reasonably recent time.

Obviously, there will be recommendations and we’ll expect an ongoing level of vaccine coverage. But also as we get that coverage high, and I think I talked about my aspirational dreams of us being the most vaccinated country, we have generally the strong supporters of vaccine. We get about 95% coverage of our children in our vaccine coverage.

So really, the future is in our hands. If we have those incredibly high levels of coverage, in our population, and we have that engagement and easy access to booster doses, that will be a very better place for us to be in as we navigate Covid.

Updated

Reporter: “Will there be a situation [once the vaccination rate climbs] where you can go to the pub on the Northern Beaches because they haven’t had any cases, but western Sydney, which has some of the highest rates of first dose vaccinations in the state, will still face significant restrictions?”

Berejiklian:

Well, there’s a number of factors and as we’ve said our indication is that everyone who has 70% double vaccination enjoys the benefits of being fully vaccinated.

We’ll make that obviously clearer once we make the road map public. But we also need to take the health advice as well.

But our intention is that everyone who has 70% double vaccination moves forward and has much more freedom than what we do today.

Updated

Berejiklian is asked about the state’s recovery roadmap, specifically which date the 70% double vaccination freedoms will come into effect. She says:

I’m very keen to make sure as soon as we have done the work and health had the appropriate input we make our roadmap public. We are looking forward to hitting 70% double dose in October and I can’t stress enough now we’re encouraging people to not get left behind.

Those things that we’ll all miss are only available to those who are vaccinated. I don’t want to put a date on it. We’re still working on the detail. But it would be important to note that we’ve done a lot of work towards that already.

Gladys Berejiklian removes her mask as she arrives at Tuesday’s press conference.
Gladys Berejiklian removes her mask as she arrives at Tuesday’s press conference. Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP

Updated

The NSW premier is asked if she expects the number of daily Covid-19 deaths to rise or fall in the coming weeks.

Berejiklian doesn’t really answer:

The biggest protection against being in hospital and against dying is being vaccinated. The more protection our community has, the higher rates of vaccination, the lower the number of deaths.

Last year without the vaccine, when Victoria had their outbreak, they lost hundreds and hundreds of people. We haven’t seen that yet in New South Wales because of the vaccine. The vaccine is our greatest protection.

Updated

Deweerd:

Through my work at St Vincent’s I see what happens to people who get really sick with Covid, who come into our hospital.

I see the loneliness, I see the isolation, you are sick, and you can’t have your loved ones around you. I don’t want that, and I’m sure you don’t want that either.

There’s one particular Aboriginal patient we have looked after, whose case really stuck out for me. He was really unwell with Covid. And being in ICU on a ventilator for many weeks. With no family around him.

He’s on the mend now and doing OK now. But he’s scared and hopes he never gets the virus again and is now asking for a vaccine to prevent this ever happening to him again.

That’s why right now for all Aboriginal people across New South Wales, we need to listen to the premier and the health professionals, we need to protect each other, especially mob from this virus.

Updated

Deweerd:

All Aboriginal people aged from 12 years and over can access Covid-19 vaccine. You can talk to your GPs, the Aboriginal medical services, the Aboriginal health workers, or any vaccination centres across New South Wales about what is best to help protect you and all of us.

I have heard that some people are worried about the vaccine. Vaccines have always been part of our lives. We vaccinate our children as babies, before we send them to school to keep them safe from the diseases. We vaccinate them to prevent us from polio, rubella and other diseases.

If you’re unsure about vaccinations, ask the health workers as many questions as you need to before rolling up your sleeve and receiving the jab. Vaccinations are a choice. And getting one may save your life and keep the mob safe.

Updated

Aboriginal health director calls for Indigenous Australians to get vaccinated

Aunty Pauline Deweerd, the executive director of Aboriginal health for St Vincent’s Hospital, is at the press conference encouraging First Nations people to get vaccinated.

My message is to Aboriginal communities across New South Wales – please, please get vaccinated.

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been talking to mob in remote and regional communities across the state, and also here in Sydney, and the south coast. Many are willing to get vaccinated, or are already vaccinated. And some are still scared of the unknown and have not made up their mind to get the vaccination.

Family and connections are a huge part of our culture. Being with our mothers, our fathers, our grandparents, sister and brothers, and extended families, is important to us, and our identity and belonging. I know what is being asked of us to do is sometimes hard.

Updated

The NSW deputy premier John Barilaro gives the regional update:

Eighteen of those cases were in Dubbo. Three in Bourke. One in Orange, three in Narromine, one in Walgett. In the far west, four cases – two in Wilcannia and two in Broken Hill.

[There were] 14 cases in the Illawarra – 11 cases were in the Wollongong LGA and three in the Shellharbour local government area.

[In] southern New South Wales – these were the two cases that we mentioned yesterday, one in Batemans Bay and one in Cooma.

The Central Coast has seen a spike of 22 cases and we’re calling out on that community to be vigilant, to get tested, and make sure we continue to see vaccination rates go up. They’re slightly below the state average.

In the Hunter, seven new cases. Two in Port Stephens, two in Lake Macquarie and one in Maitland, the MidCoast local government area, and one in the Newcastle local government area.

As in the southern highlands, two cases – one in Mittagong and one in Exeter. A call out to everyone in the regions to remain vigilant.

Updated

The NSW chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant is giving the details of the eight Covid-19 deaths today.

This is one of the deadliest days in the NSW outbreak so far.

The death of a woman in her 70s was announced yesterday. She was not vaccinated. She had underlying health conditions.

There was a gentleman in his 90s from south-eastern Sydney died at St George hospital, he was not vaccinated and had underlying health conditions.

A man in his 50s from Nepean Blue Mountains, he was not vaccinated.

A gentleman in his 90s from south-western Sydney died at Campbelltown hospital and he was a resident of the Advantaged Care facility at Prestons Lodge and he had acquired his infection there. He was fully vaccinated. He had significant underlying conditions.

And there was a woman in her 70s from south-western Sydney died at Nepean hospital, and she was not vaccinated. Again, she had significant underlying health conditions.

A man in his 70s from south-western Sydney died at Liverpool hospital and he was also not vaccinated. He had significant underlying health conditions.

A man in his 80s from Western Sydney died at Westmead Hospital and he was not vaccinated. He also had underlying health conditions.

And a man in his 60s from Nepean Blue Mountains died at home and he had one dose of the Covid vaccine. He had underlying conditions and the coroner is looking at the circumstances around that death.

Updated

Berejiklian:

To 8pm last night we had 1,220 cases of community transmission and regrettably, eight people lost their lives. We extend our deepest condolences to them and their families.

We appreciate the best way to deal with the current outbreak is the high rates of vaccinations.

Updated

Berejiklian:

Pleasingly the New South Wales average for first doses is now over 74% and we encourage people to keep pushing for that. In some of our hotspot local government areas the first dose average is just amazing. Blacktown is over 85% first dose, Camden is over 82%, Parramatta is over 81%, Canterbury-Bankstown is over 76% and Dubbo is over 77%.

We’re really pleased with those results and we ask people to keep coming forward and of course our message is, don’t be left behind. Obviously when these local government areas are in the high 80s, and the state average is 74%, that means some areas are falling behind. We want to make sure we’ve got targeted strategies in those communities.

Don’t be left behind when we start opening up. When we open up at 70% double dose, it will be only for those who are vaccinated.

Updated

NSW records 1,220 local cases of Covid and eight deaths

The NSW premier is speaking now, confirming the state has recorded 1220 local Covid-19 cases overnight.

Eight people died with Covid-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night.

Updated

NSW premier Glady Berejiklian is about to step up for her daily Covid-19 press conference where we will learn the state’s daily case tally.

Updated

Speaking of, the SA premier Steven Marshall is speaking now.

He seems to have moved on from speaking about the infected truck driver and has been asked how he feels about the allocation of vaccines across the states and territories.

Marshall appears to be less concerned about this than his Queensland counterparts:

National cabinet’s plan is we will get equal doses pro rata based on population.

A change last month allowed for Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria to get their September increase brought forward to August but then there is an equalisation occurring in September.

We will all probably have it arrive, the double dose ... around the same time with the exception probably of New South Wales and maybe Victoria where they have had a much higher uptake of AstraZeneca because that increased their coverage and we haven’t had that in South Australia.

We have been basically with the AstraZeneca [for] 60 and over. We haven’t had a lot of younger people take up that opportunity even though we made that available – we haven’t had the same uptake seen in New South Wales.

Obviously a different situation in this state compared to the situation in NSW.

Updated

There is Covid-19 news coming out of South Australia – Seven News is reporting that a sixth infected truck driver has entered the state.

I’ll bring you more on that as soon as I can.

Updated

The First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria is today handing over its Tyerri Yoo-rrook report to the Yoo-rrook Justice Commission.

Tyerri Yoo-rrook - meaning seed of truth in Wemba Wemba/Wamba Wamba - comes off the back of eight months of Aboriginal communities engagement, with the input of 190 traditional owners from eight Victorian nation groups, 170 incarcerated First Nations people and 457 participants at community meetings.

The report’s findings will guide the truth-telling work of the commission, established in May with the statutory powers of a royal commission to investigate the injustices experienced by First Peoples since colonisation.

The truth and justice process was negotiated by the Assembly as a critical component in the path to treaty in the state.

Key themes listed in the report are a commitment to First Peoples’ rights to truth and justice, proper attention to local histories, a safe space for individuals and communities and real change through treaties and structural reform.

First Peoples’ Assembly co-chair and Bangerang and Wiradjuri Elder Geraldine Atkinson said it was a “powerful and symbolic” first step in handing over the truth-telling responsibility to the commission.

Atkinson:

The weight of our history is sitting on our shoulders, and we have an obligation to do this process justice. Each one of our communities has been carrying their heavy truths for too long and they deserve to be heard, acknowledged and for that to lead to systemic reforms.

Updated

Queensland leaders hit out at federal government over vaccine supplies

Just ducking back to that Queensland press conference for a second, and the state government is none too happy about the federal government’s suggestion on Monday that the sunshine state was somehow lagging behind when it comes to getting vaccines out of the box and into arms.

They don’t seem too delighted by the allocation of Pfizer doses to NSW either.

Deputy premier Steven Miles:

The nerve of Greg Hunt, to be out there criticising Queensland, calling us laggards, when he knows full well how many vaccines he’s taking from Queensland to give to NSW, and he knows full well that we are fully utilising our allocation.

If it was just because of the outbreak, then why would they be taking vaccines off Victoria as well, to send to NSW. All we’re asking for here is some honesty.

Queensland’s health minister Yvette D’Ath also urged the commonwealth to be more transparent about vaccine supply.

We are using everything that we’ve got ... Stop picking fights and stop criticising the two states that have been the most successful in managing this virus, and help us get our community vaccinated.

Queensland health minister Yvette D’Ath.
Queensland health minister Yvette D’Ath. Photograph: Jono Searle/AAP

Updated

More from Grace Tame ahead of her speech to the National Summit on Women’s Safety today.

Updated

A heads up to any ACT readers – below are the wait times for all the Covid testing centres in the territory this morning.

Updated

As always, we are expected to get the daily NSW numbers at 11am when premier Gladys Berejiklian stands up for her daily press conference.

The NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian.
The NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian. Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP

Updated

And here is the Queensland deputy leader Steven Miles’s take on Scott Morrison’s Father’s Day trip.

Updated

Here is controversial MP, former Liberal party member and anti-lockdown advocate Craig Kelly’s take on Scott Morrison’s Father’s Day trip to NSW.

Updated

The federal government wants nationally consistent rules for 23,000 boarding school students navigating coronavirus-induced border closures, reports Georgie Moore from AAP.

A draft plan to simplify arrangements for students, particularly those from remote Indigenous communities, will be referred to the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee.

It sets out principles for states and territories to consider when creating their respective border rules.

The plan has been spearheaded by regional education minister Bridget McKenzie following distressing accounts of students being separated from their families.

Stories have included a teenager left to suffer agonising mental health issues while their families were denied permission to travel across state borders to them...

I have heard of students who have, or are considering leaving school, even in years 10 or 12, because they feel they can no longer cope with the isolation and anxiety caused by being separated from their loved ones.

The Queensland premier is speaking today from the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, which is set to be transformed into a vaccination hub with the capacity to administer 1,500 doses a day.

Updated

Labor frontbencher Bill Shorten has blasted Scott Morrison’s “appalling judgment” for flying to Sydney for father’s day.

Shorten told Channel Nine’s Today Program:

I think Mr Morrison has exercised poor judgment in this case. I was a bit surprised when I read he had done this, it’s not that he doesn’t deserve to see his kids but so does every other Australian. I think when your people are doing it tough you’ve got to do it tough too. I know for lot of MPs when we leave Canberra we’ve got to spend two weeks locked down away from our families. I don’t know how he was able to get a permit when most people can’t ...

You can’t have one rule for Mr Morrison and another for everyone else. I think it is appalling judgment.

The prime minister and his office are yet to explain why he needed to be in Canberra. Morrison attended a meeting of the national security committee of the federal cabinet - but no explanation has been provided as to why this couldn’t be done securely from the commonwealth parliamentary offices in Sydney.

Bill Shorten.
Bill Shorten. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

Updated

Queensland records another Covid-free day

Queensland has recorded no Covid-19 cases overnight.

Updated

We are just standing by now to hear from the Queensland premier who will tell us the state’s daily Covid-19 numbers.

Victoria records 246 new local Covid-19 cases

Finally, the Victorian numbers are here!

Victoria recorded 246 local Covid-19 cases overnight. So far 90 are linked to known outbreaks.

Updated

Another except from Australian of the Year, Grace Tame’s, interview with ABC radio this morning, in which she was fairly critical of the government’s summit on women’s safety.

Tame is speaking at the summit today.

Updated

And here is the full run down of the Victorian liberal leadership spill this morning.

We also heard from the pilot that spotted AJ in the shrubland, Special Constable Kevin Drake.

We were probably 50m away from him, hovering, and he didn’t even seem to worry about us. You know, a helicopter sitting there. It’s a little bit noisy. But apparently he’s quite used to noise with the stuff on the farm, so he was just happy to be drinking water by the looks of it ...

I think he was pretty happy to see someone. I think one of the SES guys said he put a big smile on his face. But, yeah, it was a good outcome from our perspective.

We never lose hope till the search is called off, or someone’s found. You know, depending on what outcome it is, doesn’t matter. We’re there.

Updated

More from the press conference about little AJ.

NSW police spokesperson:

Any longer and we may not have found him. So we were able to pinpoint his coordinates, quickly communicate that to the SES searchers on the ground, who were only 100m [away] or so. They were able to get to the young fella very quickly. We were then able to depart and refuel.

So, yes, luck was on our side on this occasion! Was it literally pushing the limits of the aircraft to make sure he was safe.

Updated

You might remember yesterday the brilliant news that missing three-year-old AJ Elfalak, who was lost for four days in Hunter Valley region bushland, was found alive and well.

NSW police have just spoken about the rescue missing and the elation everyone on the search team felt when he was spotted via helicopter.

NSW police spokesperson:

It’s very dense [bushland], hence why the little fella was not found so quickly. He was only located within 200m of the house.

There is no doubt emergency services during that search passed closely by the little boy who may have even been sleeping at the time. There’s a lot of area there where he could have been hidden away from sight from the people searching on the ground.

Pol-Air has a unique perspective from above. It was unfortunate that we couldn’t find the boy earlier in the search, but our advantage from the air gives us a much better perspective than when you’re at ground level.

You can read all about the rescue below:

Updated

After three months stranded in New South Wales, Michael O’Keeffe was finally granted a medical exemption to return to Queensland for specialist surgery on life threatening skin cancers.

But his bureaucratic nightmare continues as health officials insist the Magnetic Island man does not drive across the border to enter hotel quarantine, citing the risk of him taking toilet breaks along the way.

“I told them, ‘I’m happy to piss on the side of the road if it will get me to see my cancer surgeon’,” O’Keeffe says.

The Queensland government says its border measures – the toughest since the onset of the pandemic – have prevented the sorts of Covid-19 outbreaks that have sent NSW and Victoria into lockdown.

You can read the full report below:

We don’t have the official Victorian numbers just yet but ABC is reporting that they are just under 250. This has not yet been independently confirmed by Guardian Australia.

I’M GETTING TENSE!

We will be hearing from the Queensland premier about the sunshine state’s Covid-19 situation at 10am, by the way.

Hmmm, no Victoria Covid-19 daily case numbers yet. Wonder if the Liberal leadership spill has distracted the state government this morning?

The head of Queensland’s peak GP body says Pfizer Covid-19 vaccines are not going unused in the GP rollout in the state, reports Marty Silk from AAP.

Queensland has the lowest vaccination coverage in the country with 53.33% of eligible people having had one dose and 34.75% fully vaccinated.

The chief health officer, Jeannette Young, on Monday urged people to get vaccinated, saying some doses were being unused by GPs.

So could people please come forward because GPs are not using the full amount that they’re been allocated by the commonwealth.

However, Royal Australian College of General Practitioners head Dr Bruce Willett says GPs have been using all doses of Pfizer provided.

He said the state government isn’t involved with the GP rollout, so it may be either misunderstanding data on usage rates it’s getting from the commonwealth.

“I’m not sure how that messages got through,” Willet told ABC Radio on Tuesday.

GP practices are independent businesses and we order a vaccine through the commonwealth rather than the state government, so my only thought is that there’s that story’s got a little bit lost in translation as the story’s come through from the commonwealth to the state.

But GPs are ... really using all of the vaccination they’ve gotten, and I’m certainly really looking forward to getting more.

He said there’s clearly been complacency and hesitation in Queensland due to the belief that Covid-19 would not break out in the state.

Vaccines preferencing, he said, was getting ridiculous, with stories that people were “waiting for Moderna” and even “the Chinese one”.

It’s a bit like being on a sinking ship and, you know, having a fight about which life raft or your which brand of third life jacket you’ll use.

He also lashed out at anti-vaxxers, who he said had been booking appointments at GPs but not turning up in a deliberate attempt to waste jabs.

Which I think is ... borderline criminal, and it’s actually taking the rights of other people who want to receive the vaccination, to make it less available for them,” Willet added.

Updated

If you wanted to learn more about Scott Morrison’s controversial trip from Canberra to Sydney and back for Father’s day, check out Paul Karp’s excellent article below:

By the way, we are standing by for the Victorian Covid-19 numbers to be released any minute now.

We have been talking about the Victorian leadership spill a lot, but for those not from the state, Guy’s (now infamous) 2018 campaign was marked with a fair bit of controversy, especially over the Liberal party’s focus on “Sudanese gangs” as part of their hardline law and order stance.

This is a story from back in 2018.

An internal Liberal party reveiw later concluded that the focus on the perceived “gang” problem in Melbourne was a misstep.

Liberal elder statesman Tony Nutt published these comments in his 2019 post-election autopsy:

The focus on ‘African gangs’ became a distraction for some key voters who saw it as a political tactic rather than an authentic problem to be solved by initiatives that would help make their neighbourhoods safer ...

Regrettably, the post-election market research study shortly after the campaign showed only 6% of the voters claimed that it actually influenced their vote and then not necessarily to our advantage.

Updated

New VIC Liberal leader makes his first speech

Here is more from Matthew Guy’s first speech back as the Victorian Liberal leader.

Firstly I want to say my thoughts immediately on this day are with all of those people on the front line working to manage our Covid response here in Victoria, people like my wife, and all those other people like myself who yesterday were homeschooling on all the kids homeschooling in our state and have done for a record period of time.

Although small business people who can’t open and I doing it very tough today, our thoughts are still with them, and with a lot of Victorians, who have mental health challenges for the period we have been through for more than 18 months, I think we have to think and continue to think how hard it is affecting those people.

I want to put on record how deeply respectful and appreciative I am of Michael and Cindy for the leadership of the parliamentary Liberal party for nearly three years ... that is the hardest job in politics, believe me when I say it. A very hard job and Michael and Cindy have led our party, my party through one of the most difficult periods in its history.

Matthew Guy.
Matthew Guy. Photograph: Alex Murray/AAP



Updated

New Victorian Liberal leader Mattew Guy is speaking now and unsurprisingly criticising the Andrew’s government’s Covid-19 lockdowns were at the top of the agenda.

Recently ousted Victorian Liberal party leader Michael O’Brien has just spoken after emerging from the party room, and seems ... well, in surprisingly good spirits.

If you don’t mind *laughing* I know that the media is used to trying to boss me around but today is my day! I get to decide what I say!

First of all, can I just congratulate Matthew Guy on his election as Liberal party leader.

Now is the time for all Liberals to get behind the Liberal leadership. I think that every Liberal leader deserves support and Matthew deserves it no less than anyone else. So it’s important for Liberals to now be united, to get behind the new leadership team of Matthew Guy and David Southwick, because we have got a job to do and a state to save.

At a personal level, first of all, can I thank the people of Victoria. In my nearly three years as opposition leader, I’ve had an opportunity to be in your living rooms, in your radios, in your newspapers. When I’ve spoken, you haven’t always necessarily liked what I’ve said. Maybe you’ve agreed and maybe you haven’t. But it’s been such a privilege to be able to have that conversation with Victorians because I love this state.

I love this state. I love the people in it. And to be able to do that for nearly three years, to walk into any shop in any town and have a chat and talk about the issues that matter to Victorians. It’s been so important and it’s been such a privilege. So thank you so much to the people of Victoria.

Michael O’Brien.
Michael O’Brien. Photograph: Luis Ascui/AAP

Updated

The New South Wales government has set a target of zero extinctions of native wildlife in the state’s national parks estate, the first time an Australian government has set the goal.

The environment minister, Matt Kean, said the target, which will apply to all parklands in NSW, was a response to the continued decline of threatened plants and animals and Australia’s status as the country with the highest rate of mammal extinctions.

“Globally, one million species face extinction over the coming decades and, as international biodiversity negotiations continue, everyone needs to aim high,” Kean said.

“Just as we have a net zero emissions target, we now also have a target of zero extinctions for our national parks, and are aiming to improve and stabilise the on-park trajectory of threatened species by 2030,” Kean said.

You can read the full report below:

Updated

And the Victorian Liberal’s deputy position is filled, with member for Caulfield, David Southwick, scoring the gig.

Updated

Now with the main leadership spill done and dusted in the Victorian Liberal party, attention has now turned to the deputy gig. There are a couple of possibilities, I’ll bring you all the updates as they come.

Also, interestingly it seems Michael O’Brien didn’t put up too much of a fight when it came time to vote.

Liberal spill successful: Matthew Guy back as Victorian opposition leader

Well, that didn’t take long! The vote is in, Michael O’Brien is ousted and Matthew Guy is back as the leader of the Victorian Liberal party.

Updated

Faced with soaring Covid case numbers, New South Wales Health has urged single people to stay in, watch Netflix and chill.

Under state regulations people in NSW are allowed to form “singles bubbles” with one other person, but authorities tweeted on Monday afternoon, reminding those on dating apps that leaving the house for a one-night stand was not counted under “compassionate grounds”.

Nor does it count as “exercise” or “click and collect home delivery” – though some did have questions about “caregiving” and the definition of “stranger”.

In choosing which suggestive fruit to use to communicate their intent, NSW Health’s social media team appeared to shy away from the raw clarity of the eggplant emoji – despite the universal symbol of male virility being the obvious choice.

You can read the full (and hilarious) report below:

Updated

Tame also criticised the summit for failing to invite former Liberal staffer and prominent survivor and advocate Brittany Higgins to take part.

I think it’s inexcusable and it’s very telling, because this would have been a great opportunity to extend an olive branch to Britney Higgins.

She went on to discuss her problems with the way the prime minister referenced and quoted disclosure from survivors in his keynote address.

I highly doubt that that is true that he actually responded to them personally.

I, as an advocate, are received disclosures every day – and it’s my sole job to be an advocate – and I don’t think it’s ethically, right, to actually be necessarily responding to all of those people.

You know, we employ a psychologist, to make sure that the responses to these people [are] right, because you’re dealing with people who are deeply traumatised and if you are not trauma-informed, and you’re, you know you’re, you’ve got somebody else’s story in your hands, that is a dangerous thing.

A spokesperson for the prime minister’s office told ABC that “all excerpts were carefully de-identified, while also preserving the impactful voices of the authors which are now shaping the national plan”.

Updated

Speaking of Australian of the Year Grace Tame, she has just told ABC radio that the summit needs to have more of a focus on protecting children from sexual assault and violence.

Education is our primary means of prevention ... we need to be injecting funds into teaching kids about consent about meaningful values about respectful relationships about things like coercive control and grooming, that really needs to be at the forefront of our conversation ...

I always remind people, nothing is more uncomfortable than the abuse itself, and silence only protects perpetrators. It only protects the predatory behaviour cries in silence in silence and in secrecy.

One conversation could save a kid’s life, you know, or several kids’ lives.

Australian of the Year Grace Tame.
Australian of the Year Grace Tame. Photograph: Rob Blakers/AAP

Updated

Oooft! Did you think the Victoria Liberal party drama was over for the week? You couldn’t be further from the truth.

In fact, the main players (former opposition leader and challenger Matthew Guy and embattled current leader and Michael O’Brien) are arriving now for the all-important vote.

Welcome to Tuesday

Good morning everyone and welcome to Tuesday. Matilda Boseley here to take you through the day’s news, and one of the biggest things to look out for is Australian of the Year, Grace Tame’s upcoming address to the National Summit on Women’s Safety.

This comes after the survivor and advocate accused prime minister Scott Morrison of using woman’s stories for political leverage.

In the summit’s keynote address, Morrison said he felt the anger of survivors and pledged to do more to tackle sexual violence. But given his federal Liberal party’s own controversies this year, the speech was met with significant criticism.

Tame was one of these voices, saying she felt the prime minister had “appropriated private disclosures from survivors to leverage his own image”.

“Gee, I bet it felt good to get that out,” she tweeted, echoing what she said were Morrison’s words to her following her award speech earlier this year.


The second and final day of the online summit will shine a spotlight on police and justice responses to sexual and gender violence along with a focus on safety and security for older women.

Now this isn’t the only criticism Morrison is copping today after it was revealed the prime minister travelled to Sydney over the Father’s Day weekend and returned to Canberra on Monday after receiving an exemption from ACT Health.

Since the whole “massive Covid-19 outbreak” situation in NSW started in June, the ACT has strongly advised residents against travelling into the state, usually requiring its returning residents to undergo a two-week quarantine period.

In a Father’s Day post on Sunday, Morrison made no mention of reuniting with his family, instead posting a photo he noted was taken earlier in the year.

I’ll bring you all the updates on that situation today.

With that, why don’t we jump into the day? There is certainly plenty to get through.

Updated

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