With that, we will be closing the blog.
For a recap of the day’s Covid news, you can read this report:
Have a great evening. We’ll be back tomorrow.
National cabinet announcements
Well that was a press conference and a half.
Here’s a brief summary of the key things Scott Morrison announced:
- Vaccinations will be mandatory for all residential aged-care workers across the country. As this can’t happen overnight, the requirement will only be enforced from mid-September, by which point workers will need to have had at least one dose of Covid vaccine. The commonwealth has signed off an $11m grant program for aged care providers, to cover leave required for workers to go and get vaccinated, as well as for any sick leave following the jab.
- Anyone under 40 who is not yet eligible for a Pfizer vaccine is now able to go to their GP and receive the AstraZeneca vaccine if their doctor gives medical approval. National cabinet agreed to implement a new no-fault indemnity scheme for GPs who administer Covid-19 vaccines, even to Australians who ask for a vaccine that is not in line with the Atagi preferred vaccine for their age group.
-
Post-quarantine tests will be mandatory for all returned travellers across all jurisdictions. They will have to take the test two-to-three days after leaving quarantine, as will their close contacts during those days.
- Travellers in quarantine facilities will be split up based on a risk assessment of their origin destination. This is partly to stop domestic travellers who have to enter hotel quarantine due to state border restrictions from being put in rooms in close proximity to returned international travellers, who they could catch Covid from.
- State and territory leaders have agreed to make it mandatory to vaccinate all quarantine workers, including transport workers. However this will be the responsibility of the states and territories, and as a result, will not have as clear a process for being completed like the mid-September mandate to vaccinate all aged-care workers.
- Scott Morrison has said it would be “unwise to surrender up” Australia’s “advantage” compared with other countries’ Covid situations, as he reaffirmed Australia’s suppression strategy over opening the country up.
Updated
Another decision out of national cabinet is an agreement to make it mandatory for all quarantine workers, including those working in transport, to be vaccinated. However, this will be the responsibility of the states and territories, not the commonwealth.
This announcement follows the case of a Sydney limousine driver transporting international air crews contracting Covid-19 while being unvaccinated, NSW police admitting this breached no public health orders.
Updated
Scott Morrison is asked if Australians will have to come to terms with the fact that we will live in a society where as we open up, there are going to be a small proportion of people that die from Covid.
The prime minister says:
Well, the objective here, ultimately, is to get to a situation where, particularly through vaccination, you are preventing serious illness and indeed fatality, from Covid-19, and so you’re in a position where largely you’re seeking to suppress it, in the same way you try and prevent people getting the flu each year.
But I want to stress we’re nowhere near that point at this stage, and even as the UK is finding with an 80% vaccinated population, they’re not there either, because they’ve got ... over 100 people dying every week. And so that’s not a situation that I’m prepared to countenance.
One of the reasons why Australia is in such a unique position compared to the rest of the world is Covid is riddled through all of those countries, their opportunity to ensure that the absolute calamitous impact of this virus and the new strains, doesn’t impact on them is much more limited than us here in Australia, because of the success we’ve had to date.
So it would be I think unwise to surrender up that advantage at this point, and preferably at no point. But that is a decision that will have to be made, you know, in the next year.”
Updated
Under-40s able to ask GPs for AstraZeneca vaccine
Scott Morrison has announced that national cabinet has agreed to implement a new no-fault indemnity scheme for GPs who administer Covid-19 vaccines.
The scheme will cover GPs who agree to give Australians under 60 the AstraZeneca vaccine if they ask for it (despite the Atagi advice preferencing the Pfizer vaccine for that age group).
Morrison said:
This relates to encouraging Australians to go and chat to their GP about their vaccination, and to have their vaccination administered. Now, the Atagi advice talks about a preference for AstraZeneca to be available, and made available to those as preferred for those over 60, but the advice does not preclude persons under 60 from getting the AstraZeneca vaccine.
And so if you wish to get the AstraZeneca vaccine, then we would encourage you to go and have that discussion with your GP, and we’ve already made announcements to support those additional consultations with the GPs so you can have that conversation.
And secondly, we are also providing the indemnity scheme for those general practitioners, so they can actively engage with you, and you can make the best decision for your health.”
Morrison was asked if this means that people under 40 can now go to their GP and get the AstraZeneca vaccine immediately. He said:
To get access to AstraZeneca, if they’re willing to take on that risk, if they wish to go and speak to their job or their doctor and have access to the AstraZeneca vaccine, they can do so.
So the answer is yes, they can go and do that.”
Updated
Low and high risk returnees to be separated
National cabinet has also agreed ensure that quarantine facilities split residents based on risk.
Scott Morrison gave the example that domestic travellers forced to hotel quarantine when arriving into another Australian jurisdiction, due to a domestic border restriction, should not be placed near international returnees.
Morrison said this initiative is about “ensuring that they (domestic, low risk travellers) are not in any proximity to those who are international returns, or, indeed, near any other high risk quarantine residents”.
Post-quarantine tests mandatory
Covid tests will now be mandatory for all returned travellers leaving their 14 days of hotel quarantine.
So called “day 16 testing” had already been encouraged in some jurisdictions, but the extra testing will now become mandatory.
The testing will take place 2-3 days after they’ve exited quarantine, and their close contacts during those days will also have to be tested.
The extra test will be in addition to numerous testing throughout quarantine.
Scott Morrison said that the mandatory testing applies across jurisdictions. For example if a returned traveller quarantined at Howard Springs in the Northern Territory, but flew to their home in Melbourne after 14 days of quarantine, they would be able to take their post-quarantine test in Melbourne.
The mandatory vaccination for aged care workers will be implemented alongside an $11m grant for aged care providers to pay for leave for aged care staff to get vaccinated.
This is both to pay for leave for the workers to go and get vaccinated, as well as for leave “where a person may be experienced some discomfort, following a vaccination”.
Updated
Vaccines mandated for aged care workers
Scott Morrison announces that the state and territory leaders have agreed to mandate vaccinations for all residential aged care workers.
It will mean workers will need at least one dose by mid-September this year.
Updated
Scott Morrison’s post-national cabinet press conference has begun.
Scott Morrison will hold a press conference at 7.45pm tonight, following tonight’s national cabinet meeting.
As we’ve previously mentioned, we’re expecting to hear that vaccinations for aged care staff will be made mandatory.
I’ll bring you the latest from that update once the PM appears (he’ll be speaking from the Lodge where he is still in quarantine).
Updated
NSW Health has announced new Covid-19 exposure sites and expanded hours for existing ones.
Close contact venues: Anyone who attended the following venues at the times listed is a close contact and must immediately get tested and isolate for 14 days, regardless of the result:
- Black and Gold Espresso in Rosebery on Friday 25 June between 10:30am-11:30am (this exposure site was added earlier today but the times of concern have been expanded).
Casual contact venues: Anyone who attended the following venues at the listed times is a casual contact and must immediately get tested and self-isolate until a negative result is received. Please continue to monitor for symptoms and immediately isolate and get tested if they develop:
- Westpac Marrickville on Monday 21 June between 2:30pm-4pm, on Tuesday 22 June between 2:30pm-4pm, and on Wednesday 23 June between 2:30pm-4pm.
- Bakers Delight at Pacific Square shopping centre in Maroubra on Wednesday 23 June between 3:30pm-3:40pm.
- Royale Poultry at Pacific Square shopping centre in Maroubra on Wednesday 23 June between 3:30pm-3:40pm.
- Harvey Norman at Westfield Bondi Junction on Friday 25 June between 11:20am-11:30am.
- JB Hi-Fi at Westfield Bondi Junction on Friday 25 June between 11:30am-11:40am.
- Shell Coles Express at Alexandria on Saturday 26 June between 10am-10:15am.
Anyone who attended the following stores at the listed times should monitor for symptoms and if they appear, isolate and get tested until a negative result is received:
- First Choice Liquor in Maroubra at any time on Saturday 26 June.
Updated
Vaccination of aged care workers expected to become mandatory
Vaccination of aged care workers is expected to be made mandatory under a move endorsed by the national cabinet, AAP reports.
State and territory leaders are meeting this evening and are expected to endorse the mandatory vaccination for aged care workers.
Despite aged care workers and residents being in the initial Phase 1a rollout, many are still not vaccinated.
The national cabinet is also set to back vaccination and testing of all quarantine workers, and making vaccines and testing available to their household contacts.
We’ll find out more when the prime minister holds a press conference a bit later this evening.
Updated
Not one of the 47 commuter car park sites promised by the Coalition at the 2019 election was selected by the infrastructure department, with projects worth $660m handpicked by the government on advice of its MPs and candidates.
That is the conclusion of a scathing Australian National Audit Office report released on Monday, which found that the department’s administration of the program was “not effective” and identification of projects “was not demonstrably merit-based”.
The infrastructure department has rejected the conclusions, arguing it was entitled to give funding to projects selected by the government and promised as election commitments.
The ANAO found that the department had been involved in drawing up an “indicative” list of projects in November 2018, but then the office of the urban infrastructure minister, Alan Tudge, asked it to add potential projects to its spreadsheet and a column for the government to set its relative priority.
Read more:
Updated
NSW Health has cancelled public health advice announced yesterday in relation to the T2 Domestic terminal food court at Sydney Airport on Thursday 24 June between 5am and 10am.
Further case interviews have determined the confirmed case of Covid-19 had not spent any time in the food court as initially reported.
NSW Health extends its gratitude to the hundreds of people across the country who immediately complied with requests to test and isolate as close or casual contacts. These requests no longer apply, and NSW Health is now re-contacting all those close contacts.
Public health advice in relation to a range of domestic air routes still applies.
Barnaby Joyce has been accused of fuelling country-city divides after he said regional residents “couldn’t really give a shit” about Melbourne’s pandemic challenges.
The deputy prime minister also faces calls to apologise for saying about the Melbourne CBD: “You can almost smell the burning flesh from here.”
The dumped Nationals minister Darren Chester, who is from regional Victoria, says Joyce, the newly installed leader of the party, should focus on uniting the nation rather than promoting outdated divisions between city and country communities.
Labor demanded that Joyce apologise for the “disgusting” comments, while urging Scott Morrison to “make clear that this is entirely unacceptable from a senior member of his government”.
Read more:
Lawyers for Liberal party MP Andrew Laming have sent legal letters to a slew of high-profile politicians and media figures ahead of a looming defamation battle against the ABC investigative journalist Louise Milligan.
On Sunday, lawyers acting on behalf of Laming lodged documents in the federal court alleging Milligan had “gravely injured” the embattled MP’s “character and reputation” in a series of tweets on 28 March relating to a photo he took of a woman bending over at a Brisbane landscaping business in 2019.
The claim, seen by the Guardian, alleges that Milligan “intended” for the “sensational, accusatory and spiteful” tweets to “irrevocably damage” Laming’s “personal and professional reputation”.
Read more:
Updated
Today’s vaccine numbers.
This daily infographic provides the total number of vaccine doses administered in Australia as of 27 June 2021. Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccine information here: https://t.co/TUKfzVuGVm pic.twitter.com/HfOnoSHSqC
— Australian Government Department of Health (@healthgovau) June 28, 2021
Updated
The latest outbreak of Covid may have impacted most of Australia, with restrictions in place across most jurisdictions, but the government has only paused mutual obligations for those receiving the jobseeker payment, for areas in official lockdown.
That means if you live in one of the locked-down NSW local government areas, you will continue to get paid, without having to fulfil your mutual obligation requirements.
Everywhere else though, there are no changes.
If you live in other Australian states and territories you must meet all of your mutual obligation requirements.
These requirements are in your Job Plan and may include one or more of the following:
- attending appointments with an employment services provider or us
- job searches, including looking for work and applying for jobs
- doing Work for the Dole
- other approved activities such as study, training, paid or voluntary work.
Life may not be normal, but the government is trying as hard as it can be to pretend it is.
Updated
Living in the Dandenongs, I realise just how useful it will be to know sign language for ‘startled naked by a deer’.
— Chief Health Officer, Victoria (@VictorianCHO) June 28, 2021
— Andreas 💉(1 AZ) 🍩🐀🇦🇺🇩🇪💙 (@AndreasKullman4) June 28, 2021
If these tweets make no sense, you’re in for a treat with this article.
'Major gaps' in federal government's disaster payments leave many struggling, Acoss says
The Australian Council of Social Service says “major gaps” in the federal government’s Covid disaster payments means “many are being left to struggle without enough support”.
From 4 July, people living in Greater Sydney who are unable to work during the lockdown will be able to access the payments of $325 or $500 a week.
However the payments are not available to people already receiving other income support or those who have lost work but still have some hours of employment.
In addition, the payments are only activated in the second week that an area has been declared a federal hotspot.
The Acoss chief executive, Cassandra Goldie said:
In the recent Victorian lockdown, we called on the federal government to put in place a plan to protect jobs and incomes during lockdowns that included disaster payments, like those paid to people affected by bushfires or floods.
While we welcomed that the federal government adopted our proposal to put in place disaster-type payments for lockdowns, there are major gaps in these payments and many are being left to struggle without enough support.
The Covid Disaster Payments are payments of $325 per week for people who lose less than 20 hours of paid work per week due to a lockdown or $500 for people who lose 20 or more hours.
They only apply after the first seven days of a lockdown and do not apply to people receiving social security payments like jobseeker or Youth Allowance even though one in three women and one in three men receiving jobseeker typically are also in paid work. People in this situation are on some of the lowest incomes and will suffer dramatic losses of income.
Goldie said the payments should apply for an “entire duration of lockdowns, not just after the first week”.
“In the event the duration of a lockdown is not known from the outset, people should be back paid for the first week of the lockdown,” she said.
People living in seven LGAs declared on 3 June 2021 – City of Sydney, Waverley, Randwick, Canada Bay, Inner West, Bayside, Woollahra – can access the disaster payments from 1 July 2021.
Updated
A man who approached New South Wales police commissioner Mick Fuller during today’s Covid update claiming he was “the prime creator of this Earth” has been fined $1,000 for leaving his home during the lockdown without a reasonable excuse.
OK I got the full thing, ABC cut away from it, but their live stream has the entire exchange including the cops yelling at the dude to piss off. pic.twitter.com/DLpvoVyEtY
— Maid Paladin 🎪🐉 (@tacticalmaid) June 28, 2021
NSW police have issued the following statement about the 42-year-old heckler:
A man will be issued $1000 Penalty Infringement Notice (PIN) following an incident during a press conference this morning.
About 11.45am (Monday 28 June 2021), the 42-year-old man, who is not a member of the media, attended a press conference on Sydney’s Lower North Shore.
The man interrupted proceedings asking the Commissioner if he had received his notice of ‘cease and desist’ before approaching him with paperwork.
While being removed from the immediate area, the man announced that he was the prime creator of this earth.
The Darlinghurst man was issued a move-on direction.
It has been determined he left his home without a reasonable excuse and therefore in breach of the Public Health Order.
Commissioner Mick Fuller said even the prime creator is not above the Public Health Orders.”
Fuller thanked his chief of staff, superintendent Rod Hart, the executive director of NSW Police public affairs branch, Grant Williams, as well as Seven News’ Rob Ovadia for intervening.
Poor @JoeABCNews frantically signalling to the producers to cut away from the guy who thinks he's Jesus. pic.twitter.com/54wiJOactu
— Carrick Ryan (@realCarrickRyan) June 28, 2021
Updated
NSW Health has announced new Covid-19 exposure sites.
Close contact venues: Anyone who attended the following venues at the times listed is a close contact and must immediately get tested and isolate for 14 days, regardless of the result:
- Domino’s Pizza in Merrylands on Monday 21 June between 6.20pm-6.50pm.
- Glenquarie hotel in Macquarie Fields on Tuesday 22 June between 5pm-11.30pm, on Wednesday 23 June between 5pm-11.30pm, and on Thursday 24 June between 5pm-11.30pm.
- Black and Gold Espresso in Rosebery on Friday 25 June between 10:50am-11:20am.
Casual contact venues: Anyone who attended the following venues at the listed times is a casual contact and must immediately get tested and self-isolate until a negative result is received. Please continue to monitor for symptoms and immediately isolate and get tested if they develop:
- Shell Coles Express in Pagewood on Wednesday 23 June between 11am-11.30am.
- Woolworths Glenquarie Town Centre in Macquarie Fields on Friday 25 June between midday-4.30pm
- Bunnings Eastgardens on Friday 25 June between 4pm-4.30pm
- Coles Express in Alexandria on Saturday 26 June between 9.45am-10.30am.
Updated
'Australia, brace yourself': dumped Nationals MP recounts 'incoherent' conversation with Barnaby Joyce
Nationals MP Darren Chester, who was stripped of his veterans’ affairs portfolio by Barnaby Joyce over the weekend, has opened up about the phone call he received from the newly-appointed Nationals leader telling him he would be dumped from cabinet.
Veterans affairs groups had called for Chester to remain on in the position ahead of a royal commission into veterans suicides getting under way, however Chester – who had supported ousted Nationals leader Michael McCormack over Joyce – did not survive the weekend’s reshuffle which also saw Bridget McKenzie re-enter cabinet.
Describing the phone call he received from the new deputy prime minister, Chester said:
I wouldn’t normally comment on private conversations, but I’m gonna say the conversation I had with Barnaby was so incoherent yesterday, I couldn’t actually explain what he was even saying to me. So people of Australia, brace yourself, there will be more conversations like that.
Now we didn’t have harsh words at all, it was just a matter-of-fact conversation. He was sacking me. I didn’t agree with him, and I got on with the walk I was having with my dog.”
Dumped Veterans’ Affairs Minister @DarrenChesterMP on the conversation he had with Nationals leader @Barnaby_Joyce yesterday 😳 pic.twitter.com/HQC7u9r1x7
— Andrew Greene (@AndrewBGreene) June 28, 2021
Updated
An interesting note from that Northern Territory Covid update just now.
Chief minister Michael Gunner apologised for not having an Auslan (sign language) interpreter appearing with him at the update.
Gunner explained that “sadly we don’t actually have an accredited Auslan interpreter in the Territory. I am sorry about that. We have been talking to deaf services and they will interpret this as quickly as possible and put the video out as soon as we can”.
Gunner thanked the ABC for providing an Auslan interpreter for today’s update. He was not onsite – he was interpreting from Brisbane, and appeared in a small box on the right hand side of the screen.
“I thank the ABC for that,” Gunner said.
Updated
The press conferences are coming thick and fast. There is a federal health department vaccine update happening in Canberra right now. I’ll bring you the latest from that shortly.
Updated
Territory Day, the celebration marking the Northern Territory’s independence from the Commonwealth, has been delayed due to Darwin’s Covid-19 outbreak.
Chief minister Michael Gunner said “Territory Day and its events including public and private fireworks will be delayed across the territory”.
We will not be celebrating Territory Day on 1 July but we will celebrate it soon, I promise you. It is not cancelled, it is delayed. Once we are through this we will name a new date and will have a great party ... I promise you.
Gunner also dodges a question about whether he blames Queensland for his territory’s outbreak, saying “for me, I want to deal with the situation we have rather than getting into the blame game”.
Updated
Northern Territory chief minister Michael Gunner is asked why Alice Springs has been spared from lockdown, given that miners from the Tanami gold mine also flew there.
Gunner says this is because every worker went straight into isolation. But he warned restrictions may have to be extended into Alice Springs if they learn there has been community exposure to Covid.
“Everybody (who) arrived in Alice Springs from the mine has been perfect, that is why it is not being locked down. That does not mean it cannot change in the future but so far so good for central Australia,” Gunner said.
Gunner also says leaders of the Larrakia Nation, the traditional owners of the Darwin area, have increased patrols in the city to help out First Nations people who may not have a fixed address. He said the patrols had provided 300 masks to people so far.
Updated
For the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, Michael Gunner says the Northern Territory has Covid-19 exposure sites.
Remember, before this current outbreak, the NT had never recorded a single community transmission of Covid.
The Buff Club in Darwin is a close contact exposure site. Anyone who visited the pub between 5:30pm and 8pm on Friday 25 June is now required isolate at their home for the next 14 days and get tested, as are their household contacts.
BWS in Parap is a casual contact exposure site. Anyone who visited on Friday 25 June between 4pm and 4:10pm is required to immediately isolate and get tested and stay isolated until they return a negative test.
Bunnings on Bagot Rd is also a casual contact exposure site. Anyone who visited on Saturday 26 June between 10am and 10:15am is required to immediately isolate and get tested until they return a negative test.
Darwin Airport is considered a low-risk exposure site, related to a positive case on Friday 25 June between 1:30pm and 3:35 pm. Anyone who was at the airport is only advised to monitor for symptoms and isolate and get tested if you develop symptoms. Normal lockdown rules apply to them.
Updated
New case in NT, lockdown extended
Northern Territory chief minister Michael Gunner has announced the lockdown in place for Darwin, Palmerston and Litchfield will be extended by 72 hours, until 1pm on Friday.
Gunner also announced a new case – a Darwin man in his 50s who is a close contact of an earlier case linked to the gold mine in the Tanami Desert.
The new case is a fly in, fly out worker who left the mine site on Friday 25 June.
He was transferred to the Howard Springs quarantine centre a day later, but was in the community for about 36 hours while infectious.
Gunner said:
I am really sorry about this. As I will explain, it is absolutely necessary to stop (this) ... The reality is we are not out of the woods yet. Not by a long way. The risk to the community has grown in the past 24 hours. We are now in an extremely critical period. We must stay in lockdown.
Updated
South Australian introduces restrictions
From midnight tonight, South Australia will bring in a number of restrictions as a pre-emptive strategy against the Delta variant, despite recording no cases of the strain.
The restrictions will last for at least one week, SA premier Steven Marshall said.
- Masks will become mandatory in high-risk health settings including residential aged care facilities, hospitals and personal care settings. (Masks will only be highly recommended for public transport).
- Private gatherings across SA will be capped at 150 people.
- A density range of one person per two square metres will be reintroduced, and there will be restrictions to reintroduce seated consumption (drinking) indoors, limits on buffet-style venues, and banning the use of communal facilities within shisha bars.
- Singing will be banned for the next week (excluding performers and educational facilities).
Marshall said:
The Delta variant is highly transmissible. We have the lowest level of restrictions in Australia, even after these restrictions are put in place, we still have the lowest level of restrictions in Australia. We have to be very vigilant at the moment.
We are pleading with the people of SA, if you have any symptoms whatsoever to immediately go and get tested. We are asking people to really abide by very strictly the use of QR codes, and what is happening now around the rest of Australia provides everyone with the motivation they need to go and have themselves vaccinated when they become eligible.”
Updated
Western Australia records one new Covid case
Western Australia’s premier Mark McGowan has announced one new case of Covid-19 in his state.
The new case, number 1023 for the state, is a 32-year-old woman, who attended the Mobius Health and Performance gym in Joondalup in Perth’s north.
Health authorities have ascertained that she contracted Covid after coming into “only minimal contact” with case number 1022 at the gym.
“Understandably, this is a concerning development,” McGowan said.
Updated
Here is the full story you’ve been waiting for:
New South Wales police have fined two men for breaching coronavirus restrictions after they were startled by a deer while sunbaking naked on a beach south of Sydney and ran into the bush, becoming lost and needing to be rescued.
Police sent a helicopter to search for the pair, who were fined $1,000 for breaching public health orders amid a coronavirus outbreak that has seen residents in greater Sydney locked down and banned from travelling outside their local area.
It is unclear how the deer startled the men, and what made them dash into the bush to escape it.
Authorities located a 30-year-old man naked and carrying a backpack on the walking track near Lady Wakehurst Drive in the Royal national park, about 40km south of Sydney’s city centre.
After a further search, they were also able to find a 49-year-old man, who was “partially clothed” according to a statement from NSW police.
Read more:
The Transport Workers Union is calling on the federal government to make domestic flight crews a priority Covid-19 vaccination group.
The call follows a Virgin Australia domestic crew members testing positive to Covid in recent days, after unknowingly working on several east coast flights while infectious.
Michael Kaine, TWU national secretary, wrote to Scott Morrison yesterday pleading for a national ramp-up of access to the vaccine for domestic cabin crew who should be included in the “highest priority category for vaccination”.
Domestic cabin crew must be urgently added to the vaccination priority list and provided with rapid access to the vaccine. Over the last four months, the inefficiency of the vaccination rollout, including the paucity of doses, has effectively pitted groups of critical workers to compete with each other for priority. This has resulted in the dangerous exclusion of frontline domestic flight crew.
As a consequence, there are now 70 aviation workers in emergency isolation at a cost to Virgin and hundreds of passengers and their families across multiple states potentially exposed to the Delta strain.
As the situation unfolds, we fear the exponential increase of cases because of lack of vaccine access by all essential workers, including those flying interstate in packed aircraft cabins throughout a pandemic.
Aviation workers and transport workers more broadly do an important job keeping Australians and businesses connected. They have become the unwitting subject of a political blame game which over the last week included an air transportation driver brutally scapegoated for the failed vaccination programme and unaddressed gaps in biosecurity.”
Updated
Thanks for taking us through the morning’s news Matilda.
You have Elias Visontay here, bringing you all the news over the next part of the day.
If you see anything you think I should be aware of, you can contact me via email at elias.visontay@theguardian.com or via Twitter at @EliasVisontay.
Let’s go!
With that, I shall leave you for the day. But never fear, the amazing Elias Visontay is here to take you through the afternoon.
See you all bright and early tomorrow morning!
Updated
For my South Australians out there, expect a press conference from the premier around 1pm your time (1.30pm for those of the east coast).
We will bring you all the updates here.
New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern has foreshadowed the return to state-by-state bubble arrangements after ordering a snap three-day border closure to Australia on the weekend, reports Ben McKay from AAP.
On Saturday night, a small number of ministers met and suspended quarantine-free travel with Australia, a move later attributed to fears around the case at a Northern Territory mine site.
Officials have since been manually checking arrivals to New Zealand against staff lists at the mine site to see whether fly-in fly-out workers have landed in Aotearoa.
On Monday afternoon, New Zealand time, the ministry of health announced two of around 900 workers had travelled to New Zealand.
Both are isolating. One has returned a negative test; the other’s result is expected on Tuesday.
The trans-Tasman bubble was created on April 21 when New Zealand removed its quarantine requirements to Australia.
Since then, it has suspended travel to NSW, Western Australia and Victoria temporarily in response to outbreaks.
Saturday’s suspension is the first whole-of-country shutdown, and runs contrary to its public plan on how it would manage the border.
While there is no prospect of re-opening to NSW as it contends with its major Bondi cluster, Ardern told TVNZ a reassessment would take place early this week.
As we assess ... you may see different guidance for different states.
The border to NSW will stay closed until 7 July at the earliest.
New Zealand is on a 120-day streak without community transmission but Wellington is currently on high alert for new cases after an infected Sydney man visited the capital.
The government have placed more than 2,000 residents into isolation after categorising them as close contacts.
Mass testing has failed to show up any local cases since.
Ardern told TV3 the man’s wife, who also travelled to NZ, had also tested positive on return, suggesting Wellington wasn’t yet out of the woods.
I will always maintain a very cautious approach all the way through.
Updated
Good news from the ACT – it has recorded no locally acquired cases overnight.
ACT COVID-19 update (28 June 2021)
— ACT Health (@ACTHealth) June 28, 2021
▪️ Cases today: 0
▪️ Active cases: 0
▪️ Total cases: 124
▪️ Recovered: 121
▪️ Lives lost: 3
▪️ Test results (past 24 hours): 1,147
▪️ Negative tests: 234,667
▪️ Total COVID-19 vaccinations: 80,889
ℹ️ https://t.co/YGW9pOHG3e pic.twitter.com/Axy2hvzWSl
Updated
SCHOOLS OUT: cleaners have arrived at Connolly primary school - one of the exposure sites visited by case 1022. Full list at Healthy WA website & in @7NewsPerth at 4 & 6pm #PerthNews pic.twitter.com/iAQZRGgKgh
— Cassidy Mosconi (@CassidyMosconi) June 28, 2021
One person linked to the Sandringham cluster has refused to get a test. They are in isolation, Covid commander Jeroen Weimar says. #springst
— Mitch Clarke (@96mitchclarke) June 28, 2021
Here is the footage of the man attempting to serve NSW police commissioner Mick Fuller a cease-and-desist notice mid-press conference, if you are interested.
OK I got the full thing, ABC cut away from it, but their live stream has the entire exchange including the cops yelling at the dude to piss off. pic.twitter.com/DLpvoVyEtY
— Maid Paladin 🎪🐉 (@tacticalmaid) June 28, 2021
And a shot of the lovely Joe O’Brien urgently gesturing for the ABC to cut away. (For the record, this tweet says the man believes himself to be Jesus, but his exact words were actually “prime creator of the earth”).
Poor @JoeABCNews frantically signalling to the producers to cut away from the guy who thinks he's Jesus. pic.twitter.com/54wiJOactu
— Carrick Ryan (@realCarrickRyan) June 28, 2021
Excellent beard, though.
Updated
It’s a tough time with most of the country in lockdown or copping new COVID rules, but the naked lost sunbathers and the unruly forest deer is exactly what this nation needed to truly bring us all together in a difficult week
— Josh Butler (@JoshButler) June 28, 2021
Weimar is now laying out the ongoing investigation into the NSW-related cases:
With regard to really three key lines of investigation at this point in time, the Sandringham workplace outbreak is proceeding well.
As I think I said yesterday, for the residents around the Oakleigh apartment building, all but one have confirmed negative test results. One individual we are still having discussions with, and we’re confident that they are not presenting a risk to the community.
We have 65 of 67 customers at the dry cleaner’s who have returned a negative test result; expecting a few more results over the next day or so. The people on the plane and associated with the journey, of 139, 85% have already returned a negative test result. This is proceeding exactly as we would expect...
In terms of the Virgin flight crew member who arrived in Melbourne late on Friday night and left again on Saturday morning, we now have 94 confirmed passengers on that plane. All of them have been contacted and we’re working through with them on their test results. Over a third of them are already returned back to interstate, so they’re no longer here in Victoria.
We’ll continue, of course, to support the remainder to complete their isolation and testing protocols. There’s a total of 152 Virgin staff who have been identified as primary close contacts – obviously, some on the plane, ground crew and other people in the Virgin crew bubbles.
Updated
Do you guys remember the Melbourne outbreaks? I’m from Melbourne and honestly, they already feel like ancient history.
Well, here is the update on them from testing commander Jeroen Weimar in any case!
Just a brief update on the wider outbreaks that we’re dealing with at this point in time. We currently have obviously no new positive community cases today, but there are still 17 active cases in our community.
With regard to the Kappa outbreak that we have been dealing with now for the last four weeks, there are only 15 remaining active cases, primarily associated with the South Bank complex, and 420 primary close contacts left. Day-13 testing over the weekend went extremely well. We expect to release a number of cases over the next few days from that investigation.
The Delta* outbreak again that we have been dealing with in West Melbourne for the last few weeks, there are now no active cases left. I’m delighted to say we have no active Delta cases from that outbreak left in our community. Still, 12 primary close contacts who I expect to release over the coming days.
*Note this is not the NSW outbreak, despite them both being Delta strain.
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Some utterly bizarre news out of the Australian Capital Territory.
Supermarkets are reportedly taking steps to stop panic-buying of toilet paper, again, despite the complete absence of Covid-19 in the ACT.
Canberra has not seen community transmission since way back in April and May last year, during the early days of the pandemic. Since then, cases have been extremely rare and detected largely in returned travellers.
Overnight, the ACT government took the precaution of mandating mask use in many indoor settings. That, combined with stricter travel requirements, appears to have spooked some residents.
Woolworths is reportedly reintroducing a limit of two toilet paper packs per customer in the ACT.
BREAKING: Woolworths has today reinstated a purchase limit of two toilet paper packs per customer in the ACT both in-store and online.
— Julian Abbott (@JulianBAbbott) June 28, 2021
Coles currently doesn't have any product limits in place in the ACT but are monitoring stock levels to ensure we can meet customer demand.
I said #Canberra, I said love, I said pet: chill out.
— Anna Vidot (@AnnaVidot) June 28, 2021
There is no city-wide lockdown in the ACT. And even if there was, supermarkets would remain open and you would be allowed to shop at them. https://t.co/4fSGuG1PKn
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Victoria is going to great lengths to lock down the northern border as the majority of NSW moves to red or orange level.
The Victorian police commissioner is detailing the operation now:
We activated Sentinel 8. That’s the standing border security operation that we’ve had since Saturday...
What that means is we have 260 police deployed in 75 police vehicles – that’s normal patrol cars but also highway patrol cars. We have a number of automatic number-plate-recognition vehicles that have been deployed up there as well, as well as booze buses.
So all of those are working together. They’re in six zones, spanning from the east to the west of the state, and they’re being controlled by local police commanders.
In addition to that, we’ll also be deploying helicopter support for those on the ground. So it’s a multifaceted operation. The decision to make this operation was one that we thought through based on what we’ve previously experienced. So this is a highly visible, mobile model. It’s a prevention, detection and enforcement model.
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The health minister is detailing the significant changes to Victoria’s border restrictions overnight.
From 8pm last night, Victoria designated the Greater Darwin local government areas as red zones.
From 1am this morning, Greater Brisbane and Perth and the Peel region in Western Australia became orange zones.
Greater Sydney and its surroundings remain red zones. And much of New South Wales and the ACT are orange zones – the only exception being those border LGAs along the river...
This is the first time that Victoria has had orange and red zones in most Australian states and territories. Nothing describes the seriousness that the nation is facing more than the extent of border restrictions and permit applications that Victoria has in place.
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Foley:
So, as no doubt you’re all well aware, we had zero cases overnight in Victoria when it came to community transmission. There were two positive cases amongst returned travellers in hotel quarantine.
So, of the 45 active cases that we now have in Victoria, 17 were locally acquired and 28 acquired from overseas. The previous few days were, really, some of the most significant since the beginning of the pandemic in January 2020.
Right across our nation, we’re now seeing the Delta variant of concern leave its mark in almost every major metropolitan setting in the country over an extremely short period of time.
While we are grateful that we have done as well as we have in tracking down the Delta outbreak associated with West Melbourne here, and as we hopefully mop that up, we know that those 15 cases of the Delta variant of concern, and the more than 1,500 primary close contacts associated with them, we know what this risk means, not just here but right across the country. And the risks are considerable.
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Are you kidding me! Another press conference!
OK, let’s get some updates on the Victorian Covid-19 situation from health minister Martin Foley.
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Bipartisan report recommends allowing election day to be moved in an emergency
The joint standing committee on electoral matters late last week delivered a report recommending a new law to allow the election date to be moved “where an emergency situation prevents voting occurring on the date fixed for polling”.
This would allow the governor general and/or the speaker of the House of Representatives to change the polling date after writs are issued, on the advice of the prime minister after consultation with the leader of the opposition. There is currently no provision allowing the election date to be moved.
In a bipartisan report, supported by the Coalition, Labor and the Greens, the committee also called for new powers for the electoral commissioner to respond to an emergency by:
- Extending the reasons electors can vote by post or pre-poll;
- Streamlining application and/or declaration requirements for postal and pre-poll voting; and
- Extending operating or polling hours (pre-poll only).
This is interesting because before the coronavirus pandemic there was a push – including from within the Coalition – to cut the pre-poll period short and do more to ensure voters have a legitimate reason for voting early.
The report called for a number of safeguards including that changes to voting only occur where other options are exhausted, limiting them to areas affected by the emergency, and to be time-limited.
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Well that was a wild press conference all round!
The key takeaways, though: there are 18 new cases, multiple schools have caught up in the cluster and there is growing frustration from the NSW government about the vaccine rollout.
Updated
OK, something very odd has just happened at the press conference. A man has just rushed towards the police commissioner asking:
Did you receive my notice of cease and desist?
He was quickly surrounded by security and ushered away, while loudly stating: “I am the private creator of this earth.”
Updated
Finally more deer talk! But not nearly enough.
Police commissioner Mick Fuller:
As the health minister said yesterday, it’s difficult to legislate against idiots.
But clearly putting people at risk by leaving home without a proper reason, and I think then not only on top of that but then getting lost in the national park and diverting important resources away from the health operation, I think they should be embarrassed.
But, again, they both received a $1,000 fine.
Updated
The premier has suggested restrictions on regional NSW will not lift just because they may go a week without a case:
Even though we haven’t had a case, the risk is there.
For example, as you saw, the case of a miner in the Northern Territory having the virus, that miner was exposed to, I understand, 900 other people who are spread across regions across Australia. So just because there isn’t a case there now doesn’t mean the threat is not there.
And we have had movements between states and between individuals prior to those restrictions coming into New South Wales or other states. So even though you might not have a case in your community, the restrictions are there to make that continue...
That is based on the health advice, and if Dr Chant and her experts say to us ‘It’s enough’, that’s great. But if she says to us ‘I want a bit more time’, that’s something we have to be open-minded about as well. But the best advice we get is the best advice we convey to the community, and that’s two weeks.
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A journalist has asked if NSW is still accepting international passengers while the capital city and surrounding regions are in lockdown.
Berejiklian:
We are doing that because it’s the right thing to do, it’s the compassionate thing to do. And I appreciate the risk that comes with that, which is why I’ve argued for a long time that, you know, given New South Wales is doing the heavy lifting there, that consideration should be given to those vaccines coming our way.
You know, obviously if we said to Australians ‘You can’t come back home’, then that’s really a decision for the federal government. But I support their decision in allowing Australians to come back home – I just wish every state would do its fair share. We’ve had other states because of their situation not being able to do their fair share. We will continue to do that.
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Berejiklian is urging the federal government to ramp up the GP wing of the vaccine distribution program ahead of the expected increase in vaccine supplies:
I would just like to make sure that we have measures in place to increase capacity for those extra doses. At the moment, we don’t have enough GPs signed up and that has to happen across the nation.
That has to happen across the nation because we can see the number of doses we have been promised in the next weeks and months, but to make sure those jabs get into arms I need to see more GPs across the nation be offered to sign up to the program...
What we need to do is the work now to make sure that when the supplies arrived and the work has been done, the capacity is there, and that is why I was happy to be criticised when we set up our mass vaccination clinic. Because I knew we would get supplies down the track.
And similarly, all levels of government need to do the work now to make sure when the supply arrives that we get them into arms as soon as possible.
Updated
Berejiklian is being grilled again over the lack of enforceable health rules for those interesting in international crews. (If you remember, it turns out police couldn’t charge the limo driver at the centre of this cluster with any offences because it was unclear if the guidelines were actually enforceable.)
Berejiklian:
We have said at the outset that every person in and around the quarantine system has to have the vaccine.
We fixed the health orders on midday Monday* to make it abundantly clear that if you are working in and around the quarantine system you must be vaccinated.
And in fact, I was the first, at the time, we called on the Commonwealth to let us do that, because obviously there was a strategy to prioritise aged care evidence, which I completely understand, but given we continue to welcome so many people back through Sydney, I was also keen to make sure that extended.
What we cannot assume is that 100% of people are doing the right being 100% of the time**. Please know the New South Wales government and New South Wales police force, our health experts, all of us have collectively put in place the strict guidelines, but it also requires everybody in the system to do the right thing. That is the challenge that we have.
*So not from the outset then
**Yeah, but enforceable guidelines with penalties for not complying sure could help.
Updated
NSW financial support package imminent
Berejiklian says she hopes to announce her state support package for business tomorrow or Wednesday.
She also commented on the hospitality voucher system:
I also insist in regards to the vouchers, we prefer people not to go pick up food but to have a contactless system. Everything we announced to support businesses and supporting people to support businesses will be around the Covid-safety plans. We need to make sure there is less contact.
Updated
DING DING DING!
It’s everyone’s favourite part of the press conference, where the NSW government slams their federal counterparts for the vaccine rollout.
Berejiklian:
As I say, the New South Wales government can’t control the supplies or doses we get. What we can control is a health advice making sure that everybody who is eligible comes forward to get the vaccine...
I remember being criticised when we set up our mass vaccination clinic, people said we don’t need it – but we have to plan for the future. We have to plan for the weeks and months ahead. I am frustrated that people are doing that on other levels.
We need a plan for the future and make sure the vaccine is accessible to our whole population. We have the doses available, we need to make sure enough GPs are signed up. I have been calling on this for weeks and weeks, if not months. Our GPs want to do more. They want more doses and they want more GPs to come online. That is necessary, that is not something the New South Wales government can control.
Updated
Chant:
So, in the past, for some of the early strains, we would see perhaps a household attack rate around 30%. And as I said, the minister’s indicated we’re seeing upward of almost 100% in the households*.
Now, not everyone transmits – and that’s one of the challenges with this virus. Not everyone is a super-spreader or a transmitter. And that’s why we also have to assess each venue, each location, and whether a person has transmitted to their household contacts, whether they’ve transmitted at the venue, to give us assessment about the broad risk in those areas.
*Not important, but how do you get upwards of 100%?
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OK I know we are talking about really important things here, but could a reporter please ask more about the deer chasing two naked men into the forest?!
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Chant has also issued a correction after previously incorrectly naming the Crossroads hotel in Casula as a hotspot rather than the Crossways hotel in Strathfield South:
Look, my apologies. This was really a miscommunication, and I’m in the process of writing to the Crossroads hotel.
I think everyone breathed a sigh of relief – and I’m sure they did. It was really around a communication issue where the wrong Crossroads was attributed. Given the speed with which we’re trying to get out to venues, I ask, you know, I sincerely apologise to the Crossroads hotel at Casula, and certainly we’ve corrected that as soon as we found out about that error.
Updated
Here are some key venues of concern in Sydney.
Chant:
There are thousands and thousands of close contacts. I suppose I also want to take the opportunity to really call out the venues where we know transmission occurred...
The Lyfe Cafe, Bondi beach, from Wednesday 16 June from 12.30 to 2.15pm. From Friday 18 June to Saturday 19 June, and from Tuesday 22 June to Thursday 24 June.
In terms of the Joe Bailey, we continue to see cases arising from that, from Tuesday 15 June to Wednesday 23 June.
Great Ocean Foods, we are still seeing some cases amongst staff, and obviously have put out a request for any deliveries – people that may have received deliveries from that Great Ocean Foods – from Monday 21 June to Friday 25 June.
And the Royal Bondi at 283 Bondi Road, Saturday 19 June from 5pm to 6.30. So, we have a large number of venues.
Updated
Current lines at the NSW Health Vaccination Centre @MatildaBoseley pic.twitter.com/OG84Cx1JhE
— carly earl (@carly_earl) June 28, 2021
NSW health minister Brad Hazzard has some interesting details about this super-spreading party event:
To emphasise just how important vaccinations are, I remind the community that we had a party that was reported at West Hoxton earlier in this outbreak.
I can report that, of the more than 30 people that were at that party, 24 of those people are now positive for Covid-19. And not one of those 24 people were vaccinated.
I could also advise that six health workers who attended that party, who were fully vaccinated, not one of those people has been infected with the Covid-19 virus.
I can also report that there was one aged care worker at the party, who had had the first dose, and that aged care worker was also not infected at the party.
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OK, this has to be the wildest Covid-19 fines story I’ve ever heard.
Police commissioner Mick Fuller:
Unbelievably, we saw two men sunbaking naked on a beach on the South Coast. They were startled by a deer, ran into the national forest, national park, and got lost. Not only did they require assistance from SES and police to rescue them, they also both received a ticket for $1,000.
Now, it’s only a small percentage of the New South Wales people that are not following the health guidelines, but I can assure you, if you breach the health orders or the guidelines, you will be punished.
I’m sorry, what? Can we please go back to that deer story?
Updated
Chant has detailed the schools now caught up in the Sydney outbreaks:
In terms of some of the new cases we wanted to mention, there were two additional South Coogee public school students that tested positive for Covid, bringing the total number of students with Covid to four students.
Because of those additional cases and because there are interactions between school groups in different year groups, all students are now close contacts and must get tested and self-isolate for 14 days regardless of a negative test.
There was also a child at the Emanuel school who was present while infectious and information is going out to ... that school community defining who is a close and casual contact. That communication is going out through the school, consistent with the advice of the public health unit.
Updated
It seems like the state may have been having problems with close contact behaviour as Chant has made a point to clarify exactly what “isolating” means.
Just for clarify, if you are a close contact you are required to isolate. And isolate means you do not come into contact with anyone else in your house. It means that where possible, you have a separate bathroom ... You are in a cocoon environment away from others. It is critical that you do so.
Updated
Chant has urged elderly people and pregnant woman to get tested, confirming there will be priority lines to ensure they are not put at risk by waiting in long lines.
We have seen a few cases of elderly people that have been infectious in the community and it has led us to wonder whether they are concerned about waiting in queues, all the time it may take.
We would like to reassure those elderly members, the frail members in the community, as well as pregnant women, that should you present, we are asking all-out services to have a prioritised queue or a way of bringing you to the front of it so you don’t have to wait.
We would ask you to reach out to your general practitioner by phone and he or she can give you advice about what the best testing option is for you.
Updated
Chant:
We do want at this time to protect our elderly. It is important that we don’t have visitors to hospitals and visitors to aged care facilities. Those steps were taken very early on. We routinely engage with the aged care staff and provide advice, but I want understanding at this time.
There are obviously exceptions to those where there may be end-of-life care or critical moments that it is important that you visit, but we would ask you at this time to minimise your attendance of those and only do so for those very special and extreme circumstances.
NSW chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant says 15 of the 18 cases are connected with the Bondi cluster.
Berejiklian:
While the numbers today are less than the numbers yesterday, we have to be prepared for the numbers to bounce around and we have to be prepared for the numbers to go up considerably because as observed, the transmission shown with this strain, we are seeing almost 100% of transmission within households and are very high rate of transmissibility.
NSW records 18 local Covid cases
Gladys Berejiklian has stepped up to deliver her daily covid update. She says 18 cases were recorded overnight, with come active in the community while infectious.
New South Wales reported 18 cases of community transmission.
Of those 18 cases, all but one has been confirmed as a link and the 18th case is in the vicinity of those other cases and get that link is yet to be established giving some of these cases are fairly recent.
I also want to stress that of those 18 cases, about a third of them, about six of them were in isolation for the entire time, a number of them were in isolation for part of the tide, but some, unfortunately, were active in the community.
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Andrews denies meeting with anyone the night before fall
So one of the enduring rumours about Andrews’ fall is that it occurred the morning after a wild night, possibly in the company of Victoria’s rich and powerful. Andrews has now addressed this, denying it directly.
He says:
I’d not seen anyone, it hadn’t been a late night, in the sense that I think you are inferring. It was just one of those things.
You can be incredibly unlucky.
The step was wet. As I said, I had a briefcase in one hand and an overnight bag in the other.
I’d taken a couple of steps on the port. Then I’ve gone to step down onto the first step of only two steps, I think – there’s maybe three [of] very short distance – and instead of my foot sort of being planted on that step, it simply slid off.
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A heads up, we will be hearing from the NSW leaders in about five minutes and should get an update on the state’s overnight numbers.
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Andrews says he hasn’t had daily input into decision-making for the state over the last couple of months. Some have suggested acting premier James Merlino wasn’t truly running the state, and instead was taking directions from Andrews behind the scenes, but the premier has attempted to throw cold water on this.
I have been in regular contact with the acting premier, obviously regular contact with my senior staff, a number of other senior colleagues. But you can’t back-seat-drive this thing. If you’re on leave and you’re getting well, then you’re on leave and you’re getting well, and you let James and the team get on with it. And that’s exactly what I’ve done...
It was on an as-needed basis. The question put to me: it was daily? No, it was not daily. Like, in the early stages, it would have been less than that, much less than that, because I was, you know, obviously very heavily medicated because I had literally broken my back.
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Andrews says his children were “taunted at school” over rumours about his injury, but he declined to answer a question over his communications.
Oh, look, you know, I don’t think any of us want to see this sort of American-style ‘make up your own facts, smear, be as vile and as hurtful as you possibly can be, say some just wicked and horrid things about people’, when there’s no basis whatsoever for any of that. And there’s no place for that in Victorian politics. And it isn’t just the person who’s on the pitch – you know, me or a minister or whoever it might be, the actual pollie – it’s family, it’s kids, for heaven’s sake. You know?
Reporter:
So, have you communicated...
Andrews:
I communicate with lots of people. But I don’t propose to be going through, particularly on something like this, and detailing all of those sorts of things.
What I will say is it is very, very hurtful when kids are being taunted at school. It is very hurtful when you see some of this stuff printed. And I’m not speaking for myself. I’m speaking on behalf of my family. Vile stories.
And for people to try and turn that into a political weapon, well, I reckon they’ll be judged harshly for that, and I reckon they should be. But that’s about the extent of the time I spend wasted thinking about people like that.
Updated
So what exactly is going on with Daniel Andrews’ back?
My spine is basically healed. For instance, the doctors say: ‘You can go and play golf, you can do all sorts of different things. You won’t reinjure that. You need to have another trauma - nothing you do will injure that.’
As far as the ribs go, though, they’re not healed. They take another three months or so. So, in terms of meds, I was very keen to take the time to get right, to fully heal...
I thought it was an opportunity not just to be fit and well but to be more fit, more well, stronger than I’ve ever been. That’s where I find myself now.
But there will still be rib pain for a period of time. I was very keen to be off all the significant meds as quickly as possible. I was. It was only a matter of weeks before I wasn’t taking those any more. I wanted to be clear and be focused. I’m on a couple of anti-inflammatory tablets a day.
I’ve got some pain relief if I need it. But I haven’t needed it. Let’s hope that continues.
Updated
I didn’t hear exactly who the reporter was referencing but Andrews has been asked about those who have been helping fan the flames of conspiracy theories about his accident.
And the premier has come out swinging:
You know, look, make no mistake, we have been upfront and clear. This stuff is just vile. As for those who tried to politically weaponise it, they’re irrelevant to the work I do, and I won’t waste my time or my breath on them. Particularly the individual that you mentioned...
People of this great state passed their judgement on that group of individuals a couple of years ago. They’ll get a chance to make their judgements now in another 18 months. I’ve got a lot to do.
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Reporters are asking questions about who was on the premier’s Sorrento holiday when the fall occurred, and who owned the rental home.
Andrews:
It was a family weekend. It was a family weekend. And I was there, Kath was there, Joseph and Grace were there. Noah was not. He was on and off, he was back and forth. So on the Tuesday morning he was not there. We had rented the place for a week. Kath was going to stay on with Joe and Grace on the Tuesday. I think I was probably gonna come back on the Tuesday night to pick them up, because they started school on the Wednesday. I wasn’t on leave after the Monday night or the Tuesday morning, if you like.
Kath works from home and she was going to work from there, because the minimum booking for the place was a week. As it turned out, we were there for a week, we were there for considerably less. We were in the Alfred Hospital instead...
I don’t know who owns it. It’s through a leased – one of those holiday rental things, which we’ve done on numerous occasions. I know no more, no less than that. But we paid for it with our own money, as we always do.
Updated
Andrews:
I’m not gonna apologise to you or anybody else for following medical advice and getting fit and well. Not to cut and run, but to get fit and well so I could be back here to do the work that I committed to every Victorian family that I would do.
There is a lot to get on with. And I hope my commitment to that task is obvious to you all and obvious to every single Victorian. I would be somewhere else, doing something else, perhaps, if I wasn’t as committed as I am.
And the Victorian premier has moved on quickly from his accident and launched into talking about the metro tunnel (his favourite topic).
But don’t worry reporters have come in fast with questions about the conspiracy theories surrounding his fall. (Which the Victorian Liberal party were happy to spur along).
Andrews:
Look, I don’t know that you can put an end to some of these vile stories. People who make up their own facts, you’re best not really to get into an argument with them. It’s very difficult to win those arguments.
People know me, they know my work, they know my background. They know that I love my family and I love my state. And I have spent four months doing rehab, not getting fit to get out, but getting fit and healthy to get back to work for the people of Victoria.
That’s what I’m doing, and that’s what I’ll do for as long as the people of Victoria want me to do that important work. In terms of some of this other stuff, you know, never get into an argument with a fool. That never works. And don’t get into a debate with people who make up their own facts - that doesn’t work either.
I think some of the communications we had yesterday, together with statements from Victoria Police, statements from Ambulance Victoria, and, you know, my character, who I am, what I’m about, what I’ve demonstrated to the people of this great state, the values I have, I would have thought that that put beyond any doubt what occurred.
A classic opening line from Dan!
Thank you very much. Everyone right to go?
Well, firstly, it’s great to be back after a lengthy absence, one that was required in terms of a very serious injury.
And I want to thank Cath and the kids, I want to thank all my medical team, I want to thank every Victorian who’s sent me cards and notes and best wishes. And I definitely want to thank - and most importantly, in many ways, I want to thank the deputy premier, James Merlino, who’s done an outstanding job.
To Meghan, his kids, they wouldn’t have been expecting that he would be doing this work. So, I’m very grateful to them. And all the colleagues, I’m particularly grateful to all of those Victorians who sent their best wishes and messages of support. It means the world to me, to Kath, the kids, to all of us.
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Daniel Andrews holds first press conference since fall
Would you look at that! Daniel Andrews is up now, and wearing high-vis and a hard hat, what a curveball!
Updated
With Covid once again impacting most of Australia (2020 never really ended) don’t expect anything from National Cabinet until a lot later in the day.
The virtual meeting won’t be until late afternoon - there’s a lot to get through today before then, and a lot of information to gather
Just so you know, we are still expecting to hear from Daniel Andrews at some point very soon. It seems he is just late stepping up to the plate.
Multiple schools involved in Bondi Covid outbreak
We are expecting to hear from NSW Health in about half an hour, but it’s worth noting for now that the state health department appears to be investigating a possible case of Covid-19 at Bellevue Hill public school.
The holiday and after school care program “The Hive” from nearby school Bondi Beach public school has put out an email to parents stating they will be closing temporality as a precaution while a case at Bellevue Hill is investigated.
More than 500 school children are also self-isolating in the eastern suburbs after two more students are understood to have tested positive to Covid-19 at South Coogee Public School.
The Department of Education told ABC they were close contacts of two other students who tested positive a few days earlier.
All 555 primary students are now considered to be close contacts and are required to isolate for two weeks.
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Australian charities fear a looming crackdown on the sector could silence their advocacy work, despite the Morrison government watering down several elements of its initial plans.
Labor accused the Coalition of seeking to “shut down dissenting voices” after the government introduced new regulations to expand the types of offences for which charities could be deregistered.
The government said the new regulations, announced on Friday after months of controversy over the proposed changes, would reinforce trust and confidence in the sector.
They would empower the regulator to investigate charities engaging in or promoting serious unlawful acts of trespass, vandalism, theft or assault and threatening behaviour.
You can read the full report below:
In a bid to turbo-charge the slow pace of the Covid-19 vaccine rollout, unions are calling on the NSW and commonwealth governments to provide a minimum half day of paid leave for workers to get the jab, reports AAP.
Unions NSW secretary Mark Morey said NSW government was the nation’s largest employer and premier Gladys Berejiklian could lead the way by introducing “vax leave” for all public servants.
He says the premier should make the case for vaccination leave at national cabinet and push to have it funded for all casual and contract workers, as well as making it a right for all permanent employees.
Every barrier and impediment to vaccination must be removed as soon as possible...
There are many things slowing the vaccine rollout, but one element is the cost of missing work, especially for people who are insecurely employed and on modest incomes.
Why are we creating more barriers to vaccination? Ms Berejiklian could instruct all department heads to provide a half day of paid “vax leave” to the one-in-10 NSW workers who are public servants...
The current Sydney outbreak stems back to an unvaccinated Bondi limousine airport driver. Rather than blaming these workers, perhaps it’s time to make it easier and more attractive to get vaccinated.
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Morning everyone – Scott Morrison has called another “emergency” national cabinet meeting for today (war footing is very yesterday) and the agenda is all about “what do we do about Delta”.
The state and territory leaders will get a briefing from commonwealth CMO Prof Paul Kelly and Lt General JJ Frewen on both the variant and our vaccine stocks (which are lower than we need) and rollout (which is slower than we need).
Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has already said she wants to cut the number of international travellers, which will no doubt come up when the discussion turns to ‘banning the practice of quarantining low-risk domestic travellers next door to high-risk international travellers’
That’s what happened in Queensland quarantine which is what has led to the most concerning situation for the Northern Territory since the beginning of the pandemic.
But it’s not just Queensland with questions to answer. National cabinet will also be discussing the “testing and vaccinating those, directly and indirectly, working in the quarantine system”, which is what has led to this entire outbreak – and that is where NSW comes into the equation. There’s confusion over whether the drivers of international flight crews to their quarantine hotels needed to be masked and vaccinated. They don’t seem to be covered in the NSW public health orders – and, well, we’ve seen what’s happened.
Also – the national cabinet hasn’t decided whether aged care workers should be made to have vaccinations. Also, Dan Andrews is back.
All in all, it’s not going to be the most comfortable of virtual gatherings.
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Just a reminder, we are expecting to hear from Victorian premier Daniel Andrews (for the first time since fracturing his spine in March) in about 30 minutes
Today’s national cabinet agenda. (The aged care agenda item relates to workforce) #auspol pic.twitter.com/n1WIXTvt0A
— Katharine Murphy (@murpharoo) June 27, 2021
WA records no new Covid cases overnight
No new Covid-19 cases in Western Australia overnight, according to the premier while speaking on local radio station 6PR.
NOW | Premier Mark McGowan just confirmed there has been no new cases of COVID-19 in WA overnight on 6PR breakfast with Oliver Peterson.
— News Talk 6PR 882 (@6PR) June 27, 2021
Listen live at 👇 https://t.co/rqJ7OqNESo
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BREAKING: New restrictions from 1am Tuesday 29 June for local government areas of Brisbane, Ipswich, Logan City, Moreton Bay, Redlands, Sunshine Coast, Noosa, Somerset, Lockyer Valley, Scenic Rim and Gold Coast. These measures are about keeping Queenslanders safe. #covid19 pic.twitter.com/48ajt5DYx4
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) June 27, 2021
OK, the morning’s calendar is really filling up! We will hear from the NSW premier at 11am.
NSW Premier @GladysB will give a COVID update at 1100 pic.twitter.com/yf0HtJwD0K
— Jamie Travers (@JamieTravers) June 27, 2021
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Queensland deputy premier Steven Miles has criticised the federal government for allowing “thousands” of non-Australians to enter the country through hotel quarantine each week, using this fact to justify the state’s move to slash the number of arrivals the state accepts.
Our international borders are supposed to be closed right now and yet somehow the number of people waiting to come to Australia from around the world hasn’t really gone down since Christmas, despite thousands of arrivals each and every week. And I think the federal government needs to be stricter with the exemptions they’re providing to people to come here.
Hotel quarantine of international travellers is our single greatest – far and away our single greatest – source of Covid into our country and into our communities.
We understand that only around half of those returning to Australia from international locations are Australian permanent residents or citizens and while clearly there would be some justification for some exemptions, whether that should be thousands per week putting our community at risk is a concern.
Until the commonwealth government can address those concerns, and certainly while we deal with this delicate situation, as the premier has indicated, we will seek to reduce the number of arrivals into Queensland.
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Young has gone into specifics about the new restrictions coming into effect across 11 Queensland local government areas from 1am tomorrow morning.
She has clarified that masks much be worn in all public outdoor settings:
Everyone is getting really good at wearing masks. Please put them back on...
We’re going back to one per four square metres, except for smaller venues. They can have that slightly increased number. So we’ve all done that before. We know how to do that. We now have the check-in QR code which is so invaluable...
We are not going to change that capacity allowed for ticketed and seated events because I know how well people have been managing their CovidSafe plan. So 100% capacity where it’s ticketed and seated. Otherwise, it’s one per four square metres if people are standing and mingling, because of that risk.
Also, there will only be 30 people allowed at people’s homes, including children, including visitors, including residents in their home, just to reduce that amount of mingling.
At weddings, up to 20 people can dance at any point in time. That allows the wedding party to dance. Otherwise, no dancing, because at other venues and so forth people are seated where they’re eating and drinking.
Please, everyone, put your masks back on. You don’t need to wear them if you’re in the car by yourself or only with your household members. You don’t need to wear them outdoors if you’re only with household members. Otherwise, it’s important you wear them. Of course, you don’t need to wear them when you’re seated, eating and drinking, but when you get up, please put them on.
We know that masks make a difference and if we can do all of that work, then, hopefully, we won’t have to go into even further restrictions.
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Returned miner tests positive to Covid in Queensland
Queensland chief health officer Jeannette Young says one of today’s positive cases, a fly-in fly-out miner from the hotspot coal mine in central Australia, visited a number of service stations when potentially infectious.
We have three new cases in Queensland overnight, one of them in hotel quarantine, acquired overseas.
One of them relates the to the Portuguese restaurant and they were in quarantine so they’re not a concern.
And then the third one is one of those 170 fly-in fly-out miners based here in Queensland. So we are rapidly testing all 170.
So far this particular individual, who immediately responded when we texted her, contacted her, that she was one of the 170, got tested and we found she was positive. So thank goodness for her rapid response.
She was only out in the community for one day. She was with her family and they started a road trip but immediately came back.
There are a few service stations and cafes on that route. So that’s all on our website and we’ll put that out in a press release so people can see exactly where those risk places are. But, essentially, we don’t know where this virus might next pop up.
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Palaszczuk has made out her agenda for national cabinet today and it looks like she will working hard to make the federal government commit to ending hotel quarantine:
I know this is not idea for everyone but we’ve got to act quickly. National cabinet is meeting later on this afternoon and I think there’s a whole number of issues we need to raise.
I think our caps need to be lowered. I think we need a good conversation about quarantine facilities that are not hotels. We have seen leaks out of hotels in a large number of states.
It is not unique to Queensland. This has happened in Victoria. It’s happened in New South Wales, it’s happened in South Australia and Western Australia. The vaccine rollout is imperative. This is the best thing we can do to fight this virus, to get vaccinated, to get people out of quarantine into regional facilities.
I welcome the offer for one at the Brisbane airport. But we need one at the Brisbane airport and we need Wellcamp. We need to get people out of these hotels.
We need to get the Australian population, all of Queenslanders, vaccinated.
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Masks made mandatory across Queensland hotspots
A raft of new Covid-19 restrictions are coming into effect across affected areas of Queensland.
Palaszczuk:
Officially it’s going to come in at 1am tomorrow, 29 June, but I really want Queenslanders to start wearing these masks again, especially in the south-east region. I want you to start doing it now...
So the following LGA areas where you’ll be required to wear masks are: Noosa, Sunshine Coast, Ipswich, Logan, Redlands, Morton, Brisbane, Gold Coast, the Scenic Rim, the Lockyer Valley and Somerset.
We’re going back to the one per four-square-metre rule. Unfortunately, no dancing, very small numbers at weddings – around 20.
You have to be seated to eat and drink and remember you’ve got to wear your mask in there...
If you’re going into a cafe, restaurant or shopping centre, you must use that check-in app. That is another critical line of defence for us.
And then, of course, we are now lowering the number of people to your home so that will be 30 people allowed to your home.
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Queensland records two Covid cases
Annastasia Palaszcuck is speaking now. She says there have been three cases overnight – two locally acquired.
So there’s a case that’s linked to the Portuguese restaurant and that person is in home quarantine, so we’re not concerned about that. But has was reported yesterday, there is a female miner from the Sunshine Coast and it is confirmed as positive with the Delta strain...
I’ll be announcing some restrictions in a moment because we’ve got to act quickly and we’ve got to act fast.
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Locked down Sydneysiders and stricken businesses should be rewarded with an extra $25 voucher from the NSW government, the NSW opposition says.
Labor leader Chris Minns is calling for the popular Dine and Discover voucher program to be expanded, reports Hannah Ryan from AAP.
A new voucher should be issued to everyone in Greater Sydney, to support local jobs and small businesses cope with the stay-at-home orders, he said.
Minns said this morning:
This would be a much needed boost for local businesses who have just seen their entire cash flow put at risk overnight...
Our plan also gives people the opportunity to enjoy a meal, support a local business and make staying at home and following the health orders just that little bit more bearable.
NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian promised help for workers and businesses when she announced the lockdown on Saturday, saying:
Nobody should feel stressed or pressured to break any of the rules because of their financial situation.
A spokesman for NSW treasurer Dominic Perrottet said on Monday that the government was still working on a package.
It is the city’s first lockdown without the jobkeeper support package.
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We are just standing by now for the Queensland press conference. I’ll bring you all the updates as soon as Annastacia Palaszczuk stands up.
Australia’s population is forecast to grow slower and age faster than anticipated and the government will be forced to use deficit spending to pay for services for the next 40 years, the latest intergenerational report has found.
The brainchild of former treasurer Peter Costello, the intergenerational report, also known as the IGR, maps out what Australia will look like in four decades’ time, barring any major upheavals or sudden policy switches, and is released every five years.
In Josh Frydenberg’s IGR, due to be officially released in Melbourne on Monday, the Australia of 2060-61 is already looking different from what might have been, with the Covid pandemic blamed for a downshift in population expectations and economic growth.
You can read the full report below:
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Oooh, and we now have time for Victorian premier Daniel Andrews’ first presser after his long-awaited return.
According to a tweet reply from his partner Catherine Andrews, we will be hearing from the premier at 10.15am, Melbourne time.
10.15.
— Catherine Andrews (@CathLAndrews) June 27, 2021
The new deputy prime minister, Barnaby Joyce, is still claiming he was blindsided by a National party leadership spill last Monday, telling breakfast TV there were “obviously” discussions going on behind the scenes but he did not know something was going to happen until he was in the party room meeting.
In all seriousness, you don’t know until you’re in the room and see things happening in front of you and find out what people will do behind you, whether they call a spill or not.
There’s always discussions, but you don’t have discussions on televisions, you have discussions with your colleagues. The thought that we knew something that would happen ... [it was] other people’s decisions. I was never going to call a spill... it was up to them.
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We won’t have to wait too long for an update from Queensland. The premier is set to stand up at 9am (Brisbane time) this morning.
Queensland premier, deputy premier and chief health officer are standing up at 9am today to talk about COVID-19.
— @MartySilk (@MartySilkHack) June 27, 2021
Speaking of cabinet reshuffles, the biggest loser from Joyce’s new administration was Darren Chester.
The McCormack supporter got dumped from the role of veterans’ minister.
Chester spoke with the ABC this morning and clearly is not happy about the whole affair, saying:
First of all, can I just offer a pretty simple apology to regional Australians for the way my party conducted itself last week, in the middle of a global pandemic, as we’re recovering from bushfires, from drought, from storms. We spent the whole week talking about ourselves again.
But in terms of Barnaby’s explanation, he did a press conference yesterday and said I was a competent minister. So, you know, he would have to explain that himself. I can’t explain it.
I’ve, you know, worked in the veterans’ portfolio for the past three years. It’s been an incredible honour, a great privilege. We’ve done some wonderful work together with my team, we’ve got a fantastic team in Canberra, working with the DVA and ex-service community. I’m proud of what we’ve done together. There’s always more work to be done when you’re a minister. So someone else will have to do that work.
Well how about that... the sun did come up this morning @mjrowland68 Thanks everyone for the feedback. As a Melbourne Marathon Spartan, let me assure you that I’m not out of energy... I’m just warming up! Looking forward to contributing more to regional Australia #lovegippsland pic.twitter.com/OtRI8pW0HO
— Darren Chester MP (@DarrenChesterMP) June 27, 2021
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Something to look forward to in the early afternoon.
Shadow Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, is in Brisbane today and will hold a press conference following the release of the Intergenerational Report, 1:30 PM #auspol
— Political Alert (@political_alert) June 27, 2021
Barnaby Joyce has shifted old foes out of cabinet and rewarded key supporters who helped his leadership return with plum positions in the latest Morrison government reshuffle.
After days of speculation, Joyce announced his picks for the ministry, shifting Queensland’s Keith Pitt to the outer ministry while dumping Michael McCormack backers Darren Chester and Mark Coulton altogether and promoting his supporters Bridget McKenzie and Andrew Gee.
Pitt will retain the resources and water portfolios but will no longer sit in the cabinet, making it the first time in five years a minister holding those portfolios was moved to the outer ministry.
Chester, a longtime critic of Joyce and key Michael McCormack backer, was prepared for his move out of the ministry, despite pleas from veterans and their families to retain him in the veterans’ affairs portfolio. With the royal commission into defence and veteran suicide now getting under way, veterans have called for consistency.
You can read all the details of the reshuffle below:
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Victoria records no local Covid cases
Good news!
Victoria has recorded no locally acquired Covid-19 cases overnight.
Reported yesterday: 0 new local cases and 2 new cases acquired overseas.
— VicGovDH (@VicGovDH) June 27, 2021
- 14,294 vaccine doses were administered
- 17,617 test results were received
More later: https://t.co/2vKbgKHFvv#COVID19Vic #COVID19VicData pic.twitter.com/Pl9mCpLMjB
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One of Western Australia’s leading heritage experts says the government must toughen up its heritage laws in the wake of allegations that mining giant Rio Tinto allowed the dumping of priceless Aboriginal cultural materials and did not inform the traditional owners for 25 years.
Peter Veth, a senior archaeologist and heritage commentator who was involved in surveying of the artefacts, said new laws must ensure such a “traumatic” mistake cannot happen again.
“The state has to show leadership,” said Veth, a professor at the University of Western Australia.
It’s a really tough portfolio. It’s big money. And if they can’t get the compliance right in an area worth tens of billions of dollars – and of the Pilbara, which is one of the great heritage estates in the world – then we’re not a modern state, we’re locked in the 50s.
Rio Tinto has been accused of allowing hundreds of irreplaceable Aboriginal cultural artefacts salvaged from its Marandoo iron ore mine in the Pilbara to be thrown away at a rubbish dump in the 1990s, and failing to disclose the disposal to Aboriginal traditional owners.
You can read the full report here:
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In a strange turn of events, the new deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce seems to ... still be advocating for Sydney not to go into hard lockdown? (Despite greater Sydney entering its second day of lockdown this morning.)
He told the Sunrise program that he hoped the NSW state government could deal with this current outbreak the same way they did with the northern beaches cluster. Surely that ship has already sailed?
I think there are two schools of thought there. We had the northern beaches outbreak and controlled that. This is another one, a bit more serious, you have a case not far from here ...
We are to be very mindful that shops go broke if you shut the whole place down, one after the other and we have seen that in Victoria.
Let’s hope we manage this, like they did the northern beaches outbreak and see if we can get through it. I think that’ll be par for the golf course into the future.
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Daniel Andrews returns to the helm as Victorian premier
Well, there is at least one fun thing happening in the country today, with Victorian premier Daniel Andrews set to return after months of fractured spine-induced sick leave.
A number of betting websites are running stakes on whether it will be a blazer or a North Face jacket type of morning. Personally, my bet is on North Face – it’s cold down here!
Ahead of his return, the premier released a video on social media detailing the events of his fall, likely as an attempt to quell conspiracy theories that have been simmering for a number of months.
You can read all about it below:
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Treasurer says we must think about how to boost fertility rates
Anyone else get a shiver down their spine anytime a male politican (from any party honestly) starts talking about fertility rates?
The rates are low and set to get lower, and I fear my womb might be the answer.
Me, waking up and reading the Intergenerational Report: pic.twitter.com/SIX6O4r9XN
— Matilda Boseley (@MatildaBoseley) June 27, 2021
In fairness, Frydenberg has yet to even hint at a Handmaid’s Tale style solution to this economic challenge:
[The Intergenerational Report] does show the persistent and longer-term impacts of the COVID pandemic, particularly around the population...
But it underlines the importance of economic reform and greater productivity, because that will be the key to our nation’s prosperity...
I think we do need to think about how we’re going to boost our fertility rates, because we’ve been below the replacement rate ever since 1976-77, where you require 1.2 babies per woman.
And we predicted in the last IGR that it would be at 1.9. But right now it’s at 1.65. So, it’s actually lower than what we had expected, and this means that migration will play a greater role in driving population growth into the future.
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Oh no! The federal government is being asked if NSW is still the “gold standard” of the Covid-19 response!
But it looks like Frydenberg, at least, isn’t ready to sell their favourite state government down the river just yet.
He is speaking to ABC news breakfast now:
Well, they have been very successful to date, obviously, in dealing with outbreaks ...
I think they’d be the first to admit that those workers should have taken further precautions. And these are the issues that will be discussed not just by the AHPPC but also by state, territory ...
Host Michael Rowland:
Not necessarily precautions, treasurer ... Was it a failure not having the rules and regulations in place from the state government?
Frydenberg:
Well, again, those rules should be in place to ensure that workers dealing with vulnerable cohorts have the necessary protections in place. Because we’re still dealing with this virus for some time to come, and we need to ensure that the more vulnerable cohorts are protected, and that means having the strictest of restrictions.
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Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is out and about this morning spruiking the new 2021 intergenerational report, the main takeaway of which is the warning that the most enduring economic effect from the pandemic is likely to be a smaller population and birth rates look set to significantly dip in the coming decades.
Also central to the report’s findings is that significant budget repair measures will need to be brought in, in order to rescue Australia from its Covid-19 debt:
We have issued important reforms and passed through the parliament only just last week.
We reduced the red tape to ensure that people workers can move more freely across the country with their mutual recognition of occupational licencing that’s an important microeconomic reform. We make significant changes to superannuation ...
We want to continue to pursue reforms that encourage more investment by business and that improve the provision of skills across the country and also ensure more flexible workplaces.
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Covid-19 scares across Australia will no doubt be a huge headache for the federal government as attention turns more and more to the disastrous vaccine rollout.
But Josh Frydenberg seems to be arguing that a heavily vaccinated population might not have stopped this national situation anyway.
He has just spoken with ABC radio:
Recently we got an extra 50,000 vaccines into New South Wales.
But when you talk about doing herd immunity you also must bear in mind we’re dealing with a much more contagious variant in adult Australia and this is quite a critical time.
If you look at the United Kingdom, they had 18,000 new cases just yesterday, yep 80% of their population has received the first dose and 60% of their population has received a second dose.
We’re rolling out the vaccine as fast as possible.
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Good morning, and what a doozy of a morning it is.
I’m Matilda Boseley, and I’ll be attempting to break down exactly what on earth is happening in Australia at the moment, with coronavirus outbreaks across three states and a territory, and lockdowns, tightened restrictions and border closures spreading nearly as fast as the virus.
First things first: NSW is on edge this morning, bracing for a surge in cases today after the state’s premier warned that numbers were going to get worse before they get better.
The state recorded 30 new locally acquired virus Covid cases in the 24 hours to 8pm on Saturday after greater Sydney, Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour went into lockdown.
But Sydney isn’t the only city in crisis this morning with cases scatters across the country, prompting state and territory leaders to clear time in their schedules for an unscheduled national cabinet phone hook-up to discuss the widespread restrictions and their subsequent impact on the economy.
Darwin and its surrounding regions have been plunged into a 48-hour lockdown after recording four new cases – the first-ever instances of community spread in the Northern Territory.
In Western Australia, a woman who returned from visiting Sydney picked up the virus at a cafe in Bondi, prompting increased restrictions in Perth and Peel, including indoor mask use.
In Queensland, three local cases were recorded, including an NT miner who was infectious in the Sunshine Coast community and a couple linked to the existing Brisbane cluster.
In response, South Australia has slammed closed its border to all but Tasmania (and Victoria, but you have get a negative Covid-19 test), and the ACT has tightened Covid-19 restrictions despite not recording any cases in the territory.
And, perhaps most surprisingly, Victoria seems to be doing ... OK actually. Wild!
Don’t worry if you are a little confused, we all are, but we will break it all down together this morning.
If there is something you reckon I’ve missed or think should be in the blog but isn’t, shoot me a message on Twitter @MatildaBoseley or email me at matilda.boseley@theguardian.com.
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