End-of-day summary
I hope you’ve had a pleasant Christmas so far and thanks for spending part of it here.
Here’s a recap of today’s news:
- New South Wales recorded seven new locally acquired Covid-19 cases, as the northern beaches cluster grew to 108.
- NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian has urged Sydney shoppers not to enter the central business district for the traditional Boxing Day sales tomorrow, as authorities fear it could spread coronavirus across the city. The Australian Retailers Association has labelled the plea “incredibly disappointing”.
- A second person who was on board a luxury superyacht that sailed from the Maldives to Cairns has tested positive for coronavirus.
- An Australian government-facilitated repatriation flight, scheduled to bring Australians home from New Delhi, has been cancelled due to “unforeseen logistical difficulties”. About 39,000 Australians spent Christmas stranded overseas.
- The Morrison government spent a total of $128m on advertising in the past financial year, including $5.2m on market research for the ad campaigns, new figures reveal.
- A two-year-old boy has died after being thrown off a quad bike in north-east Victoria, while a man has drowned off Wilsons Promontory off the southern tip of the state this afternoon.
Wishing you a relaxing Christmas evening and a great weekend.
Updated
Victoria police have released a statement about the man who drowned this afternoon.
One man died and a second man is missing in waters off Wilsons Promontory, the police force said.
It’s believed the pair were swimming with friends at Squeaky Beach when they got into difficulty about 3.40pm. A member of the public managed to pull one of the men from the water. CPR was commenced however he died at the scene.
The second swimmer is yet to be located and a search is underway with the help of local police officers and the air wing. Water police are also on their way to the scene to assist.
Updated
Early morning snowfall has been recorded in parts of the UK, with the Met Office declaring it a white Christmas.
Reports of snow had come in from Leconfield in Humberside and Wattisham in Suffolk as of 5am on Christmas day.
Thanks to everyone who shared their stories on our open thread on spending Christmas alone. Here are some more comments from readers:
Seeing friends on Boxing Day, so it’s far from the end of the world. And, in the end, it’s just one lunch.
I have weathered many storms to get to the point where I do the things that keep me content calm and happy. It takes courage to be on your own at Christmas.
I am alone, but not lonely. If I feel adventurous, I might even put up some Christmas lights. Sometimes, there’s no stopping me and I am like a coiled spring, barely containing my excitement.
I’ve been spending Christmas alone for many years, well, since my husband died. I plan my day and go somewhere we used to go to together, the beach, and go for a long walk. Come home, turn on the tv and enjoy a meal, and stollen.
#BREAKING: A man has drowned at Squeaky Beach in Wilsons Prom.
— 9News Melbourne (@9NewsMelb) December 25, 2020
An air ambulance helicopter was dispatched but sadly the man has passed away.
Another person is still unaccounted for and a search is underway.
More information on #9News at 6.00pm. #9News pic.twitter.com/3s9SZbpjRS
NSW Health has released an updated list of venues and transport routes of concern in relation to the northern beaches coronavirus cluster.
The list includes venues in Sydney’s northern beaches, as well as in the city, north shore, eastern and western suburbs.
Included in the list is an alert for anyone who visited the Santa Photos set up at the Queen Victoria Building on Wednesday 23 December between 10.15-11am.
You can see the full list of new venues and transport routes here.
Updated
My Christmas in quarantine: a Covid carvery, Santa patrols and paper bag decorations
Escaping the UK to spend Christmas alone in a New Zealand Novotel was a small price for Elle Hunt to pay to rejoin her family in relative freedom.
It has been a whole year since the skies parted and the almighty delivered this gift - Barnaby Joyce’s memorable Christmas message for the ages.
In the video, the Nationals MP and former deputy prime minister declared “I just don’t want the government anymore in my life”.
Despite the revelation Joyce was “sick of the government being in my life”, he has continued serving as a member of the government.
Merry Christmas pic.twitter.com/QGYPv51pTN
— Barnaby Joyce (@Barnaby_Joyce) December 24, 2019
Qantas repatriation flight from India to Australia cancelled
One of the Australian government-facilitated repatriation flights to bring home Australians from India has been cancelled, as about 39,000 Australians remain stranded overseas for Christmas.
The flight from New Delhi to Brisbane was scheduled to depart on Sunday 27 December, operated by Qantas.
However, vulnerable Australians who were offered places on the flight have been told it has been cancelled “due to unforeseen logistical difficulties ... which are out of Dfat (the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) and Qantas’s control”.
A Dfat spokeswoman told Guardian Australia: “All passengers booked on this flight have been or will soon be offered alternative flights with Qantas to return to Australia.”
Guardian Australia understands some passengers have been offered seats on a Chennai to Darwin flight scheduled to leave on 31 December while others were moved to a New Delhi to Darwin flight scheduled for 7 January.
Amit Sahni’s family was booked on the cancelled flight, and while they have now been offered seats on the Chennai flight four days later, they are nervous about the risk of potentially catching Covid during the domestic flight to Chennai.
Amit has been living with his partner and two children, aged three and eight, in New Delhi, and first registered with Dfat in April for assistance to return to Sydney.
“Our family has been locked in a small apartment for the past nine months,” Amit said, noting the family is cautious of the coronavirus risk when leaving their home.
Amit said news the government-organised flight had been cancelled “has ruined our Christmas”.
Updated
South Australia has recorded two new overseas-acquired cases of Covid-19.
Today’s cases are a female in her 30s and a female child. Both have been in a medi-hotel since their arrival.
If you’re feeling isolated this holiday season, help is at hand. #HeadtoHealth has a range of trusted digital #mentalhealth resources and information to help support your mental health and wellbeing. Visit https://t.co/3QWvsMDBVf today. pic.twitter.com/9neBYmCxjj
— Australian Government Department of Health (@healthgovau) December 25, 2020
Boy, two, dead after Victoria quad bike crash
A two-year-old boy is dead after being thrown off a quad bike in north-east Victoria, AAP reports.
The boy was a passenger on the all-terrain vehicle when it crashed at a Barnawartha North property at about 11.50am on Friday, police said.
Witnesses freed the boy from underneath the vehicle and attempted to revive him, but he died at the scene.
The driver is assisting police and the exact cause of the crash is yet to be determined.
Updated
Hi I’m Elias Visontay and I’m thrilled to be bringing you the news this Christmas afternoon from Sydney, after a festive morning on the blog for my colleague Melissa Davey.
I’ll be bringing you some information shortly about Qantas repatriation flights bringing home stranded Australians.
Updated
My colleague Elias Visontay has filed the latest Covid-19 news on the situation in NSW here:
On that note, as one of many of you spending Christmas far away from family and loved ones, I’m going to hand this blog over to Elias to take you through the afternoon, and crack a bottle of cheap fake champagne for myself.
Thanks for sharing your comments and thoughts throughout the day. Stay safe, and Merry Christmas.
Summary
I hope everyone is having a lovely Christmas so far, even if it’s being spent far away from loved ones. Here is a recap of today’s news so far:
- In NSW the Avalon Covid cluster hit 108 cases on Friday after four new infections linked to the cluster were reported. Three other locally acquired cases were reported in NSW on Friday, and their origin is under investigation. In total seven new cases were announced in NSW on Friday.
- NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian has urged people not to attend Boxing Day sales. Her comments prompted a rebuke from the Australian Retailers Association, which said the day is the biggest on the retail calendar.
- Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese have thanked essential workers for helping Australia through the coronavirus pandemic in their Christmas messages.
- World Health Organization director general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged people not to “squander” the sacrifices of health workers and people doing the right thing by taking public health and hygiene measures. He acknowledged those who have lost loved ones to the pandemic in his Christmas message.
- The Australian Health Protection Principal Committee issued a statement on the new variant of the virus that causes Covid-19 spreading in the UK, saying: “At this stage, it is not clear whether the mutations are responsible for the higher growth rates in cases. It could also be a combination of factors such as a mutation, winter, superspreading events, or found in areas or populations where people live in more crowded settings.”
Updated
The pandemic cast a pall over Christmas celebrations worldwide, with South Korea reporting record daily cases, the pope holding a reduced Christmas eve mass, and China halting UK flight arrivals indefinitely.
Foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said China had decided to follow the example of dozens of countries that introduced bans following the emergence of a new, apparently more transmissible, variant of the coronavirus. There are currently eight weekly flights between mainland China and Britain, including two by British Airways.
Late on Thursday, Hong Kong announced it had extended mandatory hotel quarantine from 14 to 21 days for all overseas arrivals, after announcing it for UK arrivals earlier this week. Some UK travellers discovered the new measures only upon their arrival, reported RTHK.
Updated
Australia and China have collaborated on a mission to medically evacuate an Australian expeditioner from Antarctica with help from the United States.
The operation took five days, used ships, helicopters and planes, and covered thousands of kilometres of the icy continent, AAP reports.
Australian Antarctic Division director Kim Ellis described it as one of the most complex and challenging medical evacuations his team has undertaken in recent years. The unwell Australian was at Davis research station in east Antarctica when the operation began.
China trade war extends to NSW and WA timber
Meanwhile, in case you missed it yesterday, Reuters reports the trade war with China has expanded.
China has suspended imports of timber from NSW and Western Australia after local customs offices found pests in cargoes from those states, the General Administration of Customs said late on Wednesday.
The ban, effective from Wednesday, follows previous suspensions of timber shipments from Victoria and Queensland amid worsening relations between Beijing and Canberra.
Local customs authorities must further strengthen inspections on timber imports from Australia, and return any cargoes found with pests, the administration office said in a statement on its website.
China also banned timber shipments from Tasmania and South Australia from 3 December, according to the statement. Read more from Reuters here.
Updated
Queensland records two new cases of Covid
Queensland has recorded two new cases of Covid-19, both detected while in quarantine. The cases, a man in his 30s and a man in his 40s, were infected while overseas.
The first is associated to an earlier confirmed case announced yesterday, in connection to a marine vessel arriving from the Maldives. The second is an international arrival, detected in hotel quarantine in Brisbane.
They bring Queensland’s total cases to 1,240, of which 12 are active.
Updated
World Health Organization director-general shares Christmas message
World Health Organization director-general, biologist, and public health researcher, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has recorded a Christmas video, saying: “a pandemic of historic proportions is preventing many of us from celebrating in the ways we would like as tight-knit communities, and extended families around fireplaces.”
He said:
Hundreds of millions of people today are making heart-wrenching sacrifices by staying apart to stay safe. But in doing so, they’re giving the most precious gifts. The gifts of life and health. All around the world throughout this most trying of years, we have seen over and over again the sacrifices of so many people to protect and preserve lives.
We must not squander their sacrifices nor those made by so many families who this holiday season will sit at family tables, missing a familiar face. Despite so much loss, we have built so much. Unprecedented partnerships have been forged showing that obstacles can be overcome.
Through acts of solidarity and safety, we can share the greatest gift of all, the gift of life, this holiday season.”
I wish everyone a safe and restful holiday season. This year by staying apart to stay safe from #COVID19, we can all give the most important gifts of all: the gifts of life and health. #InThisTogetherpic.twitter.com/HlNobGujwg
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) December 24, 2020
Updated
Earlier in the week the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee [AHPPC] issued a statement on new variant of the virus that causes Covid-19 spreading in the UK. The AHPPC says:
This new variant is now common among the increasing cases in south-east England.
At this stage, it is not clear whether the mutations are responsible for the higher growth rates in cases. It could also be a combination of factors such as a mutation, winter, superspreading events, or found in areas or populations where people live in more crowded settings.
Mutations are common in Sars-CoV-2 and other viruses, and usually do not affect the infectivity or severity of disease. There is no evidence that this variant of the virus causes more severe disease. The vaccines procured for Australia induce a broad immune response to protect individuals. There is no evidence at this stage that these vaccines would not be effective against the UK variant.
The AHPPC notes the UK has designated the variant as a ‘variant of concern’ and will continue to monitor the situation. The AHPPC awaits more evidence from the UK, but has no current concerns for spread of this variant in Australia.
Updated
Some more comments from readers taken from our open thread on spending Christmas alone:
I’ve spent many Christmases by myself. Some I’ve gone to ‘Orphans Xmas’ parties, others I’ve done nothing. I’m used to being by myself so not really a big issue for me, I’m also not fussed by the day at all. It’s not my thing.
I adore Christmas alone. Every second year it’s myself alone with the cats. People always look on me with pity when I tell them and I have to explain just how wonderful it is.
You never really understand just how blissful Christmas alone is unless you grew up with a highly dysfunctional family. Merry Christmas everyone.
I’m spending Christmas alone this year for the first time. I separated from my husband earlier this year, and we had moved to Australia several years ago where he is from. My family is back in the UK. I’m loving it and if it wasn’t for wanting to be with my mum, this would be my new default. I’m at the beach in northern NSW.
NSW man accused of Christmas Eve murder attempt
A NSW man allegedly tried to murder another man by cutting his throat in a Christmas Eve attack. The 31-year-old allegedly confronted the 63-year-old in his bedroom at Wollongong on Thursday night while armed with a knife.
The pair knew each other, NSW police said on Friday. The younger man allegedly put the 63-year-old in a headlock and cut his throat before being fought off.
He was scheduled to face Wollongong local court on Friday charged with wounding and grievous bodily harm with the intent to murder. His alleged victim drove himself to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Updated
From AAP, an overview of the Covid-19 situation around Australia:
Covid-safe Christmas Day gatherings are taking place across Australia as authorities monitor the unfolding outbreak on Sydney’s northern beaches. The Avalon cluster hit 108 cases on Friday after four new infections were reported.
However, a three-day rules reprieve means even those in that area can host family and friends for Friday’s festivities. Residents north of the Narrabeen Bridge can welcome five people from the local area, while those in the south will be able to have 10 visitors from anywhere.
The same cap applies to greater Sydney, the Central Coast, the Blue Mountains and Wollongong. For the rest of NSW, 50 people may visit another household at any one time.
Three other locally acquired cases were reported in NSW on Friday, and their origin is under investigation.
Victorians starved of family reunions for much of their lockdown-plagued year have been able to host up to 30 visitors over the course of a single day since 14 December. The state again recorded zero new locally acquired cases, for the 56th day in a row.
The other states and territories also reported no new locally transmitted cases on Friday.
South Australia and Queensland both allow 50 people to congregate in homes, while Tasmania’s limit is double that for outdoor and indoor residential gatherings. Western Australia, the ACT and Northern Territory are cap-free, but 1.5-metre social distancing must be maintained in house settings.
While many tuck into lunch and dinner, thousands of others have been forced into spending Christmas in hotel quarantine or home isolating across the country. That includes two people linked to the northern beaches cluster who have tested positive since arriving in Queensland and Victoria.
A Queensland man in his 40s tested negative after getting back from Sydney last week, but he later became unwell and tested positive on Wednesday night. He has been in self-isolation at his home in the southeast since returning and has had no contact with the community.
A teenage girl living in Melbourne’s Moonee Valley tested positive after returning from Sydney’s northern beaches. She was already in isolation when she received her positive result.
Updated
Western Australia reports one new cases of Covid
Just one new Covid-19 case in Western Australia, a woman in her 40s who returned to Perth from overseas. She is in hotel quarantine.
WA Health is monitoring seven active cases and 832 people have recovered from the virus in WA. Yesterday 607 people presented to WA Covids clinics – 601 were assessed and swabbed.
There have been 612,889 tests performed in WA. Of those tested, 99,437 were from regional WA.
Updated
Be careful out there in the water everyone. ‘Post-immersion incident’ is a near-drowning.
JUST IN: Paramedics are treating ten people following a "post-immersion incident" in waters off Oceanic Drive at Warana around 11.40am. All patients are in a stable condition. https://t.co/OyAjjYbB1y #7NEWS pic.twitter.com/II0KSp5XKI
— 7NEWS Brisbane (@7NewsBrisbane) December 25, 2020
Retailers Association reacts to Gladys Berejikilian's comments
The Australian Retailers Association have labelled Gladys Berejiklian’s plea for shoppers in Sydney to avoid the CBD on Boxing Day as “incredibly disappointing”.
However the industry group is ultimately supporting the advice given by health authorities who are trying to limit coronavirus transmission among shoppers from across Sydney converging at crowded indoor shops.
Paul Zahra, ARA chief executive, told Guardian Australia:
While we support the NSW government in their response to keep the community safe, there’s no doubt this directive will have an effect on Boxing Day trade.
Boxing Day is the biggest day on the retail calendar, and to have people discouraged from attending shops in the CBD is incredibly disappointing – especially as retailers have worked so hard to ensure their businesses are Covid-safe.
For people not wanting to head into the CBD, there are still plenty of online options available to snap up a bargain.”
Updated
Interesting point about the B.1.1.7 variant causing concern in the UK and elsewhere, by Victoria’s acting chief health officer, infectious diseases doctor and epidemiologist, Professor Allen Cheng:
The UK variant B.1.1.7: this report cites studies suggesting that the N501Y mutation can increase ACE2 receptor binding, and it has been associated with increased infectivity and virulence in a mouse model. Not clear how relevant this is in humans yet - more work required. https://t.co/0lfvkLsdWG
— Allen Cheng (@peripatetical) December 21, 2020
And here is a Threat Assessment Brief from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. It states:
Given that there is currently a lack of evidence to indicate the extent to which the new virus variant is spread outside the UK, timely efforts to prevent and control its spread are needed.
While it is known and expected that viruses constantly change through mutation leading to the emergence of new variants, preliminary analysis in the UK suggests that this variant is significantly more transmissible than previously circulating variants, with an estimated potential to increase the reproductive number (R) by 0.4 or greater with an estimated increased transmissibility of up to 70%.
This new variant has emerged at a time of the year when there has traditionally been increased family and social mixing.”
Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese have thanked essential workers for helping Australia through the coronavirus pandemic in their Christmas messages.
Both leaders focused on how Australians had come together to confront challenges and expressed gratitude that 2020 will shortly be at an end.
You can read their Christmas messages in full, courtesy of my colleague Paul Karp, below:
Reader Caroline just wrote in with a note about mask-wearing in Sydney. Mask-wearing is a selfless way to keep yourself and the people around you safe, but unfortunately not everyone has had an easy time wearing a mask. Caroline says:
I live in the Sydney CBD and have been spending most of my time indoors in the past fortnight (including Christmas Day today). Only two weeks ago I was racially verbally abused while wearing a mask in public in my local neighbourhood (I am Australian-born, of Asian descent, and only speak English). This racial abuse is hardly a surprise when the majority of people in the street don’t see the need to wear a mask or socially distance. As a CBD resident, I estimate current mask-wearing at 20% at most - at the height of the Victorian Covid-19 infections it probably reached 30%.”
Covid-19 variant detected in Germany
From Reuters: A new variant of Covid-19 that has been spreading rapidly in Britain has been found in Germany for the first time, the German state of Baden-Wuerttemberg said on Thursday.
The infected person flew to Frankfurt from London Heathrow on 20 December to visit relatives and tested positive upon arrival. Further genetic analysis of the sample at a lab in Berlin has yielded a case of B.1.1.7, as the variant is known, the south-western German state’s health ministry said in a statement.
“This is the first known case in Germany,” the statement said.
The person, who has since developed mild symptoms, was picked up from the airport by car by family members and has isolated at the family’s residence in Baden-Wuerttemberg since then, the ministry added. Three individuals who have been in close contact with the person have also quarantined.
The fast spread of the new variant in Britain has prompted some European countries to cut transport links. Singapore on Thursday also confirmed its first case of the new coronavirus variant.
Updated
In case you missed it, here is a list of the NSW hotspots:
You can also check the NSW department of health website here.
Thanks to Guardian reader Mariana who emailed me to share her experience of unexpectedly spending Christmas alone this year. She says:
I am from Sydney and I was due to spend Christmas with my family in Adelaide. I didn’t join in the rush to leave Sydney while the SA borders were open because firstly, I didn’t want to chance it and potentially be a super spreader, secondly I didn’t want to pay the exorbitant amount that Qantas were charging (over $800 for a one way flight!).
This is the first time I’ve spent Christmas without my family, and I have decided to just remain at home by myself to ensure my movement is limited. I may go for a walk but that’s about it. I have video-called them already this morning to send them my love, and will video call them again tonight when they have their big dinner. I miss them terribly, and I am also missing my nephew’s first Christmas. Being alone isn’t the saddest part about today for me, not being with family is.
I know I am not the only one going through this, this year. I want to emphasise the importance of the people who miss out on family Christmas on a regular basis – healthcare workers, nurses, doctors, paramedics, even some McDonald’s workers!
And so, the year ends with yet another blanket of sadness, but this time over the entire world. I wanted to end this with an ode to the opposite, but I find myself having difficulty recollecting any significant event. Maybe then it is not a single event, but the combination of small things that make it happier. Things like people voluntarily wearing masks, or being civil to retail workers, or even respecting the dots on the ground which mark social distancing. The 66,000 people who voluntarily got tested when asked to.
Things which may not get much fanfare but really do show the empathy the majority of us have for one another. Yes, I think I’ll focus on this.
Updated
South Korea’s prime minister Chung Sye-kyun said on Friday 1,241 new coronavirus cases were reported the day before, the highest daily count ever recorded, Yonhap news agency reported.
NSW churchgoers celebrate Christmas under new rules
New social distancing rules came into force for places of worship in NSW on 21 December in response to the coronavirus outbreak in Sydney.
In greater Sydney, indoor religious gathering aren’t allowed more than 300 visitors, or one visitor per four square metres of publicly accessible space, whichever is less. The density limit does not apply if there are 25 visitors or less at the venue.
No more than five performers are advised to sing indoors (with 1.5m between performers and 5m between performers and the audience) and worshippers are not supposed to sing or chant indoors. As NSW Health reminds us, group singing and chanting remains a high-risk activity for transmission of Covid.
Here’s a few images from the Christmas Day service at St Paul’s Church in Burwood in Sydney’s inner west this morning:
Just to recap the NSW press conference, NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian said masks are “a fourth line of defence” as she urged people not to attend Boxing Day sales. She said:
Just because you’re wearing a mask is does not mean you cannot get and give the virus. Have good hand sanitisation, make sure you keep a good social distance, make sure you think very carefully about all the activities you are undertaking and we really do want to reduce mobility.
I cannot stress enough how urgent the message is for people to reduce their mobility, not to undertake any activity unless they absolutely have to and please avoid the CBD where you can and if you must go to the CBD and you must go shopping, make sure you’re wearing a mask and are socially distancing.
Today is a day where it is really about thanking the community, I do not think anybody is having a normal Christmas today across NSW and I want to thank everybody for your patience and the way we have worked together and the way I think all of us can be confident everyone is playing their part to be safe as possible.
A question for NSW readers; how common is mask wearing where you are? I was speaking to a colleague of mine who is visiting family on the NSW Central Coast, and she told me mask-wearing there is woeful. Apparently she is getting strange looks when she wears a mask in public. What have been your experiences? Tell me in the comments below or tweet me @MelissaLDavey.
Updated
So NSW health authorities are still uncertain as to the source of the Avalon cluster, the premier and chief health officer said during that press conference. How important is it that this person be identified? Pretty darn important, epidemiologists told me:
Chant adds that here was a case previously reported on 23 December and that person works at the Belrose hotel, in the northern beaches local government area. It remains linked to the Avalon cluster. But case investigation and further testing indicates this person likely had the virus from two weeks ago, Chant said.
“We note that this individual to date has not transmitted infections to others but what we are interested in is knowing how this person acquired the infection,” she said.
Updated
Coronavirus cases at Paragon Hotel in CBD rise to three while cases at Paddington Alimentari rise to four
NSW chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant says the sports bar at the Paragon Hotel in Loftus Street, Circular Quay has three cases associated with it. Anyone at this venue while visiting the hotel between 12.45pm and 3.30pm on Wednesday 16 December for more than one hour is considered a close contacts.
Get tested and self-isolate for 14 days regardless of the result,” Chant says. “Anyone who was there for less than an hour needs to get tested immediately and self-isolate pending a result. People in the general facility who may have attended the hotel, please ensure that you monitor the symptoms and isolate and get tested immediately. It is important you are particularly vigilant.
In terms of the CBD, I want to repeat my urging that anyone who particularly has been in the north-eastern part of the city, including Australia square, the MLC Centre and Chifley Square should be alert to symptoms and get tested immediately.
Since 8pm last night, and this case will be included in tomorrow’s numbers, another confirmed case is linked to the Paddington Alimentari. There are now four cases associated with the venue and all diners from 17 December to 19 December need to get tested if symptoms arise and stay isolated, should there even be the slightest symptoms. We have a transmission at that venue.”
One of the cases in the Paddington cluster is a child, Chant said.
NSW recorded seven locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night, with an additional three cases in returned travellers in hotel quarantine. pic.twitter.com/gTovCKorec
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) December 25, 2020
Updated
Sydneysiders urged not to shop in the CBD on Boxing Day
Berejiklian says: “We cannot be too careful under these circumstances.”
We ask everybody to limit any activity in the CBD and having said that, we know tomorrow is traditionally Boxing Day sales. Please, we want to discourage people. We know this is not the easiest message to give to those retailers but we want to discourage people from going to the CBD tomorrow. If you’re going shopping in the CBD, make sure you wear a mask.
We have been in contact with retailers to make sure there is a social distancing ... We ask people to limit their activity, think twice before going to the CBD. We would prefer it if people did not go to the CBD.”
Updated
The Avalon cluster now numbers 108.
Of the new cases in NSW to 8pm last night:
Seven cases are locally acquired, and of these:
- Four cases are linked to the Avalon cluster
- Two cases are household contacts of a previous case, whose source of infection is still under investigation
- One further case is under investigation
Aside from the seven community cases, three cases were acquired overseas and are in hotel quarantine.
Updated
NSW reports seven new cases of Covid-19
NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian is giving an update from Sydney, and says 69,800 people got tested in the 24 hours to 8pm yesterday. Six of the new cases are linked to people already in isolation. She says the seventh case was “someone working in the northern beaches”.
Updated
We are expecting an update from the NSW premier in just a few minutes. Let’s hope for good news and low numbers today.
In the meantime I see a few people in the comments and elsewhere asking about Australia’s vaccine plans, and whether it will be rolled out sooner. Here are a couple of explainers I put together that might be useful.
And this piece here is more of a general overview:
And finally, some news from yesterday about the distribution contracts being signed:
As difficult as it has been at times to report on Covid this year, with so much changing and even the experts disagreeing, it has also been fascinating and incredible to watch the pace of the science and research. Speaking to these very clever people for my reporting has been one of the great joys of my job. To think we’ll have a vaccine early next year is such a testament to the global research community.
Sydney police pursuit ends with fatality
A man has died following a police pursuit and crash in Sydney’s south-west, prompting a critical incident investigation, AAP reports.
NSW police say highway patrol officers tried to stop a Mistubishi Lancer after 11.20pm on Thursday and a pursuit began when the driver allegedly failed to stop.
A short time later the car struck a power pole in Leppington. A male passenger was thrown from the vehicle and died at the scene.
The driver is under police guard in hospital where he is being treated for arm injuries, the police force said on Friday morning. A critical incident team will investigate the pursuit and crash.
Updated
A “highly concerning” new variant of coronavirus that is suspected of fuelling a rise in cases in South Africa has been detected in the UK, health secretary Matt Hancock has said.
My UK colleagues Ian Sample and Natalie Grover report that surveillance by Public Health England on Tuesday identified two people who contracted the virus after being in contact with separate travellers from South Africa. One case is in London, the other in the north-west.
Hancock told the Downing Street press briefing that the arrival of the new variant would lead to new quarantine rules for recent visitors from South Africa.
“This new variant is highly concerning because it is yet more transmissible and it appears to have mutated further than the new variant discovered in the UK,” Hancock said.
China’s Sinovac coronavirus vaccine 91% effective, according to preliminary reports
Turkey will receive its first shipment of China’s Sinovac coronavirus vaccine within days as preliminary domestic tests showed it was 91% effective, health minister Fahrettin Koca said on Thursday.
Ankara, Turkey’s capital, will in the next few days also sign a deal with Pfizer/BioNTech for 4.5m doses of that vaccine, with the option to buy 30m more from the US pharmaceutical giant and its German partner, Koca said
Turkey will initially receive 3m doses of Sinovac and have the option for 50m more as it begins inoculations next month, starting with healthcare workers and the most vulnerable. Koca said the first shipments of the Chinese vaccine will be sent to Turkey on Sunday.
Preliminary tests on 7,371 volunteers in Turkey showed that the Chinese vaccine was 91.25% effective, although phase three tests were still not complete, AFP reports.
Turkey “will be able to vaccinate 1.5m or even two million people per day,” Koca said, adding that the “first stage” of vaccinations would cover 9m people.
The nation of 83m has officially recorded 19,115 Covid-19 deaths and 2.2m virus infections.
Updated
Thanks to all of the readers who have shared all of the ways they are spending Christmas alone. You can contribute by clicking the link at the end of this blog post. Here are some of the comments from readers so far;
I will spend Christmas as I have done so for the past several years, alone with my precious two companions, my dog and cat, both rescued from shelters. I have no other family, all now departed and the few friends I have live so far away. I am never lonely and enjoy my independence. I will take a long walk with my dog, come home, feed him and my cat then eat a bowl of homemade soup from the slow cooker. I will then curl up on the sofa with a book, dog one side, cat the other and they are the best company I could ever wish for, their eyes tell me constantly. I haven’t always lived alone but these past few years have been the most contented period of my life, having discovered the life that suits me best. I wish the very best of things to everyone who lives alone and hope, that like me, you can appreciate and cherish the moment.
I have spent every Xmas day on my own for years and love it. After years of going along with the usual hype surrounding this day, I decided that enough was enough. I make myself a nice lunch accompanied by a bottle of good rosé, read a book, listen to my music then later on watch some TV. I spend this time in quietness and peace. It is bliss.
I’ve spent a few Christmas’s alone, and not always by choice. The key I’ve found is to connect with the people around you - neighbours, shop assistants, or just people you interact with for a brief moment. Those little encounters can make all the difference between a downward spiral of depression and a cheery enough few days of quiet self-indulgence.
Although I’m alone (and self-isolating after a work trip abroad) this Christmas it will definitely not be the worst Christmas ever. I spent one Christmas in hospital after a broken leg; my family couldn’t come to see me as my grandpa had recently died and it was my granny’s first Christmas without him, and they lived too far away just to pop over.
I remember on Christmas Eve breaking down in tears as it felt so very lonely in my room alone - most of the ward had been able to go home. A nurse very sternly told me to cheer up as I had it better than many, and actually in the end Christmas Day wasn’t too bad. I wrapped up the presents for my family that they’d been able to bring the previous week, and one of the nurses dressed up as Santa and brought a present; the consultants and their wives visited; there was lots on telly to watch; and lunch was actually edible. The day after Boxing Day my parents picked me up and took me home, and that was the best bit of Christmas that year.
You can also share your Christmas day pics and observations with me by Tweeting me @MelissaLDavey or by email, melissa.davey@theguardian.com
Woman in hospital in Sydney after alleged attack
A woman is being treated in Westmead Hospital for multiple injuries after an alleged domestic violence-related assault this morning, NSW police say.
Emergency services were called to a home unit in Parkside Lane at Westmead shortly after midnight, and found a 48 year-old-woman seriously injured. Police have been told a neighbour entered their unit after hearing the older woman’s cries for help.
She was chased outside by a 17-year-old girl, who was allegedly armed with a meat cleaver. Another witness found the older woman a short time later in the garden with multiple injuries.
The woman was treated at the scene before being taken to Westmead hospital where she is reported to be in a serious condition. Officers attended and arrested the teenager and she was taken for assessment, NSW police said in a statement.
A meat cleaver has been seized at the scene and is being forensically examined. Inquiries are continuing.
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Guardian contributor Benjamin Ryan reports that Dr Anthony Fauci - “America’s guiding light through the darkness of Covid-19,” turned 80 on Christmas Eve. Fauci is of course the longtime director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in the US.
Happy Birthday Dr. Fauci 💕 pic.twitter.com/fhdVvtHvvy
— Dr. Jill Biden (@DrBiden) December 24, 2020
Fauci’s wife of 35 years, Christine Grady, is the top bioethicist at the National Institutes of Health. You can read Benjamin’s lovely story about how she celebrated her husband’s birthday here:
Queensland border delays expected
Queensland police are expecting further delays at the southern border while investigations continue into the arrival of a superyacht in the north, AAP reports.
Chief superintendent Mark Wheeler said police and SES crews would continue to scale up resources at border checkpoints.
“We only had a very short window of time to close the borders and implement those checkpoints,” he said.
There are currently three checkpoints operating around the clock with plans to establish a fourth.
“We can’t do that overnight, we can’t just simply pluck police from other rosters and make this happen immediately,” Wheeler said.
Queensland health minister Yvette D’Ath is concerned about undetected coronavirus cases in the state after details of two positive cases came to light on Thursday. Sewage tests at Wynnum, Bargara and Bundaberg have returned positive results for Covid-19 and people in the areas with any sign of symptoms are being asked to get tested.
One of the cases was a 20 year-old female crew member of a superyacht that came from the Maldives and is at the centre of a police investigation. The vessel allegedly arrived in Cairns on Monday with 14 guests plus the crew on board.
The guests have been directed into hotel quarantine while six remaining crew members stay on the vessel.
The other Covid case in Queensland was a man who has been in self-isolation since returning from Sydney’s northern beaches. D’Ath says the 40-year-old tested negative after returning from the hotspot last Friday, before becoming unwell and testing positive late on Wednesday night.
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More than 1m people in the US receive vaccine
Americans marked a grim Christmas Eve as coronavirus infections exploded nationwide, political leaders warned them not to travel or gather in large groups and a highly contagious variant of the virus spread further in Europe, Reuters reports.
More than 1m people have received the first of two vaccine doses since 14 December, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But the vaccinations have so far had little effect on the latest surge in cases spiralling nationwide.
Achieving herd immunity against the virus could require vaccination of up to 90% of Americans, Dr Anthony Fauci, the most prominent US infectious disease expert, told the New York Times in an interview.
“We really don’t know what the real number is,” he said. “I think the real range is somewhere between 70 to 90%. But, I’m not going to say 90%.”
Fauci, who is advising both Republican president Donald Trump and president-elect Joe Biden, a Democrat, on the pandemic, acknowledged that he had revised his estimates upward from earlier in the year, when he said the nation would reach herd immunity by inoculating 60% to 70% of the population.
Fauci was vaccinated earlier this week on live television.
The United States recorded more than 3,000 deaths for the second consecutive day on Wednesday, according to a Reuters tally. The US death toll since the pandemic broke out in March has surpassed 326,000. The states of Tennessee and California have emerged as the epicentres of the latest surge.
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Well, I learned something new today. Apparently, reptiles often become immobile in chilly weather and as a result, can plummet from trees though they are still alive. It means Florida in the US, which is braced for an unusually cold Christmas, is also preparing for it to rain iguanas.
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Merry Christmas!
My colleague Paul Karp reports that the Morrison government spent a total of $128m on advertising in the past financial year, including $5.2m on market research for the ad campaigns, new figures reveal. He writes:
A report published by the finance department reveals the biggest campaigns were for Covid-19 health ($47.8m), defence recruiting ($31.3m) and the pandemic economic response ($17.7m).
It also shows Resolve Strategic, an agency run by Jim Reed, a long-term researcher for the Liberal party pollster Crosby Textor, received $203,000 out of a contract worth $408,000 for research related to the Treasury campaign.
In October, Labor raised concerns that $1.1m has been spent on two market research projects about community attitudes to Covid-19 undertaken by Resolve Strategic.
We’ve just been told that NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian and NSW chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant will provide a Covid-19 update at 11am.
I’ll bring you the key points from that as it happens.
1/2 @NSWHealth has been notified of new venues visited by a confirmed case of #COVID19, and wishes to advise of revisions to times, dates and advice for a number of previously announced venues. pic.twitter.com/c0L7309nqW
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) December 24, 2020
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Victoria reports no new Covid cases
The Victorian department of health has sent through it’s Covid-19 update, reporting no new cases of coronavirus since yesterday.
There are currently 10 active cases of Covid-19 in Victoria. Nine of these are in people in hotel quarantine, with the 10th in a teenage girl who is isolating at home after contracting the virus in NSW.
Today is the 56th straight day where Victoria has recorded zero daily community transmission cases.
Yesterday there were 0 new local cases & 0 lives lost. There are 10 active cases in quarantine or self-isolation. 11,367 test results were received - thanks, #EveryTestHelps us to #StaySafeStayOpen. https://t.co/lIUrl0ZEco #COVID19Vic pic.twitter.com/tAKuW4CcWH
— VicGovDHHS (@VicGovDHHS) December 24, 2020
The department of health says there has been an excellent response to their call-out for people to get tested over the past week, with higher-than-expected numbers of people getting tested. “But we must remain vigilant over the festive season and anyone with symptoms is urged get tested immediately,” the department said in a statement.
There will be reduced capacity of some testing sites over the Christmas break until 2 January, including reduced hours at some Community Health Service-led testing sites, however, there are more than 60 sites open today, Christmas Day, across metro Melbourne and regional Victoria. You can find a list of those here.
Testing sites will also be operating in the popular holiday destinations at Torquay, Lorne, and the Mornington Peninsula.
A total of 3,830, 531 test results have been received in Victoria which is an increase of 11,367 since yesterday. Wastewater monitoring is continuing at more than 60 locations across Victoria. Victoria’s border with New South Wales is closed and no one who has been in the northern beaches area, greater Sydney or the NSW Central Coast from 11 December is allowed to come into Victoria.
Anyone arriving at the road border from those impacted areas will be turned away and will have to find alternative accommodation in NSW. Victorians have been strongly advised not to travel to Sydney as they may not be able to re-enter without undertaking hotel quarantine for 14 days.
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I just want to give a warm shout-out to all of the public health experts, infectious diseases physicians, virologists, epidemiologists, biostatisticians, healthcare workers and other experts who have given so much of their time, helping to explain this virus to journalists and the public throughout the year.
Many of these experts have taken calls from journalists while working in hospitals, while managing crisis after crisis, and while severely overworked and sleep-deprived, just to help us get it right and to keep people up-to-date. I was going to name them all but realised I’d be here until New Year’s if I did that, so instead I will just say a very genuine thank you to them all.
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Australians behind bars in Bali for Christmas
Nine Australians who are spending Christmas in Bali jails will be banned from the traditional festive family visits as a result of Covid-19, AAP reports.
Of the Australian prisoners behind bars on the holiday island, only two qualify for the traditional Christmas sentence remissions. The others, serving life sentences or who are still on trial, do not qualify.
AAP has confirmed that two Australians – Brendon Luke Johnsson and Robert Andrew Fiddes Ellis – will both be awarded sentence cuts of one month and 15 days this Christmas. Johnsson is serving a five-year-and-four-month sentence on a drugs offence and Ellis is serving 15 years after being convicted of child sex offences.
Johnsson was convicted in relation to 11.6 grams of cocaine found in his possession in Bali in 2019. Both Johnsson and Ellis are serving their time in Bali’s Kerobokan prison.
Only two members of the Bali Nine heroin smuggling gang remain in the same prison – Si Yi Chen and Matthew James Norman. However, as both are serving life sentences, they do not qualify for any sentence remissions, which are traditionally awarded to all prisoners in Indonesia twice a year, on Independence Day and on their nominated religious holiday.
Bali Nine heroin courier, Brisbane man Scott Anthony Rush, is held in the Bangli narcotic prison in Bali’s north. He is also serving a life sentence. Two other Bali Nine members, Martin Stephens and Michael Czugaj, are jailed in Java and are also serving life sentences and get no remissions.
Christmas is generally a festive time in Kerobokan jail, where families are allowed to visit for the day and religious ceremonies are held. But the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has put a stop to that. It is now nine months since any prisoners were allowed inside Bali jails, after all visits were banned in March in a bid to stop the spread of the coronavirus through prison populations.
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Hello and welcome
Good morning everyone and welcome to our Covid – and other – coverage for Christmas Day, which I’ll be bringing to you from Melbourne. Happy Christmas to those who celebrate it, and happy Friday to everyone else.
To recap the latest news from around the country;
- New South Wales health authorities are worried undetected Covid cases among office workers in Sydney’s CBD could spread the virus at Christmas gatherings, as the number of infections linked to the northern beaches cluster grew to 104. The premier, Gladys Berejiklian, pleaded on Thursday with residents to “limit your mobility” over Christmas as she reported nine new community cases from a record 60,184 tests and warned NSW was “far from out of the woods”.
- Here is a reminder of the Christmas Day restrictions in NSW, while you can find a list of the current hotspots here.
- Queensland police have launched an investigation after a crew member of a luxury superyacht that sailed from the Maldives to Cairns tested positive to coronavirus. The Queensland health minister said the 14 passengers and six crew aboard the Lady E yacht have not been cooperating with contact-tracing inquiries since they arrived in the state on Monday.
We were so close to an almost Covid-free Christmas in Australia until the northern beaches cluster broke out in Sydney, which goes to show how quickly this virus can spread. I know the outbreak will have changed holiday plans and family celebrations for many readers, and my thoughts are with those unable to be with those they love, those in quarantine, and those isolating or in lockdown.
There will also be many people who lost loved ones this year, especially in Victoria, for whom special occasions may be especially tough, so my thoughts are with all of you too.
If you’d like to share with me how your Christmas plans have changed due to Covid and what you’re doing to make the most of it, email me at melissa.davey@theguardian.com or tweet me @MelissaLDavey, I’ll include some of your stories and photos in this blog. That includes those of you who are loving spending Christmas alone and who are having a quieter day of it this year – I know not everyone who spends the day alone dislikes it! So share your fabulous solo plans with me too and in the comments thread in this article, whether you celebrate Christmas or not.
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