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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Cait Kelly (now) and Matilda Boseley (earlier)

NT reports nine new Covid cases as Victoria debates pandemic laws – as it happened

And with that, it’s time to end this blog for the evening. We will, of course, be back tomorrow to do it all again.

But before we say goodnight, let’s recap the big stories:

  • Victorian crossbench MP Andy Meddick demanded the opposition leader condemn MPs who appeared at a controversial protest last night as changes were made to Victoria’s pandemic powers bill.
  • New South Wales records 212 new Covid-19 cases and two deaths, while Victoria records 797 new cases and eight deaths, 12 in the ACT and zero in Queensland.
  • People in Forbes were ordered to evacuate as the Lachlan River floods.
  • New Zealand shortens isolation time for Covid-positive people.
  • The Northern Territory announced there were nine new Covid cases - all Aboriginal Territorians.
  • South Australia introduced vaccine mandate for school and childcare staff

It was, as always, a total pleasure.

Updated

When ABC journalist Mollie Gorman was doing her live cross earlier today the Lachlan River was slowly inching closer.

A reminder that residents in low areas around Forbes need to be evacuating.

More details on the SES website.

Updated

Essendon football club’s chief executive, Xavier Campbell, is confident the club’s football program and training schedule can go ahead as normal despite him testing positive to Covid-19.

Campbell developed mild symptoms on Monday afternoon and immediately got tested. The positive result was confirmed on Tuesday morning.

Updated

Rock art that has lasted tens of thousands of years is being destroyed by the climate emergency in a matter of years.

Coastal erosion, fires, floods and cyclones are among the extreme events predicted to get more severe with global heating. Archaeologists and historians are now warning that serious damage has already been done.

This from AAP:

A collapsed property investment scheme which cost elderly Australians their homes and life savings has been referred for possible criminal charges.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has handed information about Sterling Income Trust to the commonwealth director of public prosecutions to weigh up criminal charges.

Former ASIC investigator Niall Coburn told a Senate inquiry on Tuesday it was “incredible” the corporate cop took so long to start investigating and the delay allowed the scheme to “spread its tentacles”.

The scheme lured Western Australian investors into signing long-term tenancy agreements, with returns from a lump-sum investment used to pay rent.

Senators are scrutinising ASIC’s oversight and looking at what is needed to prevent it from happening again, as well as broader laws for financial misconduct victims.

Updated

There’s been so much happening today around the Victorian pandemic bill.

I’ve got two really good articles for those wanting to catch up / understand why it has created so much confusion.

Here is Calla Wahlquist and Michael McGowan on how the bill became fuel for Victoria’s anti-government protests:

And here is Caitlin Cassidy with everything you need to know about what changes were made today to the controversial bill:

Updated

The Coalition has radically revised its proposed religious discrimination bill, scrapping the so-called Folau clause and removing the ability for health providers to refuse treatment on the basis of “conscientious objection”.

The revised bill – which has been signed off by cabinet and was briefed to government MPs on Monday – still includes a controversial “statement of belief” clause which would override other commonwealth, state and territory anti-discrimination laws.

The young family stranded in the Simpson desert have been rescued by police. I will bring you more details when I have them.

Earlier I said we would chase up some further details on the report in The Australian that the NSW government has approved plans to extend the state’s Covid-19 emergency powers until March 2023.

We now have a response from NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet, who we asked to comment on the story.

“Only the health provisions that need to be extended will be extended,” he said.

“I will be carefully considering this matter over the summer break.”

NT Senator Malarndirri McCarthy earlier said one of the cases was her sister - on Twitter she has now revealed she is related to all the cases.

I think it’s really important to highlight her point that catching Covid is not something to be ashamed of - it is a pandemic after all. We just need to work together to limit the spread.

Earlier McCarthy said overcrowded housing in remote communities needed to be urgently addressed to protect Aboriginal Territorians.

“This is a serious matter. This is a case of life and death here,” she said.

“And unless families have an ability to be able to isolate in their own home — and how can they when you have 15-20 people, which is the case of my families.

“[There is] absolute urgency that must be placed on housing for remote homelands and outstations with the federal government.”

The search for the remains of William Tyrrell has continued but is yet to turn up any answers.

Police have been going through a garden bed near the foster grandmother’s house. They are digging up the bed and sifting through it before putting it through a mulcher.

There are hundreds of officers involved in the search.

This from AAP:

Police have dug up the garden at the Kendall home where his foster grandmother lived and where he was last seen in 2014.

A mechanical sift was brought on to the property while in nearby bushland volunteers cut down trees to help in the search.

NSW Police commissioner Mick Fuller confirmed there had been a significant breakthrough in the case, saying he was confident police would solve the mystery of the boy’s fate.

“There is certainly one person in particular that we are looking closely at,” he told Sydney radio 2GB on Tuesday.

Police minister David Elliott was asked about a report that police were investigating whether William died after falling from a balcony at the Kendall home.

“With a mysterious incident like this, every single option has to be investigated, every scenario has to be reviewed and tested,” he said.

Updated

NSW emergency powers extended to March 2023

The NSW government has approved plans to extend the state’s Covid-19 emergency powers until March 2023.

First reported in The Australian, the paper said the decision prompted “heated backlash” from some MPs, who have argued that it is overreach.

The emergency powers allow the government to limit movement between LGAs, require people to wear masks and put a curfew in place.

We are chasing further details.

Shadow assistant treasurer Stephen Jones is asked to comment and he takes the opportunity to have a dig at the Coalition for backing the Australian Space Agency.

We are talking about investing billions of dollars in a program for space exploration.

I’m not against space exploration but surely putting a roof over somebody’s head, getting fresh food into communities, is more important than some of these other things that we are spending money on at the moment.

Updated

Liberal MP Jason Falinski, who is currently chairing the federal parliamentary inquiry into housing and supply is on Afternoon Briefing now.

PK has asked him about concerns the outbreak in the NT will spread quickly because of overcrowding in homes.

“I mean, how much time do you have?”

He says the country’s housing issues were created by all levels of government and need to be fixed by all levels of government.

I was going to quote it but that is pretty much it – there are no suggestions past we need all governments to work on it. Moving on then...

Updated

Opposition whip Bernie Finn in the legislative council is up critiquing the Victorian government’s pandemic bill and commending the protesters who camped outside parliament house yesterday evening.

Finn attended a rally on Saturday which he said was attended by “the most massive crowd” he’d seen in decades.

Those people in the streets aren’t going to wear what this premier is trying to pull. You’ve got people prepared to sleep on the streets of this parliament as a vigil, such is their commitment. Daniel Andrews has given people a reason to be interested in politics, every cloud has a silver lining ... I wish them well, I hope it doesn’t rain, I commend them for taking a stand for freedom in this state.

The people are marching in the street not because they’re some kind of left-wing or right-wing neo nazi or white supremacist, they’re people who have been ignored by Daniel Andrews for far too long ... they’ve been pushed to breaking point.

I’m not sure there are self-described “left-wing neo nazis”, and it’s worth reminding that nooses and placards calling for violence against politicians were pictured among the crowds of protestors over the weekend, but anyway.

Earlier, Finn dismissed a picture he posted of the premier depicted as Hitler as “a joke” because he replaced the swastika with an ABC logo.

Updated

The Morrison government has been accused of neglecting to assess the impact of the pandemic on young children, with current policies labelled “a series of crisis responses”.

Jay Weatherill, the former Labor premier of South Australia and chief executive of Minderoo Foundation’s Thrive by Five initiative, made the comments at the Senate’s Covid-19 inquiry on Tuesday.

Reason Party’s Fiona Patten has just confirmed the Victorian government’s pandemic legislation, if it passes, will be reviewed within two years.

This was one of the key recommendations the Law Institute of Victoria called for in its response to the amendments.

Patten says it is a “delicate balance” protecting human rights and protecting health:

Doing nothing seems to be what we’re saying ... let the disease run wild, let’s do nothing. It’s not acceptable here, it’s not acceptable in Australia, it’s not acceptable anywhere in the world. The ultimate human right is to protect life, and that is what we are doing ... I would not have accepted another extension of the state of emergency.

I said in March, we needed pandemic specific legislation because otherwise we’re dealing with legislation designed to deal with floods ... fires ... not global pandemics ... we should not let the perfect get in the way of the good and I support this legislation.

Updated

Bandt is asked about how ambitious everyone’s climate policies need to be – he is saying they need to be in line with the science.

Australia’s leading climate scientists have said to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees, Australia’s fair share is a 74% cut by 2030.

The Liberals have just been so terrible over the last few years that they have given us less time to turn the ship around and as a result, climate targets have to be 75% by 2030 to be consistent with the Glasgow pact.

We have to have a plan to get out of coal and gas. We certainly can’t as Labor wants to do, open up new gas and coalmines. That is just a red line that can’t be gone below.

Updated

PK has asked Bandt about CoP26 and he is taking the opportunity to attack both the Libs and Labor for “wanting more coal and gas”.

Coal and gas are on death row now after the Glasgow climate summit.

They have had their day and you can argue about whether it’s an orange light or a red light that is flashing after this summit but what is absolutely clear is that it is on its way out.

And it is really countries like Australia under Morrison and Joyce and Russia and Saudi Arabia who are saying no, we think we can open up more.

This is going to be a test for Labor as well because there is 116 new coal and gas mines currently in the pipeline that may – that are yet to be opened or expanded.

Now post-Glasgow there is no room for more coal and gas but Labor and Liberal want more coal and gas.

Updated

PK has asked Bandt what he makes of the report Perrottet is also pushing for extended powers.

This is a balancing act that we’ve all had to go through and as the Greens, we have always been very concerned about making sure that there’s not government overreach when it comes to these powers.

That in New South Wales, but also in Victoria, is exactly the debate that we’ve been engaging in parliament to ensure that there’s some more civil liberties protections built-in but at the same time that we protect public health.

I think the community is now used to that debate and saying that it’s something that should result in people being hanged is just contemptible.

Updated

And Adam Bandt is on Afternoon Briefing right now with Patricia Karvelas.

PK has asked about the protests in Victoria the last few days, which have been exceptionally violent in rhetoric and symbolism.

“When people are bringing nooses and gallows to parliament and giving speeches about how they want to see people hanged it doesn’t matter what part of the political spectrum the MP they are talking about is from, that should be condemned.

We have heard nothing from the prime minister on this. He was very, very quick to come out and condemn Black Lives Matter protesters who were trying their hardest to be peaceful but we have heard not a whisper.

This needs to be condemned by all political leaders and I think in terms of the frustration that you are feeling, there has been a lot of misinformation about the legislation that’s been proposed, there’s been a lot of fear-mongering.

Updated

This is really very cool news:

Updated

And it’s been announced today that living legend/national treasure Ernie Dingo will tour Western Australia, to encourage people to get the Covid vaccine.

There are fears some Aboriginal communities will be left vulnerable when WA opens up to the rest of the country next year, as only 32.6% of the population have had both jabs.

The federal government is funding the two-month tour.

“I know that we can beat hesitation around vaccines and needles with this approach – that’s why I’m packing up and heading up north to have a yarn with local influencers and elders in each community,” Dingo said.

“I’ll be having a cuppa and a yarn with countrymen over brekkie barbecues, listening to their concerns and encouraging them to be ready for the jab when the health teams come through the towns again.

“It’s about knowledge, about making our communities feel ready for the vaccine when it comes around.”

Updated

From AAP:

Unions are fighting the NSW government’s “cheap and nasty” plan to roll back a special Covid-19 protection for frontline workers who kept the state going at the height of the pandemic.

Unions NSW secretary Mark Morey urged the government to abandon its repeal of automatic Covid workers’ compensation coverage for exposed workers.

Failing that, he’s calling on crossbench MPs to “block the attack on workers’ rights”.

“This is a mean and nasty piece of legislation that is saying to every worker that kept the economy going: ‘You are on your own’,” he said.

Premier Dominic Perrottet this week announced his intention to scrap a provision in the Workers Compensation Act allowing for the presumption that frontline workers who test positive caught the virus while on duty.

The government estimates keeping the protection could invite 25,000 extra claims over the next 12 months, forcing insurance premiums up by an average of $950.

Covid-19 claims could cost the workers compensation system as much as $638m in the coming year.

Updated

The Law Institute of Victoria has released a statement on the amendments to the pandemic management bill. It says the changes go “some way” to addressing its concerns, but not far enough to be fit for purpose.

The institute released its position paper on the bill on 11 November, which outlined 32 recommendations in full, six of which have been included in the proposed amendments.

Law Institute of Victoria (Liv) president Tania Wolff said the amendments were moving in the right direction compared with the original bill:

The Liv is pleased to see these amendments ... however, the Liv continues to have concerns over some aspects of the bill and urges members of parliament to continue working through amendments to the legislation to ensure it is fit for the purpose of protecting our democracy and safeguarding members of the community.

The most significant of our concerns are that:

  • the use and exercise of the powers should require effective independent oversight and scrutiny, such as by the ombudsman
  • there should be accessible external merits review of all decisions relating to detention and that Vcat be given jurisdiction
  • the bill should not include terms of imprisonment, and
  • there needs to be stricter controls on the use of information gathered for public health purposes to protect individual privacy.

If these recommendations ... are not adopted, then at a minimum, we call for a sunset clause so that the new part would expire in 18-24 months from its commencement.

This allows the government to continue to meet the challenges of this current pandemic, but ensures an opportunity for further independent review so that the legislation is fit for purpose for any future pandemic.

Updated

The corporate regulator asked for its ability to decide claims under a compensation scheme to be restored in 2016 but was knocked back by Treasury, a parliamentary inquiry has heard.

Giving the Australian Securities and Investments Commission the power to decide claims under the Compensation for Detriment caused by Defective Administration scheme would have prevented a group of investors who are seeking $200m over a large corporate collapse from falling into a limbo where neither the watchdog nor Treasury will decide their claim.

Parliament’s joint committee on corporations and financial services has been looking into the plight of the investors, victims of the collapse of the Prime Retirement and Aged Care Property Trust, following Guardian Australia’s coverage of the issue.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/aug/22/stuck-in-limbo-investors-blame-asic-for-200m-loss-but-no-one-will-hear-their-claim

Under questioning from Labor MP Julian Hill, Treasury assistant secretary Mohita Zaheed said Asic previously held authorisation to make decisions under the CDDA scheme.

The authorisation lapsed when assistant treasurer Josh Frydenberg, who made the authorisation, left the post in September 2015.

Asic asked for it to be restored but, Zaheed said, treasury refused the request because it took the view doing so would conflict with section 12 of the Asic act, which prohibits the government of the day giving the regulator instructions “about a particular case”.

In letters to Treasury and the minister for financial services, Jane Hume, investors have said they do not accept this argument.
Hill said: “The whole thing looks like a protection racket to stop citizens or investors or anyone in Australia lodging a CDDA claim against the corporate regulator.”

Zaheed said investors had access to make a payment for an act of grace payment, which she said was a “very similar scheme”.
Hill also became frustrated after Treasury first assistant secretary Simon Writer batted away his questions about why the decision not to renew the authorisation was made.

“With respect, I know you’re an intelligent man, but you sound like a talking parrot and I’m pressing a button, saying the same thing without actually answering the question,” Hill said.

Updated

And wham – NSW joins the fray.

Updated

Queensland cancels some applications for exemptions to enter state

Queensland health authorities have automatically cancelled some long-running applications for compassionate and medical exemptions to enter the state, including cases where people had waited more than five weeks with no formal response.

Last week, Queensland’s health directions exemption service wrote to hundreds of people who had been seeking to cross the state border, advising that their cases had taken so long to assess they would now be “closed”.

Updated

And it is still a very wet November – in fact, it is fast becoming the wettest on record. Grab yer’ brollies people!

Updated

Philip Lowe was speaking earlier today – the RBA governor said he doesn’t expect interest rates to rise until 2024.

Given the global and domestic forces I have discussed, the inflation outlook is more uncertain than it has been for some time, but our central scenario is the underlying inflation reaches the middle of the target by 2023.

If this comes to pass, it would be the first time in nearly seven years that we will be at the midpoint of the target range.

This by itself does not warrant an increase in the cash rate. As I have said, much will depend on the trajectory of the economy and inflation at the time, so it is still plausible that the first increase in the cash rate will not be before 2024.

Updated

Australia’s frontier history is still being pieced together, errors are still being corrected and new information is coming to light, according to the emeritus professor of history Lyndall Ryan and her research team at the University of Newcastle’s massacre map project.

Nowhere is this more apparent than in western Victoria, where Ryan says the “mass of dots” denoting massacre sites has remained, despite researchers correcting locations and even removing some sites from the map.

Updated

In Victoria’s Legislative Council, the Liberal MP David Davis is up chatting all things pandemic bill, or pandemic bill adjacent:

We’ve got the terrible trifecta, the worst of all outcomes ... the longest lockdowns of any jurisdiction in the world, that has amazingly negative consequences on our business and kids, at the same time in Australia, we had the worst death rate by far ...

We have still never seen the evidence for the curfew, the extraordinary decision ... to lock down the state with a sharp curfew ... who ever came up with the curfew? It was Andrews in his office – in the bunker, that’s what they call his office.

The Labor MP Shaun Leane rises and asks why Davis’s points are relevant to debating the legislation. But the Reason party’s Fiona Patten rebukes him, saying “Mr Davis has an opportunity to go very broadly, which is what he is doing.”

Davis returns to the bunker.

Updated

The Australian Medical Association has released a statement about the attorneys general agreeing to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 12.

Much like many advocacy groups, they say it is still far too young to put people in prison.

“Last week’s meeting was a missed opportunity to make real progress in stopping harms to children,” the AMA president, Dr Omar Khorshid, said.

“Agreement by MAG to consider a proposal that would raise the age to 12 falls well short of what is needed. It will result in more children being locked up and ignores the expert medical, legal and social advice on the real harm of the current laws, which in reality make kids more likely to reoffend.

“Evidence shows the younger a child is at first contact with the justice system, the higher the rate of recidivism and children in contact with the criminal justice system at a young age are less likely to complete their education, find employment and are more likely to die an early death.”

According to AIHW data, 456 out of the 499 children under 14 in prison in 2019-20 were aged 12 to 13 years old.

“Raising the age of criminal responsibility only to 12 will do little to lower the number of children locked away behind bars.”

Updated

The federal MP Andrew Hastie has announced the birth of his third child.

“Ruth and I are delighted to welcome a beautiful baby girl into the world, Jemimah Faith Hastie!” the assistant minister for defence told party supporters in an email.

“Jemimah was born at 11.11am yesterday, 3kgs, 49cm.

“Mum and baby are both doing well.

“Thank you to everyone who has offered their prayers and support over the last few months.”

Updated

South Australia to introduce vaccine mandate for school and childcare staff

In South Australia, a vaccine mandate is being introduced that will force all staff and volunteers at schools and childcare centres to at least have their first vaccine by 10 December.

Exceptions include people with medical exemptions, students, parents or carers that are dropping off/picking up children and incidental visitors at school.

The government also says masks will remain optional for adults and high school students in school.

The education minister, John Gardner, made the announcement, saying it was an important move to “ensure that we will be able to keep our children safe”.

Updated

The Victorian attorney general Jaclyn Symes’ motion for the pandemic bill to be declared “urgent” has just been passed in the Legislative Council 19 votes to 18.

Symes has now called for the bill to go through a second reading.

It comes as the Victorian Bar has released a statement saying the amendments don’t go far enough to protect the rule of law. The Victorian Bar president, Roisin Annesley, said:

The proposed amendments largely address low-priority issues and not the most fundamental problems with the bill. The major issues include the lack of effective parliamentary control over the minister’s pandemic orders and the lack of provision for an independent review of authorised officers’ exercise of power.

Updated

Victoria’s Legislative Council is back after a lunch break to continue to debate the government’s pandemic legislation.

Before lunch, the attorney general, Jaclyn Symes, raised a motion for the bill to be declared urgent.

The Liberal MP Gordon Rich-Phillips says there is no justification for the bill to be deemed urgent when the state of emergency declaration isn’t due to expire until 15 December:

All Victorians have cause to be concerned when the attorney general comes in here as she did this afternoon with an argument the Victorian community will benefit from certainty, seeks to sweep aside parliamentary process and ram this through.

I’m reminded about the purpose of urgent bills ... one that is needed to fix an urgent problem of governance in the state of Victoria ... this is not an urgent legislation. We have two sitting weeks to deal with this situation before changes to the current framework is required.

At least half a dozen questions have been put by Sarc to the relevant minister. Those questions have not been answered ... even Sarc, with its feeble scrutiny has further situations for the government. When you look at the ways urgent bills have been used before ... really urgent matters that need to be dealt with quickly ... every single time this chamber has sought to declare a bill an urgent bill, it has been done with the unanimous support of the House ... this is not one of those situations. This is a highly contested bill with enormous ramifications for the people of Victoria. There are genuine reasons people are marching on the streets and the front steps of parliament.

A reminder nooses and signs inciting violence against parliamentarians have been spotted among those people marching, even if they’re doing so for “genuine reasons”.

Updated

The Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission has welcomed today’s news the state government will amend the Public Health and Wellbeing Amendment (Pandemic Management) Bill 2021.

The commissioner, Ro Allen, said “the amendments and clarity announced today strengthen the bill and its human rights commitments”.

Allen had raised her concerns with Victoria’s attorney general Jaclyn Symes, highlighting a clause that would allow the government to make targeted pandemic orders based upon people’s attributes. The clause has been amended as part of crossbench negotiations.

Another of the commission’s key demands – that the bill would require pandemic orders to be compatible with the human rights charter – has also been secured.

Victorian attorny general Jaclyn Symes
Victorian attorny general Jaclyn Symes. Photograph: James Ross/AAP

Updated

Supplies of the Pfizer vaccine have begun to trickle into pharmacies across the country, as the sector prepares to administer booster shots to early recipients.

Government data shows about 3,690 Pfizer doses were ordered for delivery to community pharmacies in the first week of the month. Last week, about 150,000 doses were expected to be delivered to community pharmacies.

There are currently about 3,434 pharmacies participating in the vaccine rollout. They will be able to administer booster shots to the high-priority recipients who received the vaccine early this year. Pharmacies can also administer first and second doses.

“This means from today, all primary care sites around the country will progressively be able to offer all three Covid-19 vaccines approved for use in Australia, increasing choice and making it easier for whole families to get vaccinated at the same time,” the health department said in its most recent weekly update.

The Pharmacy Guild of Australia has previously expressed concern about the take-up of the Pfizer vaccine by its members.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported earlier this month that only about 20% of Australian pharmacies had ordered Pfizer doses. The Guild expressed concern in an email to its members, saying only 1,156 of the then 3,416 participating pharmacies had placed orders.

Updated

And that is it for the Northern Territory Covid presser – but I will bring you more on the story as it develops throughout the afternoon.

Updated

Pain says health authorities do not think the transmission is widespread in Katherine.

However, we cannot be absolutely confident of that. With the testing, although it has not been desirable, we wouldn’t have had the testing rates we would have liked.

Even with those tests we would have expected to pick up cases if it was widespread, but I don’t want to give any false reassurance about that.

We are in a desperate fight now to identify new cases in Katherine and I do need people to come forward and get tested.

Updated

Pain says the woman in her 60s who is in hospital is not in ICU.

“She did need hospitalisation, so is acutely unwell, but at this stage not requiring intensive care.”

He says the hospitals have good capacity for the number of cases “we are expecting”.

We have the ability to expand that capacity as well. We can more or less double our capacity if we need to.

Obviously an assessment will be made of our needs for that as the numbers of cases rise, if they do.

Updated

Dr Charles Pain says Katherine hospital has four beds for Covid patients.

They do have some limited capacity to manage Covid patients but at this stage, with the small numbers, our priority is to get them up either to the CNR or Royal Darwin hospital if they need treatment.

Updated

The Northern Territory police commissioner, Jamie Chalker, says this is a worst-case scenario but they have planned for it.

“As I’ve mentioned on many occasions, the harsh reality of overcrowding is something that leads this particular Delta strain to be very problematic.”

He says “additional resources” have been sent to Borroloola, which may have to go into lockdown if cases have spread there.

He says there have been a few events in recent days, including funerals of key community figures, that meant people have travelled around.

He says police will be across the NT in the coming days and they will not tolerate protests.

“I can’t be bothered dealing with your rubbish in the interim. There is just too much at stake. Compliance ... in Katherine has been pretty good, although there are already some people pushing the boundaries.”

Updated

The Northern Territory deputy chief health officer, Dr Charles Pain, is now speaking:

We are now in a clearly very serious situation. We have 11 cases now associated with this second cluster. Nine of those, we’re informed, notified to us overnight. There is clearly a significant spread in two households.

We can see how fast it can spread. We don’t know how far it is spread. We really need our community, please, to come forward and get tested at this stage.

He says everyone has been compliant with contact tracing:

If you are still waiting to get vaccinated you could be exposed to the virus at any time.

You’re taking that risk of being exposed to the virus unvaccinated and the consequences of that, particularly for the communities in the Territory, could be dire. On the contact tracing, please, it is extremely important, we’ve had very good cooperation.

I would like to thank all those two who have helped us with the contact tracing and giving their information. Much of that is very confidential. We treat it as highly confidential.

Updated

Gunner is now speaking about Robinson River, the remote community where cases have been detected.

Our rapid assessment team arrived last night and are hard at work. Their top two priorities – to offer the vaccine to anyone who needs it and test for new Covid cases.

We have conducted about 20 priority tests in Robinson River that should soon leave for Darwin and we should have results in the morning. We have enough tests to test the whole of that community.

We are under no illusions that the risk there remains real and there is more testing to do there today. I mentioned yesterday they have a good vaccination rate – 87% first dose and 77% full vaccination.

As per our rapid response plan, additional supplies of the vaccine have been offered to anyone who is eligible ... and this measure can save lives.

Updated

Gunner urges everyone to get the vaccine.

The vaccine rate for Katherine overall and within vulnerable pockets is not at a level where we can consider lockout as an option.

This is our challenge to the people of Katherine. This is how you can best help us, yourself, your loved ones and the community. We need to see a vaccine response in Katherine, we need to see a testing response in Katherine. I know you can do this. Not in theory, in fact. You have done this before, let’s smash this, Katherine.

Updated

Gunner says there will be daily wastewater testing in Alice Springs, Tennant Creek, Katherine and Darwin.

A positive wastewater result in one of these locations may be enough to trigger a lockdown or lockout decision. These are tough times for Katherine. I thank you all for complying with last night’s snap lockdown direction. This is the third time Katherine has had to be locked down.

I feel for the people of Katherine and Katherine businesses. We do not want to have to lock you down. You have done everything we have asked and made sacrifices for every Territorian.

Updated

Gunner says the Katherine lockdown has been extended to 6pm Monday 22 November.

All Territorians have a call to action. There will be a mask mandate for all Territorians until 6pm Monday 22 November. You must wear a mask whenever you leave the home. You are permitted to remove your mask if undertaking vigorous exercise.

If clusters one and two are linked, there is a significant gap between the last case on 4 November and the first case of cluster two on 13 November. There is a chance the virus has seeded and moved.

I need all symptomatic Territorians to get tested. We want to see a testing response across the territory.

Updated

Gunner is now listing the exposure sites and says there are currently 161 close contacts.

I want to touch on two important exposure sites separately so I will run through the other exposure sites now. These are all close contact sites. So if you have been to these places at these times, you must immediately self-quarantine, call the Covid hotline and we will organise a test.

Captain Jack’s Fish and Chips yesterday, 15 November, from 12pm to 12.35pm. Again close contact site.

Wurli health service main clinic yesterday from 10am to 11.45pm.

Kirby’s pub, Katherine hotel, Friday 12 November from 12pm to 4.30pm.

Two important exposure sites I want to run through now, and they are the Katherine hospital and the MacFarlane primary school in Katherine.

First Katherine hospital. The times and specific locations we are still working on. Please keep monitoring the coronavirus website as we provide that information shortly. Please pay close attention.

Second MacFarlane primary school. I encourage parents whose kids normally attend MacFarlane primary school but because of the lockdown are not at school today to please get your kids tested today. That is a request.

Updated

Gunner says the nine new cases are concerning:

This is obviously a serious escalation in the Covid-19 situation in the Northern Territory. A major contact tracing effort has been under way since the first case we reported yesterday.

Updated

The Northern Territory chief minister, Michael Gunner, is speaking – he is listing the age of each case.

A 71-year-old man, a 65-year-old woman who has been admitted to Royal Darwin hospital, a 62-year-old woman, a 40-year-old woman, a 38-year-old woman, a 22-year-old woman, a 16-year-old girl, two five-year-old girls – twins.

“I don’t have vaccination status details yet. Bar the 65-year-old woman who is at Royal Darwin hospital, all other cases are going to the centre for national resilience.

Updated

Northern Territory reports nine new Covid cases

We’re going to Darwin, where Northern Territory authorities have announced there are nine new Covid cases. They are all Aboriginal Territorians.

Updated

Victoria’s attorney general, Jaclyn Symes, has just raised a motion to label the pandemic bill “urgent” in the Legislative Assembly. A motion under this standing order can’t be amended and debate can’t be adjourned:

The Victorian community will benefit from certainty ... debating this legislation in a timely manner will provide time for preparations as we reach our second opening up target.

This legislation should be afforded adequate time to be debated and scrutinised by this chamber ... [but] when the opposition want to make a point rather than just vote against it, they want to make sure there is the theatre they are opposing the bill at every juncture ... it’s a flawed strategy, the bill has been available for 20 days, I’m not sure what an additional two will seek to deliver to those opposite. The public already know we’re debating this week, I’d like to get on with it.

Symes says if the bill is not passed, the ability to contain Covid-19 will be significantly hindered. The state of emergency is due to lapse on 15 December.

The Liberal MP David Davis has called it an “extraordinary” move, that has been used just nine times since 1996.

On those occasions, on each occasion, it has been used without a vote. This occasion the government is using it to override the normal procedures of the House ... completely unreasonably and undemocratically ... the government’s arrogant approach typified by this inappropriate use of an urgency provision. The government couldn’t even wait one or two days to deal with this properly.

Updated

The Labor senator for the Northern Territory Malarndirri McCarthy has revealed her sister was the first case of Covid-19 in Robinson River.

McCarthy’s sister came forward for testing when she developed symptoms and it was currently unknown how she picked it up.

Yesterday afternoon the premier, Michael Gunner, said authorities would not have picked up the fact Covid had entered a remote community if the woman had not come forward.

We are expecting a Covid update from the NT soon – the time keeps getting pushed back.

Updated

We reported earlier that Forbes residents have been asked to leave – emergency services are now warning residents “it may be too dangerous to rescue you” if they remain.

We have the full story here:

Updated

The Victorian government’s controversial pandemic legislation is currently being debated in the Legislative Council.

Liberal MP David Davis says the Scrutiny of Acts and Regulations Committee, Sarc, has “dropped the ball badly”:

Forcing it through the lower house was appalling, refusing to have Sarc look at the bill before the assembly had the opportunity ... was fundamentally undemocratic.

Sarc needs to lift its game ... it needs to properly inquire into these bills and it can’t continue to sweep the abuses of this government under the carpet. This committee has lost its way.

The Reason party’s Fiona Patten responds to Davis, saying, as a member of Sarc, she takes “great offence” to his comments:

But I would also like to note the liberal members of Sarc are rarely there.

Mr Smith, we haven’t seen him for quite some time, Mr Burgess I’d have to note was relatively silent on this bill. Sarc discussed and scrutinised this bill for two and a half hours and the report reflects that scrutiny. I would suggest if the opposition wants to play a role in Sarc, turn up.

Updated

From AAP:

NSW police could face a large compensation bill if a class action lawsuit alleging unlawful searches took place at a popular music festival is successful.

Hundreds of people who attended Splendour in the Grass from 2016 to 2019 in northern NSW may have been unlawfully searched, according to law firm Slater & Gordon and the Redfern Legal Centre.

“This ground-breaking class action will seek redress for the many people subjected to invasive and traumatic searches,” Redfern Legal Centre principal solicitor Alexis Goodstone said on Tuesday.

The legal centre and Slater & Gordon claim they have evidence “systemic and unlawful police searches” were carried out.

An investigation by the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission last year reported NSW police performed unlawful strip searches at the 2018 Splendour in the Grass, including on a 16-year-old girl.

Updated

Looks like AAP journo Benita Kolovos spoke to Human Rights Law Centre about the amendments to the pandemic laws.

Australia’s attorneys general have agreed to formulate a plan to raise the age of criminal responsibility from 10 to 12 years old, but the move has been criticised by justice advocates as a “nothing” decision that will do little to reduce the juvenile detention population.

There will be a Covid update from the NT very soon - and we are hearing reports that there will be more cases announced. Expected shortly after 11 am ACST.

A police helicopter is on its way to rescue a Perth family who have been stuck in the Simpson Desert since Wednesday last week.

On Friday they put out a beacon saying the need to be rescued. They do have food and no one is injured but they have two young children with them.

The helicopter left about 10am, South Australian time, and stopped on the way to refuel.

It should reach the family within the next 20 minutes. They will be taken to Olympic Dam, which is a remote mine next to Roxby Downs in the state’s far north.

I will bring you updates on the rescue and families health when we have them.

Updated

I’ve got some more information on the Forbes evacuation warnings.

About 800 properties are impacted, of which 500 are homes.

The river peaked overnight upstream at the floodgate and was about 1 metre higher than the peak in September 2016. That resulted in damaging flooding for the area.

It is expected to peak tomorrow.

If you have Twitter follow @NSWSES and @BOM_NSW for updates and warnings.

If you don’t, the SES website has updates.

Updated

Thank you, Matilda. As always impossibly large blog shoes to fill. Cait Kelly here, I will be taking you through the afternoon news.

An Evacuation Order has been issued for low lying areas of #Forbes. There is more information below and I will bring you updates throughout the afternoon.

With that, I shall hand you over to the amazing Cait Kelly who will take you through the rest of the afternoon in news.

See you all tomorrow!

More on the Victorian opposition’s opposition to the new pandemic powers bill:

https://twitter.com/benitakolovos/status/1460411601836597249

ACT records 12 local Covid-19 cases

The Australian Capital Territory has recorded 12 new local Covid-19 cases.

There are now four people in the territory hospitalised due to the virus, one of these people are in the ICU and require ventilation.

'Inappropriate' Morrison government hasn't done more to study 0-5 year olds with Covid

Jay Weatherill, the chief executive of Minderoo Foundation’s Thrive by Five, just told the Senate’s Covid-19 committee the government should commission a children-specific Covid plan, and make the impact on children a standing item at the national cabinet.

Weatherill said the commonwealth should have commissioned Doherty Institute modelling of the spread and impact of Covid on children aged 0 to 5, and that it was “inappropriate” that hadn’t happened already.

Weatherill said current policies towards children were “a series of crisis responses” but something more systematic needs to be in place for coming challenges, including monitoring international developments on whether a vaccine can be developed and approved for those aged 0 to 5, and standardising testing regimes for children.

Updated

This is the end of days.

Crowds outside Victoria’s Parliament House appear to have become hostile to media, forcing senior 7 News reporter Nick McCallum to retreat up the road.

Updated

New Zealand records 222 Covid-19 cases and one death

New Zealand has reported 222 new cases of Covid-19 in the community, the highest daily tally since the pandemic began.

The ministry of health said there are 197 new cases in Auckland, 20 in Waikato, 2 in Wairarapa, 2 in Lakes District and 1 in Northland. There are now 5973 cases in the August outbreak.

The ministry reported another death of a person with Covid-19 on Tuesday. The patient, who was in their 70s, was admitted to Auckland City Hospital on 11 November and subsequently tested positive for the virus.

Our thoughts are with the patient’s whānau [family] and friends at this deeply sad time. We would also like to acknowledge the team at Auckland City Hospital and all health care workers for their continued hard work and dedication.

There are 91 people in hospital, including 7 in intensive care. Of today’s cases, 87 are yet to be epidemiologically linked to the outbreak, bringing the total of unlinked cases in the past fortnight to 866.

To date, 90% of the eligible population over 12 years old have had at least one dose of the Pfizer vaccine, and 81% are fully inoculated.

Updated

Blog treat! You’ve earned it!

At the Senate’s Covid-19 committee, experts from the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute have revealed the impact of coronavirus on children and current thinking on vaccines.

Prof Andrew Steer said evidence in Australia and internationally suggests about 0.7% of children who contract Covid-19 require admission to hospital and 0.07% require intensive care.

From 30 August to 10 October in Australia there were 79,000 positive cases, of whom 21,000 were kids (26%). Some 636 children were admitted to hospital, 3% of the 21,000. There were no deaths.

Steer said in Australia there are higher rates of hospitalisation because in some jurisdictions, especially NSW, they are being admitted for social reasons – because their parents are unwell – and the children are admitted “with that rather than for Covid”.

Steer said it was “pleasing to see” that Pfizer results for the under 12 show that it is an effective vaccine and there is “every reason to think it will be safe” but there is still reason for caution because there is “not enough information about risks”.

He noted there were some cases of *mild* myocarditis (inflammation of the heart) - but children have recovered. Still, researchers want to see results from the 400,000 children under 12 who have had Pfizer in the US and Canada.

Prof Sharon Goldfield was asked about the impact of lockdown on children and said there was some evidence of more frequent suicidal and self-harm ideation and presentations to the emergency department, especially at the end of 2020 and beginning of 2021 when Victoria was “in and out of lockdown”.

Updated

The first plane full of travellers from Sydney to Queensland destined for home quarantine has touched down.

Since the sunshine state reached a 70% double vaccination rate for its 16 and over population, they have launched a soft reopening of their borders, whereby travellers from NSW will be allowed to quarantine at home rather than in hotel facilities.

Updated

Opposition leader Anthony Albanese has joined the calls for Liberal politicians to condemn the violent imagery present at recent demonstrations protesting proposed new Victoria pandemic powers legislation. This included multiple prop gallows being taken to Parliament House.

Updated

NSW Health has released further details on the two people infected with Covid-19 who died in the last reporting period.

Sadly, NSW Health is today reporting the deaths of two men.

A man in his 70s died at Mercy Place aged care facility in Albury, where he acquired his infection. He had received one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine and had underlying health conditions. There have been 10 deaths linked to an outbreak at this facility.

A man in his 70s from south-west Sydney died at Liverpool Hospital. He had received two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine and had underlying health conditions.

NSW Health expresses its sincere condolences to their loved ones.

Updated

It seems the recent amendments to the Victoria pandemic powers legislation haven’t been enough to win over the state opposition (although in fairness probably nothing would have been):

OK, but you are telling me that the Queensland premier just tweeted this and DIDN’T include a photo of Mariah Carey? Missed opportunity.

Updated

More very normal and not at all concerning news coming from Victoria:

Satanic temple oppose changes to federal religious discrimination

Satanists from the Noosa Temple of Satan have met with Queensland senator Amanda Stoker to discuss their objections to the third draft of the new religious discrimination bill.

Robin Bristow, known as Brother Samael, said in a statement that the meeting with the (devoutly Christian) politician went well:

It was an amicable meeting.

Senator Stoker listened carefully to our objections and gave us a fair hearing.

Satanic temples generally operate somewhere more as a semi-satirical political activist organisation than a traditional faith congregation and often work to highlight the need for a separation of church and state.

The Noosa temple objects to the new bill as they fear it will allow religious organisations to discriminate against those of different faiths.

In their statement, the Temple’s lawyer, Trevor Bell, outlined the organisation’s objections to the bill.

We have no problem with the idea of protecting individuals from religious discrimination. Unfortunately, the proposed laws will do more than that. The new laws will enable religious institutions to discriminate against people of different faiths.

For example, a Catholic school will be able to sack or refuse to hire a physics teacher just because she is not Catholic.

Senator Stoker trotted out the usual argument that people of a faith should have the freedom to gather and form groups to the exclusion of others. If discrimination is bad then it doesn’t suddenly become OK just because a group of religious people want to do it.

The temple said the senator assured them that smaller faith groups supported the laws as strongly as the larger faith groups, but Bell doesn’t agree.

These new laws will favour the big established religions which have large institutions. We were shocked to learn that smaller religions have not joined with us Satanists in rejecting these proposed laws. Apparently, smaller religions hope to build institutions and conduct their own discrimination programs in future.

Bristow closed out the media release with this kicker of a line:

I fear Hell has frozen over ... Satanists are the only faith group willing to fight against this injustice.

Updated

No new Covid-19 cases in Queensland

Queensland has recorded another day of no new Covid-19 cases.

The renewed police search continues for the remains of toddler William Tyrrell who went missing in NSW seven years ago.

Federal Labor has also come out to condemn politicians who have participated in the Melbourne anti-vaccination/anti-pandemic powers protests across the last week.

Opposition frontbencher Andrew Leigh has condemned controversial MP Craig Kelly’s appearance on Saturday, suggesting that, despite him leaving the party early in the year, the Liberals were also implicated in this:

Craig Kelly’s only in parliament because Scott Morrison stepped in to save his preselection at the last election. If not for that, Craig Kelly would not be a member of parliament. So he’s very much a creation of Scott Morrison’s and he continues to vote very strongly with the government.

Certainly I think what we’re seeing with vaccination hesitancy is that it’s the latest tool of populists to try and marshal people against the government. We saw that with climate change, we’ve seen it with a range of fringe economic theories. We’ve also seen up with the attempt to deploy racist language.

The way to counter it is is calm, sound science and just being very clear with people about the risks of not being vaccinated right now. People that haven’t been vaccinated are now accounting for the substantial majority of deaths.

Updated

Evacuation order likely as floods approach

A NSW central west town is preparing to evacuate as flooding from days of heavy rain raises rivers across the state, reports AAP.

Of prime concern to authorities is the swollen Lachlan River, with more than 8,000 people in the town of Forbes in its path.

The Bureau of Meteorology forecast major flooding in the town from Tuesday, with the river expected to peak on Wednesday morning at a level similar to or higher than the September 2016 floods.

The NSW SES deputy zone commander, Barry Griffiths, says an evacuation order for low-lying areas in Forbes is likely to be issued on Tuesday morning.

He says the river is expected to peak overnight but an evacuation order will be issued earlier than that “to try and give the community as much time as they can to evacuate safely and calmly”.

SES and Rural Fire Service volunteers are door-knocking and delivering about 10,000 sandbags to residents as well as helping prepare properties.

Griffiths told Nine’s Today show on Tuesday morning:

We are confident that the actions we are taking at the moment are suitable enough for the predicted flood event, but it is going to be a bit of a waiting game over the next 24 hours. We need to see what the water actually does.

Moderate flooding has occurred upstream at Cowra, and major flooding occurred at Nanami on Monday night, with the river peaking at more than 12.4m.

The river there reached levels higher than in September 2016 but lower than in August 1990.

It was too early to tell how high the river will rise when those floodwaters reach Forbes, the BOM said on Monday, but the SES has warned locals in up to 800 homes to prepare to leave before they hit the town.

Downstream from Forbes, major flooding is also expected at Cottons Weir and Jemalong.

BOM hydrologist Justin Robinson said:

One fortunate thing about the floods in western NSW is that they’re a slow moving, evolving event.

Hopefully we’ll be able to provide them adequate warning and leave time for them to prepare ahead of the floods actually arriving and impacting their personal properties and communities.

St Andrews Church in Forbes has been set up as an evacuation centre as residents are urged to be on high alert for an SES evacuation text message.

The Macquarie, Paroo, Macintyre, Belubula, and Snowy rivers have also flooded, after parts of the state copped a month’s worth of rain in days.

Yesterday meteorologist Agata Imielska said:

Some of those locations (received) even two to three times what you would get in November.

Catchments are wet, dams are full. This is exactly what we’ve been talking about for this season, with the elevated flood risk.

It is a really important time to really be keeping very close eye on any flood warnings.

Updated

Residents of the town of Nundle are calling on the New South Wales government to impose the same standards of community consent for existing renewable development proposals as it has for the state’s new renewable energy zones.

As the first two of five REZs were declared in the central west-Orana and New England regions, the NSW government’s electricity infrastructure roadmap mandated that “renewables are developed where regional communities want them”.

There has been an overwhelming expression of interest in response. As a result, the member for Northern Tablelands and NSW agriculture minister, Adam Marshall, said the government had “the luxury of supporting only the best projects that benefit the community, maintain the highest and strictest development standards and maximise local renewable jobs and investment in the region”.

You can read the full report below:

A minor to major flood warning has been issued for communities along the Lachlan River including Forbes, Cottons Weird and Jemalong.

NZ shortens isolation time for Covid-positive people

New Zealand will allow vaccinated Covid-positive people to self-isolate for shorter times, as vaccinations and case numbers across the country rise. For those who are fully vaccinated, the isolation time has been reduced from 14 days to 10 days, and must include 72 hours symptom-free.

“If you are vaccinated and catch Covid-19, by day 10 of infection you will pose a very low risk of passing on the virus – and do not need to isolate for as long as someone who’s unvaccinated,” associate health minister Ayesha Verrall said.

Those who are considered a “close contact” of a case and are vaccinated will have to self-isolate for seven days, or 10 days for those unvaccinated.

As of Monday, New Zealand’s total outbreak was at 5,751 people, an increasing number of whom are self-isolating at home.

According to the Ministry of Health, 90% of eligible New Zealanders (those aged 12 and over) have now had at least one dose of the vaccine, and 81% are fully vaccinated.

Updated

Andrews has also hinted at imminent announcements on further easing of restrictions in Victoria as the state nears its 90% double-vaccination milestone.

These will likely include the removal of mask mandates in office settings.

A little later this week we’ll be able to have a chat about when we’ll move from these settings to new settings, when that switch will happen.

That means we go down to masks in sensitive settings only, for instance, public transport, hospitals, aged care, things of that nature. So no masks in the office, which will be important in terms of getting people back into the office and density quotients and other caps go, other than for the 10 biggest venues in the state.

Updated

Andrews has attacked the Victorian Liberals, accusing them of trying to have it “both ways”, with some MPs attending anti-vaccination protests, while the party campaigns to open the state up.

We’re back to just political games. You’ve got the opposition who are wanting to have it a bit both ways, you know, standing with people who are anti-vaxxers, sharing a podium with people who are anti-science, anti-vaccination, whilst at the same time talking about the place being closed.

The reason we’re open and the reason we’re going to stay open is that people have got vaccinated and I am extremely proud of Victorians and deeply grateful to them for having kept their end of the bargain and now we’re keeping ours.

Updated

Speaking of the protests in Victoria, the premier, Daniel Andrews, is speaking now from the back doors of Parliament House.

He has been asked about his government’s decision to amend some of the most controversial elements of the new pandemic powers legislation following negotiations with key crossbenchers.

We have a process where we engage in good faith and this is not unusual, that after discussions with crossbenchers and the normal parliamentary process there are some changes made.

More often than not, they’re about putting things beyond doubt. For instance, the characteristics changes that we’ve made, those terms that some have played political games with, of course those characteristics always related to the pandemic. It is a bill for the control of a pandemic after all.

But just to put those matters beyond any doubt at all, some amendments have been put forward and I think the minister for health has spoken to you about earlier.

Report:

Was that a mistake, though? Is it something you didn’t plan properly? It was too easy for people to grab that?

Andrew:

I wouldn’t put it in those terms. There are some who called for these measures a few weeks ago and as soon as the government did it they changed their position. That’s the definition of a political game. The thing about these laws and our management of this pandemic is it’s not a game. It’s very much about keeping people safe.

That’s why this week there will be parliamentary debate about these matters, obviously. But also we’ll make exciting announcements about reaching our 90% double-dose target, a credit to every single Victorian who has gone and got the job, done exactly what we asked them to do.

Updated

MPs demand Victoria opposition leader condemn party members who appear at controversial protest last night

As you might know, there were some worrying scenes outside Victoria’s Parliament House overnight, including those protesting against the new pandemic power legislation bringing a mock gallows to the steps and chanting about hanging high-profile politicians.

Well, the Victorian opposition has been fighting hard against the proposed emergency power bill, with some Liberal MPs even appearing at last night’s protests.

Now crossbench MP Andy Meddick has come out this morning demanding that opposition leader Matthew Guy condemn those in his party who participated.

Updated

NSW records 212 new Covid-19 cases and two deaths

The NSW case numbers are also out. The state recorded 212 new Covid-19 cases overnight.

Two Covid-19 patients have died in the latest reporting period.

Updated

Victoria records 797 new Covid-19 cases and eight deaths

There is good news and sad news coming out of Victoria today.

The state has recorded just 797 new Covid-19 cases this morning, continuing what appears to be a slight downward trend in numbers.

However, sadly eight people infected with Covid-19 have died in the latest reporting period.

Updated

Very normal things happening in Victoria today. Nothing to see there.

It was the proposal designed to take the heat out of when and where the leaders of the two major parties would debate each other in the lead-up to the election.

But a take-it-or-leave-it model for an “Australian Debates Commission” circulated by the government – far from cementing the independence of the body – proposes six of its 10 members be appointed either by the government, opposition, Liberal or Labor head offices.

The model also proposes that if consensus isn’t reached on when, where and how to engage, three debates will be slashed to just one outing in Canberra, overseen by the government-appointed “independent” commissioner or their choice of moderator.

At the conclusion of the third leader’s debate in May 2019 Scott Morrison and the then opposition leader, Bill Shorten, both committed to set up “an independent debates commission”.

You can read the full report below:

Updated

I’ll be bringing you updates on the Northern Territory Covid-19 situation throughout the morning, but if you want to get all caught up on why the towns of Katherine and Robinson River are in lockdown, you can check up the article below:

Hundreds of New South Wales police officers will descend on the area where missing boy William Tyrrell disappeared seven years ago in “high intensity” searches following new evidence in the investigation.

Detective chief superintendent Darren Bennett says the searches will last two to three weeks and some would be “subterranean”.

“It’s highly likely that if we found something it would be a body,” Bennett told reporters on Monday.

“We are looking for the remains of William Tyrrell, there’s no doubt about that.”

You can read the full report below:

The deputy prime minister has labelled the idea that Australia can reduce coal exports without damaging the government’s ability to provide services “blatantly childish”

Fran Kelly:

Boris Johnson said that the Glasgow deal, quote, “sounded the death knell for coal worldwide”. Your colleague Matt Canavan says it’s a big green light for us to build more coalmines. That’s what he said the communique was. Who’s right, the British prime minister or the senator from Queensland?

Joyce:

I think Matt’s pretty smart.

Look what he’s clearly saying is, if I look at Newcastle harbour and there are coal ships, taking away coal, and there are. If I got to Gladstone and there are coal ships taking away coal, and there are. If I got to Hay Point and there are coal ships taking away coal, and there are, then the world is still demanding coal. In fact they are demanding more of it at a high price, thermal coal, because of coal-fired power stations.

Kelly:

But that’s gonna change though, isn’t it? The government’s own modelling to net zero indicates that changes. Demand for coal cuts, I think it’s by 50% within two or three decades, so it’s changing.

Joyce:

Well, that will be determined by the global market. If people don’t want to buy it, they don’t want to buy it, but they’re now buying it, and we are lucky they are, because the money that we get from that is how we pay for hospitals and schools, your police force, your pharmaceutical benefits scheme, your ABC and on and on and on again.

You can’t say ‘I’m going to reduce the money I get but I still want all the services that it pays for’. It is just blatantly childish.

Updated

Barnaby Joyce has washed his hands of the Glasgow climate agreement. He slammed the climate commitments from the UK, using the country’s oil extraction operation in the North Sea, to suggest they are asking too much of Australia.

He also seemed to imply that signing the Cop26 pack would mean that Australia wouldn’t have enough money to pay for hospital and police, which is ... an interesting take.

In Australia, we had our discussions. The discussion for quite clear. We went to Glasgow with those discussions in mind. The whole Australia of knew about what we were taking to Glasgow. We went over to Glasgow, we’ve had those discussions. They say they’re going to have another one of these conferences next year.

And for my part, I want to make Australians make sure Australians don’t make themselves poorer. If we kick out of the door our second biggest export in this nation, then quite obviously you’re not bringing into this nation the money you need can support all the services that you take as a birthright from the ABC to the NDIS, to your pensions to the Pharmaceutical Benefits screen, to your hospitals, your police service, the whole bang lot!

We have got to understand that our economy is different to the French economy or the American economy or the UK economy which surprisingly enough if they ask us to close down our coal section of our economy, our second biggest export, they didn’t dare talk about their North Sea oil. No, that’s sacrosanct.

So they are allowed to look after their economy, but we’ve got to absolutely boot ours to pieces. What this means is that we have to be super cautious.

Updated

Speaking of Barnaby Joyce and his response to the Glasgow climate agreement, the deputy prime minister is on ABC radio now.

He tells host Fran Kelly that the Nationals are not happy with the pact the Australian government signed on Sunday.

We were not actually in Glasgow.

Kelly:

I mean, come on, you are the deputy prime minister of Australia.

Joyce:

I know I’m the deputy prime minister of Australia! I know that I am Fran. I know, you didn’t have to tell me that.

The target that we have agreed to makes quite clear that we were not going to be changing out our 2030 targets. That was the process that we are on in Australia we have we’ve met and beaten every target now.

Mr Albanese has a different plan ... We know that they are going to bring forth legislation. They just don’t intend to tell you about it.

... [Shadow treasurer] Dr [Jim] Chalmers is very charming, charmingly sneaky ... [He] says that they’re going to somehow deceive us in the next couple of weeks ... And they should be telling us now exactly what they intend to do.

Updated

Good news for Townsville this morning! The Bureau of Meteorology has cancelled its severe thunderstorm warning for the regional city.

The Nationals did not sign the final communiqué of the Glasgow climate summit that commits to doing more to cut medium-term emissions, deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce has said, adding Australia is “happy with our targets”.

Joyce, who was campaigning in the NSW coal town of Singleton on Monday, said the government had already determined its 2030 emission reduction target, and the Nationals had not agreed to the Cop26 pact signed by the Australian government on Sunday.

“The Nationals did not sign it. I did not sign it,” Joyce told the ABC.

“I am an executive member of this government. We are happy with our targets, with the negotiations the Nationals had with the Liberals (and) we said that we wouldn’t be changing our 2030 targets.”

You can read our full report below:

Updated

Good morning – changes made to Victoria's pandemic powers bill

Good morning everyone, it’s Matilda Boseley here, ready to take you through all the news of Tuesday.

Let’s start off in Victoria where the state government has made several changes to its controversial pandemic legislation to address legal and human rights concerns after it was criticised for being too broad and lacking in parliamentary oversight. This comes as the bill is headed for debate in state parliament’s upper house.

A controversial clause that gave the Victorian health minister the ability to make orders based on a person’s “characteristics, attributes or circumstances”, such as age, location, vaccination status and occupation, also raised concerns.

After negotiations with some key crossbench MP’s, the Public Health and Wellbeing Amendment (Pandemic Management) Bill 2021 has been altered to clarify that the premier will need “reasonable grounds” to declare a pandemic and that the application of orders based on characteristics “must be relevant to the public health risk”.

The health minister will be required to confirm the role the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities has played in their decisions.

The advice behind any orders issued must be made public within a week rather than a fortnight, while the parliament’s Scrutiny of Acts and Regulations Committee will be given the power to consider any order when it is made, instead of after it is tabled.

Maximum fines for people who breach public health orders have been halved.

Meanwhile, further north, the communities of greater Katherine and Robinson River in the Northern Territory have entered a 72-hour lockdown.

NT chief minister Michael Gunner announced the lockdown on Monday after two people tested positive since spending time at the Robinson River remote community.

One of the two new positive cases, a 30-year-old Aboriginal woman, lives in Robinson River about 800km from Katherine. It is believed she has been infectious since November 11.

The woman’s case is the first Covid-19 infection reported in a remote Aboriginal community.

A 43-year-old Aboriginal man, who lives with seven others in Katherine East, also tested positive on November 13, just four days after testing negative. Health officials believe the man has possibly been infectious since November 10, spends time in Robinson River and is a household contact of the woman.

Alongside the lockdown, health officials have already been deployed to affected areas for a testing and vaccine blitz.

Well, I will keep you up to date with that, and all the other important news of the morning, so grab yourself a coffee and why don’t we jump into the day.

Updated

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Anya Taylor-Joy Would Like To Clear Up Those Rumors (She Started) About Puking While Recording Princess Peach
Here's what really happened.
Cinemablend
Cinemablend
IShowSpeed quits YouTube, fans left speechless by the real reason
Internet sensation IShowSpeed sparked concern with a YouTube exit announcement. Fans feared losing their favorite streamer. However, the news was a playful April Fools' Day prank. IShowSpeed confirmed he is not leaving the platform. Viewers expressed relief and anticipation for more content. The incident highlighted the fun of online humor.
The Times of India
The Times of India
Disney Park Guests Watch In Horror As Rapunzel Attacked By Crows Days After Viral Olaf Malfunction
Another day, another Disney disaster.
Bored Panda
Bored Panda
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