Good evening, and welcome to our daily roundup of the latest developments on the coronavirus pandemic in Australia. This is Naaman Zhou bringing you the main stories on Friday 17 April.
42-year-old man becomes youngest to die of Covid-19
The national death toll has risen to 65, after a 72-year-old Tasmanian man died at Mersey Community hospital and a 42-year-old man who was a crew member on the Artania cruise ship died in Perth. The 42-year-old, who was a national of the Philippines, became the youngest person in Australia to die from the virus.
App could be mandatory
The prime minister, Scott Morrison, has not ruled out making the coronavirus tracking app mandatory, but did say his “Plan A” was for it to be voluntary. Industrial-scale contact tracing was said yesterday to be one of the conditions for lifting restrictions.
“My preference is to give Australians the go of getting it right,” Morrison said. “I will be calling on Australians to do it, frankly, as a matter of national service, to do it in the same way that people used to buy war bonds back in the war times.” The deputy chief medical officer, Paul Kelly, said: “We will start with voluntary and see where it goes.”
WA schools to reopen in 12 days
The Western Australian premier, Mark McGowan, announced “a soft school opening” effective from Wednesday 29 April. All parents who want to send their children to school, will be able to. Those who do not can still keep their children at home. At the schools, cleaners will be employed to continuously clean high contact surfaces, and parents won’t be allowed to enter school grounds when dropping off kids.
20 residents test positive in aged care home
The number of people who have contracted Covid-19 in the Anglicare Newmarch aged care home in western Sydney has risen. The New South Wales chief health officer, Dr Kerry Chant, announced 20 residents and 10 staff have tested positive – that is up from six staff and four residents on Wednesday.
178 racist incidents reported in two weeks
A database collecting racist incidents against Asian Australians has received 178 responses in two weeks – roughly 12 incidents a day. Queensland police also condemned a rise in anti-Asian racism that has led to 22 criminal charges of racially-motivated offences in the state.
The majority of racist incidents were committed against women (62%) and 86.5% of in-person racist incidents were committed by strangers, according to the survey.
$165m for airlines and $150m for NBN
The federal government announced it would spent $165m to underwrite Qantas and Virgin to conduct domestic flights for at least eight weeks. The government also announced that NBN Co will give $150m in financial relief to internet providers, with $50m of that to assisting low-income families with school-aged children access online learning.
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Rise in domestic violence incidents in NSW
The NSW police commissioner, Mick Fuller, said there has been an “increase in the reports of domestic and family violence incidents, which means police are responding to more calls”. However, he said reports of domestic and family violence assaults were down, and other assaults were down as people stay inside.
Tasmania considers stricter north-west lockdown
The Tasmanian premier, Peter Gutwein, said he would renew the lockdown in the state’s north-west, and would “if necessary” strengthen it.
IR changes will be reversed if employers abuse them, ACTU says
The head of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, Sally McManus, said the industrial relations minister, Christian Porter, has promised to reverse workplace law changes if employers are found to be abusing them.
Yesterday, Porter announced that workers will only have 24 hours to consider changes made by their employers to their enterprise bargaining agreements. Previously that had been seven days. “[Porter] said that if it’s true, what we’re saying, and if employers do abuse this, that he is prepared to reverse the regulation,” McManus said.
What you need to know: get the most important information from some of our key explainers
Australia’s coronavirus lockdown rules explained: can I still visit my partner and other questions
Coronavirus Australia maps and cases: live numbers and statistics
Australia’s strict new coronavirus social distancing rules explained: state by state guidelines
Free childcare: what do the Australian government’s coronavirus changes mean for my family?
Am I eligible for the jobkeeper payment? Here’s everything you need to know to register
Groceries, telehealth and pharmaceuticals: how older Australians can get help at home
Have I already had coronavirus? How would I know and what should I do?
Dangerous cures and viral hoaxes: common coronavirus myths busted
How ventilators work and why they are so important in saving people with coronavirus
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