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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Calla Wahlquist (now) and Amy Remeikis (earlier)

Australian Covid-19 infections pass 8,000 – as it happened

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Just before we go, we wanted to let you know that the Australian Federal Police has this evening announced that it will refer ABC journalists Dan Oakes and Sam Clark for prosecution over their 2017 reports, the Afghan files.

We will have more detail about that on the site for your soon. But for now, goodnight.

Summary

We will leave our live coverage of the coronavirus crisis in Australia there for the night. You can continue to follow our rolling global coverage here and read a wrap of the day in Australia here.

This is where things stand:

Updated

‘We cannot go back to the brutal rate of $40 per day’

Australia cannot turn its back on people who face potentially long periods of time without enough paid work, the Australian Council of Social Services and the Grattan Institute have told the Senate’s Covid-19 committee.

Cassandra Goldie, the chief executive of Acoss, said it was time for a permanent increase in social security payments such as jobseeker, amid concerns over what will happen with the scheduled end of the coronavirus supplement in September.

We cannot turn our backs on people now who are facing now potentially long periods of time without enough paid work … It is absolutely clear, we think that everybody knows both in their hearts and their heads, that we cannot go back to the brutal rate of Newstart which was $40 per day.

Goldie said so many people had shared stories of what the temporary increase had meant for them, as it had finally allowed them to be able to cover the essentials. Asked about the specific figures she had in mind, Goldie said discussions were for a permanent base rate increase of between $185 and $275 per week – but Acoss was “very keen to work with the federal government” on the issue.

Brendan Coates, the director of the household finances program at the Grattan Institute, suggested a permanent increase in jobseeker allowance of at least $100 per week – but the choice of the final number was “in some ways a values question”.

He told the Covid-19 committee:

The reason we’re saying that is because the current rate does appear to be very far below the poverty line, so it’s probably getting very hard for people to find work, to get a haircut, to make sure they’re dressed appropriately, to basically live their life.

Describing unemployment insurance as a shock absorber for people who find themselves in hard times, Coates said it was clear that “many Australians are going to be unemployed for a lot longer, and therefore it’s unlikely that most Australians who are currently in that circumstance are going to be able to get a job over the course of the next three to six months”.

Updated

The Rail, Tram and Bus Union has written to the Victorian department of transport to demand the mandatory wearing of masks on public transport.

The RTBU says masks should be made available to all commuters, to protect the health of both other passengers and the 8,000 staff who work in Victoria’s public transport networks.

It says the union has repeatedly raised concerns about staff safety with public transport operators, but no action has been taken.

RTBU branch secretary Luba Grigorovitch says:

The RTBU has been advocating for masks from day one, we have pushed for anything that will make members safer, and reduce risks for the travelling public.

Our members are putting their health and safety on the line every day. They deserve to have the protection of every available public health measure.

Grigorovitch said union members have reported poor social distancing on public transport, visibly unwell passengers, lack of available PPE to protect themselves and ongoing concerns about the shortcomings of the cleaning regime.

The least that could be done is require that travellers prevent the spread of droplets.

Updated

NSW police taking organisers of another BLM protest to court, to stop the protest from going ahead

O’Brien Criminal and Civil Solicitors, which represented the organisers of the Sydney Black Lives Matter protest when the NSW government tried, and failed, to stop it from going ahead last month, issued the following statement.

Protest organisers for the Black Lives Matter protest to be held 1pm, Sunday 5 July, Civic Park in Newcastle have been informed by the NSW police commissioner that their proposal of a public assembly will be taken to the NSW supreme court tomorrow morning.

The application by the NSW commissioner of police to prohibit the public assembly pursuant to the Summary Offences Act 1988 (NSW) will be heard at 9.30am in the supreme court tomorrow, Friday 3 July before Justice Adamson.

Solicitor Peter O’Brien said:

The right to protest in a peaceful manner is the hallmark of our democracy. Those rights should rarely be interfered with. Given the subject matter of these protests, the police should be encouraged to facilitate Covid-safe public assemblies because this is not just a movement, it is in testament to Australia’s long standing, abominable treatment of its First Nations people.

Updated

Worth remembering, as Australia passes the milestone of more than 8,000 coronavirus cases, that Texas recorded 8,076 coronavirus cases...yesterday.

Texas has a population of 29 million; Australia 25 million. But Australia has conducted more than 2.5m tests, including increasing testing of people without any symptoms.

Updated

GetUp has released a statement about the proposed justice target in the draft Closing the Gap strategy, which Ken Wyatt has already said would be revised.

You’ll recall the draft strategy sets the target for achieving parity between Indigenous and non-Indigenous incarceration rates at 2093, and that Wyatt told the ABC this afternoon that target would be brought forward.

GetUp’s First Nations campaign director, Larissa Baldwin, said:

Waiting 73 years for justice would have been a national disgrace ... We know what serious reforms look like and they could be made today: repeal punitive bail laws, end mandatory sentencing, stop imprisoning children, put an end to police investigating police and stop putting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in solitary confinement.

None of this is new, Scott Morrison just needs to look to the endless recommendations from countless inquiries that have set down a clear path for reforms to wind back racist policing, stop deaths in custody and end incarceration.

Anything less isn’t a plan, it’s political cowardice.

Wyatt did tell the ABC he had been reading back over the many reports recommending solutions to the over-representation of Indigenous people in jail, including the report of the 1991 royal commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody. Guardian Australia’s Deaths Inside project found that at least 437 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have died in the 29 years since that report was handed down.

The 2093 target was heavily criticised by Aboriginal justice groups when it was made public today. Sophie Trevitt, the executive officer of Change the Record, said:

Setting a goal to reach equality by the end of the century is not ‘ambitious’, it’s a death sentence for hundreds of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Governments know what action is needed to end the mass incarceration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and how to get there. It’s been spelled out in countless royal commissions, inquiries and – tragically – all too often in inquests.

Hundreds of thousands of Australians took to the streets in support of the Black Lives Matters movement. If governments believe that the lives of First Nations people matter, then they would take urgent steps to remove those unjust laws and policies that contribute to this crisis, in particularity raising the age of criminal responsibility to keep young children out of prison, abolishing discriminatory and punitive mandatory sentencing laws and to implement the recommendations of the 1991 royal commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody.

Updated

Never tell a journalist you are planning on getting a coronavirus test in a hotspot suburb, unless you are prepared for that journalist to recruit you as a stringer.

This just in, from the testing site at AG Gillon Oval in Brunswick.

‘An incredible danger zone for the economy’

The end of September will be “an incredible danger zone” for the Australian economy, Danielle Wood from the Grattan Institute has warned.

Her testimony to the Senate’s Covid-19 committee comes a few days after the Grattan Institute published a report arguing governments need to phase out coronavirus-related emergency support measures more slowly than currently planned to avoid a “fiscal cliff” that could “put a handbrake on the recovery”.

The institute also suggested pouring an extra $70bn to $90bn into stimulus and support measures to help the nation weather the biggest economic shock since the second world war.

Wood – a budget policy expert and the incoming chief executive of the Grattan Institute – told the Senate committee this afternoon that a six-month cut-off for programs such as the jobkeeper wage subsidy was “very blunt” and a gradual transition would be a better approach.

We’ve been very vocal about the concern of not just jobkeeper rolling off but the jobseeker supplement [and] a number of other support programs all coming off at the same time at the end of September. That is an incredible danger zone for the economy.

The Grattan Institute has proposed extending jobkeeper beyond September for a further three months for some industries still severely affected by government restrictions and expanding its coverage to include temporary migrants, short-term casuals and university workers – partly funded by introducing a lower rate for part-time workers.

Wood said she understood the government had prioritised speed over design perfection when it announced the wage subsidy scheme at the end of March, but it was now time to fix some design flaws.

She said, from a macroeconomic perspective, including more workers would be a good idea. On the other hand, she said introducing a flat rate of $1,500 a fortnight – for administrative simplicity – meant most of the eligible people on part-time work arrangements got a pay rise under the scheme.

We think having a different part-time rate might be a compromise to better target the scheme so the money is going to those who need it more.

Updated

An update on the Balmain Covid-19 case:

Updated

Meanwhile, the federal Indigenous affairs minister, Ken Wyatt, has already revised the draft closing the gap targets that were reported in the Australian today.

One of the targets aims for parity between Indigenous and non-Indigenous incarceration rates by 2093.

That’s not a typo. The ambitious target was 73 years.

Wyatt told the ABC that date was not likely to make the final draft, saying “a parity date like that is not within our thinking now”.

What we want is success before then.

Wyatt confirmed that figure was in the draft document, but said “I suspect that on Friday when we have the discussions, that won’t be there”.

He said it set the goal too far in the future:

I don’t want to be dead and buried in the ground and this is still a target. I want to see achievement over a shorter period of time.

There are many things we can do. I’ve gone back and reread many parts into the royal commission and before we address some of those elements that will push us along that pathway as well. My state and territory counterparts are optimistic. They know it’s a stretch but they’re prepared to have a go.

The ABC’s Indigenous affairs correspondent, Isabella Higgins, reported this with a fairly understandable typo:

Updated

Victoria has recorded a significant increase in the number of cases linked to community transmission.

Yesterday, the Victorian department of health and human services (DHHS) said the state had recorded 301 confirmed cases of coronavirus acquired through unknown transmission.

Today, that figure had gone up by 31 to 332.

Even more worryingly, the daily DHHS update shows a marked increase in the number of people in hospital, having tested positive to Covid-19.

Yesterday it was 15, with two patients in intensive care. Today it is 20, with four patients in intensive care. So that’s five more hospitalisations in 24 hours.

The national deputy chief medical officer, Prof Michael Kidd, noted that increase in his update earlier and said it was “very concerning”.

The new limits, implemented in all Coles stores in Victoria and Tasmania, as well as the NSW stores of Lavington, Albury and Deniliquin, are:

Customers cannot buy more than two of:

  • Fresh milk
  • Canned tomatoes
  • Cheese
  • Canned beans
  • Butter
  • Canned garden veg
  • Margarine
  • Pasta sauce
  • Chicken breast
  • Canned fruit
  • Chicken thighs
  • Canned baked beans & spaghetti
  • Pre-packed carrots
  • Canned meat
  • Pre-packed potatoes
  • Frozen fruit and veg (incl. potato)

These new limits are in addition to the existing two-pack limits for pasta, mince, flour, eggs, hand sanitiser, UHT milk, sugar, and rice.

A one pack limit continues to apply for toilet paper and paper towel.

Updated

Coles introduces purchase limits for chilled goods in Victoria and Tasmania

Before we go any further: this is not a reason to go out and panic buy yoghurt. Do not rush to your freezer section; you will be absolutely fine.

Right. So. Coles has announced this afternoon that it will introduce a purchase limit of two packets per customer for a range of chilled products. These limits will apply in Victoria and Tasmania.

The reason for the limits is that a number of staff members at the Coles distribution centre at Laverton, western Melbourne, have tested positive to Covid-19 and that is causing staff shortages, because anyone who was a close contact of those staff members is under home quarantine.

Coles said it has “worked with the Victorian health department to conduct contact tracing for positive cases” and asked “a significant proportion of team members at the Laverton distribution centre” to self-quarantine, as a precaution.

It goes on:

Of the team members who have tested positive, none have been present at the Laverton distribution centre since 25 June.

Coles has extensive safety protocols in place at the Laverton distribution centre which comply with government guidelines, and the facility has been deep cleaned daily over the past week.

The Victorian government is working with Coles to ensure the distribution centre can remain open and keep food on shelves, and has confirmed all necessary precautions and steps have been taken by Coles to ensure the site has been appropriately cleaned and that relevant measures are in place regarding testing and isolation of team members.

While the Laverton distribution centre has been able to maintain operations, the reduced number of available team members has temporarily impacted our ability to replenish our Victorian stores with chilled and fresh produce lines.

Hence, purchasing limits. I’ll tell you those products in the next post.

Updated

Lest anyone think Victoria police are the only ones currently enforcing coronavirus-related public health orders, NSW police have issued a statement this afternoon to say that they, too, are out and about fining people.

From the NSW police statement:

A number of ministerial directions remain in place, covering returned overseas travellers, diagnosed persons, mass gatherings and movement, spitting and coughing, residential aged care facilities and the recent announcement of restrictions for affected persons from interstate Covid hotspots.

The Public Health Act 2010 (NSW) provides police with the power to enforce these orders. It is an offence for a person to fail to comply with an order, and severe penalties apply, which include a maximum penalty of up to $11,000 and/or six months imprisonment for individuals.

As part of the NSW Police Force’s commitment to assisting NSW Health reduce the risk of community spread, police officers across the state will be conducting proactive, high-visibility activity.

This includes providing a presence at Sydney Airport and regional airports, as required, to assist NSW Health staff, who are screening passengers arriving from Victoria.

Travellers who are departing from or arriving at airports in NSW are urged to adhere to the directions of airline staff, airport security, and NSW Health practitioners/officers.

Officers from Police Transport Command will also provide assistance to NSW Health at Central Railway Station for the arrival of XPT services from Melbourne.

In addition, Police Districts with borders to Victoria will be supported by Traffic and Highway Patrol to conduct high-visibility patrols and random vehicle stops.

Police continue to appeal to the community to report suspected breaches of any ministerial direction.

Updated

Economists have called on the Australian government to increase and extend economic stimulus measures or face a setback in the recovery.

The Senate’s Covid-19 committee has been hearing this afternoon from a number of economists, including Saul Eslake, who warned that Australia’s path out of the economic downturn was “likely to be much less steep than the path into it was”.

There is a significant risk of a setback to the economic recovery which seems to have started during May if all of the fiscal support measures which have been put in place since the onset of the pandemic are allowed to expire as presently scheduled at the end of September.

Stephen Koukoulas, the managing director Market Economics and a former economic adviser to the Gillard government, said he saw a “stingy” and “timid approach” in the Morrison government’s economic response to Covid-19. He called on the government to “stop obsessing with the budget deficit and provide meaningful policy stimulus to get the economy back on track and to deal with the disasters in the labour market”.

Koukoulas suggested the government should consider providing additional stimulus of about $100bn per year, for two years, but this would depend on a number of factors including the speed of vaccine development and global economic conditions.

In a sense number doesn’t worry me terribly much – it’s making sure that money is into the economy and particularly at the middle to low income part, because the propensity to spend and propensity to consume for people on low and middle incomes is significantly higher than the well off.

Richard Denniss, chief economist at the Australia Institute, said economists “shouldn’t underestimate the scale of the problem and in turn we shouldn’t underestimate the need for stimulus to address that”.

Denniss said withdrawing stimulus measures in the second half of this year would be “incredibly premature”.

It’s particularly concerning to hear the government talk about spending less money in the second half of the year than the first half. To be clear, consumer spending is not going to bounce back soon, net exports are not going to drive growth, private investment won’t drive growth when consumer spending and net exports are flat. The only thing keeping the economy afloat is the increase in government spending, yet the government is promising to cut that in the second half of the year. The consequences of that are disastrous.

Updated

NSW records eight new coronavirus cases

As Kidd said in that national update, New South Wales has recorded eight new coronavirus cases, all of which are linked to hotel quarantine.

They include the person who returned to NSW and went to work at Woolworths in Balmain after undergoing hotel quarantine in Victoria.

Health officials in NSW have asked 50 of his workmates at the store to quarantine and are also chasing up close contacts from Jetstar flight JQ510 from Melbourne to Sydney on 26 June.

NSW Health said that 3% of symptomatic returned travellers tested in hotel quarantine since 29 March have tested positive to Covid-19. That’s 112 of the 3,558 symptomatic travellers.

NSW conducted 18,347 coronavirus tests in the past 24 hours, about 2,000 more than the day before.

There are currently 68 coronavirus cases being treated by NSW Health. That doesn’t mean those cases are in hospital, just that they’re being monitored and checked on by health workers. One person with Covid-19 in NSW is in intensive care.

Earlier, Kidd urged those 300,0000 Melbournians who have been placed back into lockdown until 29 July to look after their mental health and stay connected – remotely, of course – with family and friends.

We know this is a very worrying and challenging time for you all. The response in Victoria is a response that is not just protecting the health of you and your loved ones, but is protecting the entire population of Melbourne and Victoria and the entire population of Australia. They know that many people finding themselves back in lockdown today will be feeling anxious and fearful, many may be angry and frustrated and many may be feeling somewhat despondent.

It may help to recall that we all came to understand and the things we came to value during the first period of being in lockdown, the importance of staying connected with each other, even while we are physically distanced. There are many challenges of going back into lockdown, but we have experienced this before. We have established our own ways to cope, so please remember the things that you learned the first time we were in lockdown.

In addition to staying connected with your friends and your loved ones, please try to adopt a daily routine that provides you with some sense of control over your life and, remember, to do the things at home that you enjoy. All of Australia is following and supporting you at this time.

He urged people who were struggling to reach out to services like Lifeline and Beyond Blue. You can also access Victoria-specific public mental health services here.

Updated

Kidd was asked about the case in Sydney, of a staff member at Woolworths in Balmain who tested positive in hotel quarantine, completed quarantine and then returned to work. He has since tested positive again and 50 staff from the store have been put into quarantine.

Said Kidd:

We are still waiting for further details from the health authorities in New South Wales who obviously are investigating that case very closely. We do understand that this is someone who was diagnosed as Covid-19 while in hotel quarantine who then went through the required period of being in isolation before being allowed to leave hotel quarantine, but we have had a report that this person may have had either a resurgence of symptoms or continuation of symptoms, we need to wait and hear further from the NSW health authorities.

Kidd says that federal health authorities are generally happy with how well hotel quarantine has worked.

Hotel quarantine, of course, has been one of the key points in Australia to Covid-19 and it has been incredibly effective. We have seen over 60,000 Australians who have been able to return home during the pandemic to their families who have been through the two weeks of hotel quarantine.

And this has included over 20,000 people in Victoria. So the response has been very effective. We understand from the reports from the premier of Victoria that there appear to have been some breaches in a couple of the hotels and this of course now is subject to a judicial review and that is a totally appropriate response.

Updated

Kidd says the increase in the number of people in hospital is “very concerning”.

This is why we are, we need to be so vigilant in our response to Covid-19 to prevent continuing hospitalisations, people getting very, very unwell.

As previously reported, the new cases in the past 24 hours include 77 in Victoria, one in the Northern Territory, and eight in NSW.

The NSW cases are all from hotel quarantine, the NT case is someone who travelled from Victoria.

The death toll remains at 104.

There are currently 24 people in Australia in hospital with Covid-19. Five of those people are in intensive care. That’s a big increase from yesterday, when it was 18 people in hospital.

Kidd says:

This is a stark reminder of the very serious impact that Covid-19 can have, especially on the health of elderly people and people with significant chronic health problems.

Updated

Australia passes 8,000 coronavirus cases

Australia has now recorded 8,001 coronavirus cases, deputy chief medical officer Prof Michael Kidd says.

We passed that milestone of 8,000 cases in the past 24 hours.

Kidd is giving the national update now.

Updated

Guardian Australia’s Melbourne bureau chief Melissa Davey is in a lockdown suburb in northern Melbourne, and has some views from behind the stay-at-home curtain.

There are fairly long queues for the mobile testing sites.

But apparently if you bump into the public health teams out door knocking, they will give you a test kit to use on yourself at home.

This is allegedly an easy process.

Also, the police are definitely doing spot checks.

Victorian Liberal MP Tim Smith, who has been calling for lockdown provisions to be lifted since at least the first week of May, has a new graphic.

That’s me done for the day – the lovely Calla Wahlquist will take you through the remainder of the afternoon.

We’ve got another national update coming from Prof Michael Kidd in the next 30 minutes or so, so stay tuned for that.

And Donald Trump has declared masks are cool, because he looks like the Lone Ranger when wearing one, which is now a heartening sentence to type, because this is 2020.

Stay safe, wash your hands, and do the thing that makes you feel better. Thursdays are always the roughest day of the week.

I’ll be back tomorrow. Thanks so much for joining me – and take care of you.

Updated

Nick Evershed has your daily chart:

Victoria Covid-19 cases

Updated

The bushfire royal commission continues as well.

AAP has this update:

Telecommunications companies have not done enough to ensure communities can rely on phones for information in an emergency, the bushfires royal commission has suggested.

Commission chair Mark Binskin has taken the major telcos to task for not working together more closely to address the loss of communications during bushfires.

He said Telstra, Optus, Vodafone and the NBN were the primary source of information for most of the community, noting the importance of phone alerts in the emergency warning system.

“There are some that still rely on radio but you are predominantly the major source of information for the community in a system that is now being designed where the community is fed information to be able to make decisions for themselves on when to go, and that’s the way the warning system works.

“And I will be honest with you, I’m not sure that as a group you’ve actually looked at it in that way.”

Binskin said there were no doubt challenges but pointed to evidence that previous efforts to get the communications sector to work closer together has “basically been useless”.

About 1,400 telecommunications facilities were impacted at the peak of the bushfire season in December and January, largely due to power outages.

The sites targeted for stand-by power systems like batteries and generators tended to be those servicing a large number of customers or part of the core network.

Updated

Paul Karp has this story:

Updated

The majority of the work is still being done through human contact tracers.

And worth remembering that while it was billed as “like sunscreen” the app does not protect you from getting Covid-19, does not warn you if Covid-19 is in the area and can not be used as a requirement for entry into a store or cafe/bar/restaurant.

Updated

The AFL is working out what to do with its remaining Victorian-based clubs, now that it has become increasingly clear that the situation in Victoria is not clearing up anytime soon.

Via AAP:

As Victoria’s AFL clubs prepare to hit the road, Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin says the Demons are still uncertain exactly when and where they’ll be sent into interstate hubs.

The 10 clubs are expected to relocate to interstate hubs – potentially as early as next week – with NSW and Western Australia flagged as potential locations along with the current Gold Coast hub.

Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin said the Demons had “no idea” where they would be headed but were prepared for the challenge.

“No idea (where we’re going) at this stage,” Goodwin told reporters on Thursday.

“I guess what we have been assured is that we’ll get a week’s notice.

“What we are up for is we’re up for anything.

“We just want to play footy.”

Clubs are expecting a week’s notice on plans to move into hubs but Goodwin said he wouldn’t be surprised if the Demons were on the road next week.

“We’ve been told a week’s notice but I think everyone knows that this thing’s moving so quickly that we’ll just deal with what comes our way,” he said.

“If it’s three days, it’s three days, if it’s five, it’s five and if it’s a week, it’s a week - and we don’t know where we’re playing next week or what’s going on.

“I’m sure we’ll get informed at the right time and we’re just ready for anything.”

Goodwin said there hadn’t been any push back from Demons players at the prospect of entering interstate hubs.

However, he expected there to be an opportunity for players to bring their families with them, like the WA and SA clubs were able to do.

Melbourne vice captain Jack Viney and his wife Charlotte had their first child less than a week ago while the Demons have several other players with young families.

“We’ve had some really general discussions with some of our players with families and around as a club, how we’ll be able to look after them,” Goodwin said.

“The AFL are really open to that, they want to really look after the families of players and and do the best they can.

“So at this stage we haven’t had any concerns raised by our playing group.

“We’ll continue to talk to them as it gets closer and when we find out where we’re going.”

On Wednesday, other clubs were scrambling to relocate players who live in Melbourne’s Covid-19 hot spots but the Demons did not have to relocate any members of their squad.

Updated

The ABS has the May trade stats:

Balance on goods and services:

  • In seasonally adjusted terms, the balance on goods and services was a surplus of $8,025m in May 2020, an increase of $195m on the surplus in April 2020.

Credits (exports of goods and services):

  • In seasonally adjusted terms, goods and services credits fell $1,604m (4%) to $35,742m. Non-rural goods fell $1,080m (4%), rural goods fell $404m (10%) and non-monetary gold fell $219m (12%). Net exports of goods under merchanting remained steady at $45m. Services credits rose $99m (2%).

Debits (imports of goods and services):

  • In seasonally adjusted terms, goods and services debits fell $1,799m (6%) to $27,717m. Consumption goods fell $1,233m (14%), intermediate and other merchandise goods fell $821m (8%) and capital goods fell $412m (7%). Non-monetary gold rose $710m (113%). Services debits fell $43m (1%).

Updated

Industry Super has put out a release saying almost half a million under-35s have taken out their entire super balance in the early withdrawal scheme.

The issue isn’t so much the $20,000 or so they have taken out – it is that they are starting from zero again building their balance, meaning they will be behind for the rest of their working lives.

Updated

Parliament House, which has been closed to the public since March, will reopen on 4 July.

Updated

Sydney man quarantined in Victoria tests positive after release

NSW’s chief medical officer, Dr Kerry Chant, said a Sydney man who was quarantined in a Victorian hotel has since tested positive for Covid-19.

50 staff at the Balmain Woolworths, where the man works, have been isolated.

Dr Chant:

This gentleman returned from overseas and was quarantined in the usual way.

He developed symptoms during his quarantine period. He was tested, confirmed as Covid-positive.

He was reviewed and the information available and you can imagine that we need to verify all of these aspects, but our preliminary information is that he was assessed as not having persistence of symptoms and that he was released from quarantine in the usual way.

At day 14 which would have been 10 days since his onset of symptoms and the requirement is that you’re symptom-free for three days and have a 10-day window of illness.

He then flew to Sydney and he did work. In our investigations he does report some persistence of the symptoms, so as for the abundance of precaution, we’re treating him as infectious.

The level of virus detected is very, very low and what this may reflect is just the tail-end of the infection but because he’s also got symptoms, we’re just treating it for the utmost of precaution as the fact that he could be infectious.

Updated

If there is one constant in this crazy, unpredictable world we live in, it’s that Victorian police will be fining people.

And I say that as a Queenslander.

The Victorian police commissioner, Shane Patton, has laid out what the lockdowns mean in terms of the police response:

We’ll be having police on those targeted roads, some back streets, some other roads, but also main arterials.

We’ll be having a high volume presence in those high-volume public places.

We’ll have booze buses out and about.

We’ll have them in static locations for a period of time.

They’ll be rolling on throughout the shifts, throughout the day.

People will not know where we will be, they will not know how long we’ll be there for.

But they’ll be intercepted.

People who are in those especially in those restricted post code areas, those suburbs, they can expect to see a very strong visible police presence where they’ll be pulled over and will be speaking to them to make sure that they are supposed to be out and about, that they are adhering to the reasons for being out and about and they are adhering to the chief health officer stay at home directions.

Drivers and passengers can expect and should expect to see us and the strong probability that they’ll be intercepted and asked where they’re going and why they’re going there.

We’ll be using our number plate recognition technology where we’ll make sure that our officers out in their cars can see - they’ll be seeing vehicles and knowing whether they’re supposed to be in that area, from out of those areas and so that will assist us greatly in what we’re doing.

As the operation progresses, we’ll be looking at how we can utilise other resources from within the organisation including potentially use of drones in those public spaces to make sure that people adhering to the public gathering directions of the CHO once again.

So the public need to be clear - travelling through here, if you’re not from that area, or if you are in that area and you’re out and about, the probably of you being intercepted, spoken to by police an the reasons why you are there will be ascertained. You think that’s - if you think that’s not going to happen to you, then it is.

And we will be fining people.

There is no doubt about that.

Health staff also greeted the Melbourne to Sydney train and found someone with symptoms who had decided to head into state, Brad Hazzard says:

This morning we found – our health staff found somebody with symptoms who had actually been tested in Victoria and then got on the train and came to Sydney.

Now, that’s about as silly as it gets. So the message goes out again – 99.99 9% of the community are with us on this, but every now and then we find somebody who just doesn’t either understand or is prepared to thumb their nose at the rules. Just saying – we all need to be in this together.

So, please, I appreciate there are pressures on everybody when you got obligations to family or to work and so on, but right now, your obligation really should be to the whole community. So, please, don’t go out, don’t travel if you have any symptoms at all.

Updated

You can also expect health screening, when coming into NSW.

Brad Hazzard:

Those folks who want to travel can certainly do so, but they will understand that we need to have some screening.

It’s the government’s view, so we have implemented health screening at the airports and we also got – in addition to that screening, we have asked the police more broadly to keep an eye out for Victorian number plates on our highways and byways and if they could also just check, as they can, whether or not those people have come from the hotspots of Victoria once our new orders were in play, and obviously that’s from midnight last night.

The screening this morning has been quite good. We have actually had identified some people that have come from hotspots, but they were actually transiting to the Northern Territory – the Northern Territory and to Queensland and I personally picked up the phone to the ministers in both of those jurisdictions and just advised them.

They have their own checks and balances, of course, in their states and territories and that’s appropriate.

Some folks might be, for example, returning to their own homes in the Northern Territory or their own homes in Queensland. But if they’re travelling from those hotspots, then those also have their checks and balances as we do ensuring that our community is safe as we can be in the present Covid-19.

Updated

The NSW health minister, Brad Hazzard, said he signed the new public health orders last night.

Which means if you travel into NSW from an Victorian hotspot then you could receive an $11,000 fine, or six months in jail.

Same goes for NSW residents who travel into a Victorian hotspot.

Anybody who travels to New South Wales runs the risk – first of all, they run the risk from their own government of being caught by their own government and penalised by the Victorian government.

And, secondly, if they attempt to cross into NSW or travel anywhere in NSW, they’re at the risk of six months’ jail or an $11,000 fine if the police choose to charge them.

It would depend, of course, on each circumstance. A brief message remains from the NSW government to travellers or people who think they can travel from the hot spots of Victoria – just don’t come.

Don’t come. You run the risk of an $11,000 fine and six months in jail.

As a result of those orders last night commencing, the NSW government also has placed health staff at each of our airports. We have a number of regional airports as well, that might see people entering from Victoria.

Of course, people from Victoria are entitled, if they don’t come from the hotspots, to enter NSW and it’s important that for commerce and trade and for our respective economies, Victoria, NSW and indeed the rest of Australia, it’s important that people be able to travel from other spots other than those hotspots that are in Melbourne.

Updated

New South Wales has recorded eight positive tests in the last 24 hours, but they were all from people in hotel quarantine.

And Victoria health has released some more information on test sites for some of the locked down postcodes:

The state government has announced new coronavirus testing sites in Brunswick and Glenroy, and will keep open the existing site in Fawkner.

This testing will play a big part in getting our community tested and a better understanding on how this virus is spreading.

Testing options available in Brunswick West include:

  • Door knocking beginning from Thursday 2 July
  • Walk up mobile sites (open from 10am- 4pm*) will be located at:
    • AG Gillon Oval, Brunswick
    • Wylie Reserve (Collier Cres)
    • Dunstan Reserve (Peacock St)
    • Holbrook Reserve (Jewell St)

*The closing time refers to approx. time last person will be seen. If there are long queues, the line may close before the scheduled time. If you arrive after 3pm, you may not be able to be tested.

Updated

In a statement, Daniel Andrews said:

It is abundantly clear that what has gone on here is completely unacceptable and we need to know exactly what has happened.

Justice Coate is one of Australia’s most experienced jurists – every Victorian can be confident that she will oversee a thorough and independent inquiry to deliver the answers that Victorians deserve.

Updated

Victoria has released the details of its inquiry into its hotel quarantine program:

The Honourable Jennifer Coate AO will head it – Justice Coate was previously a commissioner on the royal commission into institutional child sexual abuse.

The inquiry will begin promptly and will examine a range of matters including:

• Decisions and actions of government agencies, hotel operators and private contractors.
• Communication between government agencies, hotel operators and private contractors.
• Contractual arrangements.
• Information, guidance, training and equipment provided to staff in hotels.
• Policies, protocols and procedures.

The Victorian government has provided $3m to support the inquiry in its work, with a report to be delivered to the Governor by Friday, 25 September 2020.

No international returned travellers will be arriving in Melbourne for two weeks while the hotel quarantine program is reset under the supervision of Corrections Victoria.

Updated

And of course it was Collingwood, because it is always Collingwood.

(I say that as a Pies fan)

Via AAP:

Star Collingwood midfielder Steele Sidebottom has begrudgingly accepted a four-match ban for committing a series of Covid-19 breaches during a weekend drinking session.

The AFL handed down the stiff punishment on Wednesday night, meaning the two-time Copeland Trophy winner won’t be available to play again until round nine.

Sidebottom and teammate Lynden Dunn, who has received a one-game suspension, broke protocols by catching an Uber late on Saturday night following a visit to the house of injured defender Jeremy Howe.

The pair were there to console Howe after his devastating knee injury, but Sidebottom’s alcohol consumption during that visit triggered a series of events.

While Dunn headed straight home, Sidebottom took an Uber to the house of Daniel Wells, which was another breach given that the Magpies staff member isn’t part of Collingwood’s Covid-compliant bubble.

“That was probably the next bad decision. And obviously things have headed a little bit off the tracks at that point,” Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley said.

Police took Sidebottom home on Sunday morning after finding him in the Melbourne suburb of Williamstown just before 7.30am.

The Magpies were hopeful Sidebottom would only cop a two-match ban, and they were disappointed when the AFL handed down the four-game suspension.

“Collingwood and Sidebottom share the view that his four-match ban is excessive, inconsistent with recent protocol breaches and contestable,” the Magpies said in a statement.

“However, club and player concluded that for the greater good of the game and the realities of our time it was necessary to end the matter.”

Buckley said Sidebottom’s alcohol consumption on Saturday night meant the star midfielder couldn’t quite recall all of the details of the night.

“Speaking with Steele, he’s quite embarrassed about the situation,” Buckley said.

“He’s obviously remorseful about the decisions that were made but he’s also in some way confused about what has taken place.

Updated

The Victorian department of transport has been forced to review all applications to change the address listed on licences from hotspot suburbs after there was a rush on requests when lockdowns were announced.

Originally reported by The Age, people may be attempting to change their addresses in order to get past police checkpoints as they enter or exist hotspot areas.

Changing one’s address can be done online and does not require proof of residence. The department provides a label to be stuck onto the current licence with the new address.

“As soon as we were made aware of this issue we immediately put in place measures to ensure any changes of address in priority postcodes were for genuine reasons,” said a spokeswoman from the department.

“We are reviewing all changes to licence holders’ addresses from priority postcodes since the premier’s restrictions announcement on Tuesday to ensure anyone who changed their address did so because it was necessary.”

The spokeswoman said the department will be contacting customers requesting a change from priority postcodes to request additional information to substantiate their change.

Falsifying documents or lying or withholding information to Victoria police about their name or place of residence face a maximum fine of up to $825.

Updated

Just to give George Christensen something else to post about, because I am magnanimous.

Also, if you think mentioning you have joined a new(ish) social media platform is reporting on it like “some kind of hate crime”, would that make you...a bit of a snowflake?

(Oh, and fun fact – as Cameron Wilson pointed out to me the other day, Parler expects you to help cover their legal costs, if it gets sued over something you post)

Updated

We’re getting another national Covid-19 update.

Prof Michael Kidd, one of the deputies, will take today’s briefing.

That’s at 3.30pm.

Updated

Australia prepared to 'step up and support' Hong Kong citizens

In case you missed it, Australia is considering providing safe haven to Hong Kong residents, Scott Morrison confirmed.

That was raised a little while ago, when China first started floating its new security laws.

Those laws, which makes any activism against the Chinese Communist party regime illegal, with life in prison among the penalties, were passed this week.

The UK has responded by offering safe haven to 3 million Hong Kong citizens, opening up the pathway for them to receive citizenship.

Morrison said Australia was considering similar proposals:

We are considering very actively and there are proposals that I asked to be brought forward several weeks ago and the final touches would be put on those and they’ll soon be considered by cabinet to provide similar opportunities and we think that’s important and very consistent with who we are as a people and very consistent practically with the views that we have expressed …

When we have made a final decision on those arrangements then I’ll make the announcements, but are you asking are we prepared to step up and provide support? The answer is yes.

Updated

He then remembers that he needs to spruik the Liberal Eden-Monaro candidate, Fiona Kotvojs, and pivots from just how challenging the economy is going to be, to how amazing Kotvojs will be in fighting for jobs.

I need someone here on the ground in – in Fiona, the Liberal candidate for Eden-Monaro, who will fight for those jobs and will storm into my office and say, “The primary producers need this now, boss,” or, “The timber millers need this,” or, “The defence contractors and the jobs that are supporting on that, this local content needs to be delivered.”

I mean, hopefully the prime minister doesn’t actually need someone barging into his office to remind him to do his job, but that seems to be a popular line.

The press conference was held in the ACT suburb of Hume, which is just over the Eden-Monaro electoral border, but it’s about JOBS and, presumably, workers at the defence contractor they were featuring are from the electorate du jour.

Updated

Scott Morrison will meet with his finance team again this afternoon to work through the phase three plan.

'We can't let supports hold businesses back'

When it comes to the next phase of the government’s Covid-19 response in terms of the economy, Scott Morrison says:

Well, what I have noticed with economists in recent months is they wanted to spend nothing and they want us to spend everything. So the truth is going to be somewhere in the middle. And that’s the path that we have responsibly taken. In terms of fiscal heavy-lifting, I would say that $50bn in just 2.5 months represents a pretty big lift and we have demonstrated our willingness to provide the fiscal support that is necessary to support people’s incomes, to support people’s jobs, to support people’s livelihoods.

He goes on:

Our record demonstrates that we’re prepared to do what’s necessary, but we’re also prepared to do what’s responsible. What we want to see happen is the economy continue to lift and for businesses to free themselves of restraints, whether that be the restrictions that have been put on their businesses by state governments, or it’s, indeed, getting themselves away from the income supports that have been in place and so they can go on and sustainably support the jobs and their businesses. I mean, the future of the Australian economy is not to remain in ICU.

The future of the Australian economy is to become strong and independent again and sovereign and able to grow jobs and have its own momentum. In the meantime, the government will continue to do what is necessary to support us to get to that stage. But we have got to be very careful about two particular things. We can’t let our supports hold businesses back. We can’t let that happen. That will cost jobs and livelihoods and create a dependency which will not mean that Australian businesses will be well beating in the future and job generators in the future.

Updated

Asked about the early access super program, which with the turnover into the new financial year yesterday means people financially impacted by the Covid-19 impacts can access up to $10,000 more from their retirement payments, Scott Morrison says:

When it comes to super drawdowns, that has been quite effective and the banks have told us this very clearly – in a lot of cases it’s been used by people to sure up their mortgages and that is a, that is a sensible, that is a sensible act.

It’s up to people to decide what to do with their own money and where they’re making those decisions to better protect their mortgages and put themselves in a more resilient position, that greatly assists them not just for now but for the long term as well. I think Australians have been making their choices about this very carefully and very responsibly. Of course, there’ll be some instances where that hasn’t occurred, but I’m pleased to say that’s in the minority of cases.

Updated

Asked about the allegations about security breaches in Victorian quarantine hotels, Scott Morrison says:

I’m obviously concerned about the outbreak, and I’m pleased that the premier has taken the action he’s taken by both putting in place the lockdown for the outbreak in those suburbs in western Melbourne.

That was the appropriate response and they have our full support in implementing it and whatever additional resources they seek, whether that’s from the defence force or the commonwealth public service.

We have put in place hundreds and hundreds of commonwealth public servants to support the programs that have been put in place by the Victorian premier, the testing regimes have been supported in other states.

Other health officers from other states are assist being the tracing capabilities so we’re very focused on the fixing, on the containing, on the practical challenges of this, obviously what has happened with the quarantine, I think the premier has been pretty upfront about that and pretty honest about where the weaknesses have been.

There will be international flights new going to other parts of the country that would otherwise come from Melbourne – go to Melbourne so that means we wouldn’t want to see, you know, those same experiences happen whether it’s here in the ACT or in Brisbane or Adelaide or other places.

So I think it’s important to learn the lessons and I think premier Andrews has been, I think, quite upfront about that.

So he has my support to continue to put these measures in place and get on top of this outbreak and we got to focus on the problem. That’s what we’re doing, that’s what people expect us to do as leaders – to work together, to focus on fixing the problem, to give greater assurance around the country.

Those numbers, I’m sure as the premier would concur, we have seen some levelling although they remain at elevated levels and that is of concern and that means as the lockdown now is in place, we would hope to see those numbers fall again. But we take nothing for granted.

Updated

Asked about the Hong Kong situation, Scott Morrison says:

In the first instance so we do find these events very concerning and we’ve been very clear about our statements that in concert with many other nations.

This is not a position Australia has commented on in isolation. We’ve done so with many other likeminded countries about these events.

The Basic Law and the safeguards that were put in place with the handover we would expect to be upheld.

I think that’s a very reasonable position and a very consistent position for the government, we are considering very actively the proposals that I asked to be brought forward several weeks ago ... and they’ll soon be considered by cabinet to provide similar opportunities. And we think that’s important and very consistent with who we are as people, and very consistent practically with the views that we’ve expressed …

When we’ve made a final decision on those arrangements that are making the announcements but if you’re asking, are we prepared to step up and provide support. The answer is yes.

Updated

Greg Combet steps down from Covid-19 commission

The former ACTU boss and Labor pollie Greg Combet has quit the Nev Power-chaired Covid-19 commission.

In a statement, Combet said: “I am pleased to have been able to give my attention and support to the early response to the pandemic, but with other capable hands taking forward the Commission’s evolving program of work, it’s time for me to focus on my business responsibilities, including as chair of IFM Investors.”

(IFM Investors is an investment vehicle run by industry super funds.)

Combet will continue in his role as a special adviser to attorney general, Christian Porter, which is part of a working group process that is supposed to work out how industrial relations laws should change in a Post-covid world.

The National Covid-19 Coordination Commission said Power “commended Mr Combet on his and the working group’s significant achievements and contribution to mitigating the impact on lives and livelihoods and supporting a safe reopening for businesses as the first step in our economic recovery”.

Updated

Scott Morrison says there are no disputes between the Liberal and Nationals in NSW and everything is fine.

We have a very strong Coalition. And I know that, whether you’re a Liberal voter or, or you’re a Nationals voter, what you don’t want to see is you don’t want to see the instability and the chaos that is taking over, or rather, I should say has never really left the Labor party, and a vote for Labor is a vote for uncertainty, it’s a vote for chaos.

It’s a vote for the disunity that we’re seeing right across the Labor ranks. The chaos we’re seeing with all sorts of, I mean, there’s, there’s a corruption inquiry into Labor, currently, that’s not my word. That is the word of the Labor member for Holt. And so to reward that this weekend. I’m sure even Labor voters are very disappointed with what they’re seeing from their own party. They need to sort themselves out.

Our government is very focused on the job of jobs.

I’m not sure how a vote for the party who is not in government and cannot set government policy is a vote for uncertainty, as the one thing is certain is that this byelection will do nothing to change the government, but hey – that’s politics.

Updated

Scott Morrison is asked about his reference to the 1930s in his defence speech yesterday, and how Australia needed to be prepared for any coming changes in environment.

Did that draw a link between China and 1930s Germany?

Morrison:

That would be a misreading of my remarks, what I talked about was the conflation of economic uncertainty, and in global instability. Now there are different reasons for global instability back at that time and today’s. But when you get the combination of these two forces at any time in our history, regardless of the causes, then that should give us a reason to make the announcements we made yesterday, and to understand the changing times.

There is, there are similarities but there are other parts of the analogy which are different. But the impact is similar, and that is to recognise that Australia. Over the last few years, like the rest of the world like the rest of the region is facing a very different environment than we were even quite recently. And that is why we have made the changes that we have made.

Updated

Scott Morrison is holding his press conference – the Liberal candidate for Eden-Monaro has prime nodding position behind him, as they talk about defence spending.

Updated

Brett Sutton again reminds people of just how easily spread this virus is and what that can mean for lives, health systems and day-to-day life until there is a vaccine:

I hope that there’s a sense that we all have to pull through this together because that’s absolutely the case.

It’s never been more true than with infectious diseases that it’s our collective responsibility to get through this, but I also feel that some people don’t get it – that it’s being overblown, that 415 cases in population of metro Melbourne and 4.5 million is tiny.

I [hope] people [realise] that this entire pandemic that’s now infecting 200,000 people a day globally started with one person and has killed more than 500,000 people, having gone through maybe a quarter of the pandemic globally.

This will be a pandemic that has the potential to kill five or 10 or more million people worldwide and so we can’t just look at where we’re at today because we don’t want to go to a situation where this increases as it’s increasing across the world.

Updated

For those who woke up in a lockdown, the professor says he understands the frustration, but there is no other option:

I understand that frustration. I’m not in a lockdown suburb but I’ve got colleagues and there are many staff in the department who are in those zones.

You know, we all have to cop it on the chin. The alternative is that there’s increased transmission and that there are more and more postcodes or all of metro Melbourne or all of Victoria that goes into a shutdown.

When it’s been out of control in places internationally and continued to be out of control, it’s taken weeks and weeks and weeks to drive numbers down. You know, Spain is now in a good position, having gone through a lockdown, but they had a period where there were six weeks where no-one could leave their home at all, including children.

So we have to accept that we’re still in a better position than a number of places internationally and that this is a really frustrating, and hard sacrifice for people to make but it is the appropriate measure to get on top of this.

I certainly feel for people, and it’s frustrating to see some areas where those restrictions aren’t in place, just across the road from where you might be.

The point I would make is that the message is absolutely that we all need to reduce our travel outside of our homes, so the stay-at-directions apply in law in some areas, there was always going to be a cut-off point where another suburb, another postcode was not under those same restrictions but the message has to be same.

Otherwise, we’ll all be in a worse situation together.

Victorian hotspot school return 'reviewed on day-to-day basis'

Victoria was one of the first to stop on-site school attendance.

Its health officer does not rule out a return to at home learning when term three starts.

Victorian students are now on school holidays, but Brett Sutton says it is a situation health officials are watching closely. It is not just the student/staff transmission risk, it is also the transmission risk during pick up and dropoff.

It will certainly be reviewed on a day-to-day bas9s. I will give as much notice as I can around the resumption of school in those restricted postcodes.

I want to see both that we’re turning transmission around but also that we don’t have such levels of community transmission with students becoming infected that our resourcing is all focused on response to cases in schools, because we do need to focus our activity on all of the transmission across the community.

Updated

On transmission in schools, Prof Brett Sutton says:

There has been some student-to-student transmission and also teacher-to-teacher transmission at some schools.

Again, when there’s a heavy load of community transmission, more students getting infected, these schools have closed.

The contact tracing that’s been done, obviously, for students and teachers who are now home, nonetheless the cleans are going on at the school and the investigations into the school settings are ongoing.

Updated

What does “routine testing” mean, in terms of infection?

Brett Sutton:

Very often, those numbers we’re reporting every day as routine testing are people who we then interview and then identify a link ... they’ve got a relationship with one of our existing outbreaks, or that we can explore the links they have to other known cases.

Updated

It’s the community transmission that’s the key stressor.

It looks as though in the last 24 hours, the amounts of infection with no known source – picked up in the community – is up by 31.

That’s not good. At all.

Updated

Again, Brett Sutton says he takes some solace in the number of infections appearing to stabilise, but he is not taking a breather just yet:

I get some comfort from stabilisation in numbers, but it is never an easy place to sit when you’ve got 415 active cases, all of which are infectious. Obviously, we’ve identified them. They’re in isolation.

Their close contact are in quarantine, but it’s an indication of a very large number of people who have acquired it, which means there are other infections still to be found out there and they’re all at risk of transmitting to others if we’re not doing the right thing.

So the restrictions are in place, even though they apply to those restricted postcodes. We need to bear in mind that it’s something for all of us to do, especially across Melbourne, but really the whole of Victoria.

Updated

Asked if the Covid-19 strain in Melbourne is more virulent than what has been previously seen, Professor Brett Sutton says:

In relation to the strain that might be predominating in Melbourne at the moment, I don’t think there’s any evidence that it’s more virulent. I think the evidence we have from overseas where there’s more transmission or faster transmission really related to how people are behaving and the cohort of the population that are infected. I don’t think it’s a feature of the virus at all.

The Victorian health officer is asked if he played any role in the state’s hotel quarantine plan:

It wasn’t mine. I haven’t been involved in the governance and operation, but it was, you know, jointly oversighted by emergency management within DHHS, Emergency Management Victoria, the department of jobs, precincts and regions.

Q: Are you involved now?

Sutton:

In the management of hotel quarantine? No, not specifically, in terms of its governance and operation. It’s a large logistics exercise. There are infection prevention and control staff in the broader division in which I sit, who are obviously advising very closely on those specific matters and are going out to provide training as well.

Updated

Victoria tested 26,320 people yesterday.

Updated

There have been, so far, 27 cases of Covid-19 found in people outside the hotspot areas.

Asked if Victoria, or just Melbourne, will have to go into a wider lockdown, Brett Sutton says:

I really hope we don’t have to. I’m really emphasising that even though these restrictions are in place in those restricted postcodes, there’s an obligation on all of us to consider how we minimise our interactions with other people. And so though the stay-at-home directions apply to those restricted postcodes, all of us across Victoria have to really consider whether we need to see people in other settings, other households, including family members and friends.

That will be the best mitigation against new postcodes being included, but those criteria that have been used for the restricted postcodes to date are the same criteria that we would apply to other postcodes, so it’s really up to all of the residents there, all of us across Victoria, to ensure that we can keep those numbers down, so that no new postcodes need to be considered for restrictions.

Updated

Victoria records 77 new Covid-19 cases

Victoria’s chief health officer, Prof Brett Sutton, is giving an update on the situation in the state. As he warned a couple of days ago, the numbers are worse:

Of those 77 new cases, 13 are linked to outbreaks, 37 detected through routine testing, none in hotel quarantine, and 27 further cases are under investigation.

There are five previous cases that have been reclassified, so we’ve got a net increase of 72. There are now 332 total cumulative cases with an unknown source that indicate community transmission. That’s an increase of 31 since yesterday.

And now 415 active cases in Victoria, an increase of 45 since yesterday. Perhaps not unexpectedly, there are now 20 patients hospitalised, an increase of five since yesterday, including four in intensive care, which is an increase of two.

Updated

Linda Reynolds is the latest minister to single out China in a speech (via AAP):

The defence minister has accused China of deeply unsettling the Indo-Pacific as Australia shifts its full military focus to the region.

Linda Reynolds says China’s expansion has put Australia in a precarious position.

“They have not positively contributed to Australia’s – or the region’s – security and stability,” Senator Reynolds will tell defence leaders in a speech on Thursday.

“Australia has watched closely as China has actively sought greater influence in the Indo-Pacific. Australia is far from alone in being troubled by this.”

The federal government is spending another $270 billion on defence over the next decade to protect against China’s militarisation and the fallout from coronavirus.

The government has also instructed the Australian Defence Force to focus squarely on the region, rather than far-flung conflicts.

Peter Jennings from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute believes the country could be heading to a potential military crisis off the coast of China within the next year or two.

“What is new is the realisation that the risk of conflict is upon us right now, not a comfortably distant 20 years away,” he said. “The [defence strategic] update abandons a long-held strategic view that we would have 10 years of ‘strategic warning time’ to prepare for a large-scale conflict.”

Mr Jennings has also urged the prime minister to apply his strategic lens to Australia’s “thin diplomatic effort” in Southeast Asia.

“We must work with the region to show that it’s possible to push back against [Chinese] domination,” he said.

Senator Reynolds does not believe Australia’s concerns will surprise the Chinese government. “We have been very clear in expressing our concerns about developments that are inconsistent with international law or may undermine the sovereignty of nations,” she will say.

Ahead of the speech, Senator Reynolds said Australia’s security environment was changing “very, very quickly” and the region was becoming less safe.

She said while the prospect of high-intensity conflict in the region was still unlikely, the possibility was less remote than in the past.

“We have not changed, our values have not changed, and how we engage with the region has not changed,” Senator Reynolds told ABC radio. “But the region has changed and China’s behaviour has changed in the region.”

Tensions between the US and China have put the region on edge. So too have border skirmishes between China and India, and Beijing’s intransigence over the South China Sea.

Australia is also concerned China is exercising “soft power” by offering Pacific nations unsustainable loans, which critics describe as debt traps.

Updated

Things are all very normal between the NSW Nats and the NSW Libs.

We’re expecting an update from Victoria at 11am.

What’s it like in a locked-down suburb at the moment?

Updated

If the result from polling booths is close on Saturday, it could be days until we get a result. Postals could play a very important role.

Updated

This is not about the tinned meat.

You can tell what socioeconomic bracket I grew up in, given where my thoughts first went.

Updated

Closing statements from the Eden-Monaro candidates on ABC South East.

Fiona Kotvojs says she’s heard “heartbreaking stories” while out campaigning but she’s been “really inspired by the resilience and optimism of our wonderful communities”.

There are “more important things than politics” but Eden-Monaro would be “best served by a local who can be part of government”.

Kotvojs promises infrastructure upgrades, Snowy 2.0 and support for businesses and farmers. Then she rattles off the CV again, including 15 years as an RFS volunteer.

Kristy McBain says she wants to make a difference, she’s not a career politician or motivated by power. “I’ll put our community first every time if I’m elected on Saturday,” she said.

Leadership matters – “especially at the federal level ... it matters that you show up” – this all sounds like a dig at Scott Morrison for the Hawaii summer bushfire trip.

McBain says she understands if elected she will “govern for all”.

Updated

Natasha Fyles says NT residents need to think about their travel but at this point it doesn’t look as though the NT will be barring Victorians, as Queensland and SA have done:

That’s a simplistic response.

Victoria is a smaller geographical area and I can understand the concerns of Territorians seeing multiple cases each day being reported back, but they are within those local government areas and considering we don’t have that vaccine, or that cure, as we step forward in the coming months, we know that Covid’s had a huge impact on many people, they can’t travel to see seriously-ill family or friends.

As I just explained using the example in Queensland, you may see outbreaks in a state that geographically are a long way from another location where someone may need to travel.

So we certainly want Territorians to think about their travel. It’s not great, let’s jump on the plane and go away for the weekend. It needs to be important travel. And people need to make sure that we don’t have that vaccine. So the steps they take will protect the broader community.

Updated

The NT health minister says at this stage there is no reason for the territory to rethink its border opening (which is due to occur on 17 July).

So the whole time that we have been managing coronavirus and protecting Territorians, we have been listening to the clinical evidence and this serves as a reminder to our community that coronavirus is present and it can come into the Territory.

But because this person has followed the rules, there is minimal risk to your community.

In going forward, we don’t have a cure or vaccine, we need to step forward to the new normal.

When the borders, those restrictions change again on July 17, it’s not suddenly travel between jurisdictions again.

But those local government areas, HPPC and the clinical advice would designate those hotspots and I believe that over the coming months until we have a vaccine, that these areas will change.

And right now we’re seeing an outbreak in Victoria in very specific local government areas in the outer suburbs of Melbourne, but going forward, this could change.

We could see a situation in Queensland where we have got an outbreak perhaps in Cairns, but people in Brisbane aren’t impacted.

So we need to be practical, we need to listen to that clinical advice, and so going forward for the Northern Territory, on July 17, the quarantine will change to those local government areas.

But, of course, we will make sure that in stepping that forward to the new normal, we listen to the clinical advice from our experts.

Updated

Darwin man tests Covid-19 positive in first spread of Victorian outbreak across state borders

A Darwin man in his 30s has tested positive for Covid-19. He had been in hotel quarantine in Melbourne, but visited family in a hotspot area before returning to the NT.

He began showing symptoms and was tested for Covid-19, testing positive.

The traveller had been isolating in Darwin, as per the rules, upon their return.

It’s the first case in the NT since April, and the territory had “clinically” eradicated the virus from its jurisdiction.

Updated

Fiona Kotvojs says local media is important and she misses the death notices on ABC.

“Yes I will continue to fight for local media coverage,” she said.

But Kotvojs refused to commit to fight for a reversal of the $84m cut to indexation – instead repeating the prime minister’s line that “there hasn’t been a reduction”.

This is a gimme for Kristy McBain, given that Labor has promised to reverse the cut (in government, if elected at the next election).

But the heat turns on McBain with the next question about Labor branch-stacking (in Victoria, presumably).

McBain says it hasn’t been raised with her once on the campaign because it doesn’t affect people’s lives. Then she pivots to jobkeeper and an economic plan, again.

Kotvojs denied the government has pork-barrelled the election by making promises for primary industries such as apple growing and wineries – she notes the programs, although announced in Eden-Monaro, apply Australia-wide.

Next question is about Kotvojs submission to the religious freedom review – which included a call for a right for commercial service providers to refuse same-sex weddings.

Kotvojs says differences must be “based on respect” and expressed respectfully – but doesn’t go to the substance of discrimination law.

McBain says discrimination based on sexuality and gender is a “massive no” from her, arguing that religious practices and beliefs might be “thousands of years old” but need to be updated.

Updated

The PM is combining the defence announcement (a $270bn decade-long spend for a 2020 strategy released just before a byelection ... Deidre Chambers, is that you?) from yesterday, with some adjacent Eden-Monaro campaigning at his press event today.

That’s being held mid-morning.

Updated

The second question is on bushfire recovery and what the federal government could do better.

Fiona Kotvojs says the problem is not enough information sharing between agencies, including councils refusing to give info because of privacy reasons.

She called for a “single consolidated list” of affected businesses and households so everybody eligible would know to apply for support.

Kristy McBain said after the Tathra fires in 2018 it was obvious that more streamlining of assistance was required – and more federal money for caseworkers was needed.

There has to be a better response and it has to be lead by the federal government – actually getting state and local government working together, getting across bureaucratic issues such as privacy, when you’re all working for the same outcome and goal.

Then Kotvojs is asked about her record of downplaying climate change and refusal to say whether it added to the intensity of the summer bushfires:

My belief is very clear: I believe the climate is changing and humans are contributing to that change.

She repeats her view that it was lack of hazard reduction that caused the intensity, a point she made in a submission to the bushfire royal commission.

Kotvojs was asked about reducing greenhouse gas emissions to reduce heat, and she replies the Coalition has a “great plan” to reduce emissions.

She incorrectly claims Australia has reduced emissions by 40% in the last 30 years – that would be emissions per capita, not total emissions.

Kotvojs attempted to say the government was walking the talk, but had an unfortunate stumble, saying:

We’ve put our foot where our mouth is.

Updated

The ABC South East is hosting a debate between the Liberal Fiona Kotvojs and Labor’s Kristy McBain.

Kotvojs starts with a measured opening statement – so measured it sounds a little like she’s reading it.

The text is similar to her ads, stressing that she is LOCAL and has been a “teacher, farmer and small business owner”, Oxfam director and RFS volunteer.

McBain is similarly well prepared, discussing how the region had responded to the “devastation and turmoil” of bushfires. Eden-Monaro wants a plan for bushfire recovery and economic supports for Covid-19 so the jobkeeper wage subsidy won’t “fall off a cliff”.

The first question for both candidates: should jobkeeper be kept after September?

Kotvojs said the program was legislated for six months, giving businesses certainty and helping them stay open.

The review is going to identify where we need to go ... after this ... The key thing is the prime minister has made clear whatever is needed will be done.

McBain said people in Eden-Monaro were doing it tough and 18,000 workers in the electorate were at risk if jobkeeper were withdrawn:

People are anxious to know what will happen after September and they have a right to know. People want a plan now because businesses need to plan for the future.

Updated

Eden-Monaro’s Liberal candidate, Fiona Kotvojs, and the Labor candidate, Kristy McBain, are debating each other on ABC radio at the moment.

Updated

New Zealand's health minister resigns

New Zealand has lost its health minister.

Jacinda Ardern had said she would have accepted David Clark’s resignation earlier in the pandemic but the nation needed consistency as it worked through its health response.

Clark broke the nation’s lockdown.

Updated

Anthony Albanese was asked about Labor’s chances at the Eden-Monaro byelection. He continued through with Labor’s “managing expectations” strategy, when it comes to his candidate’s chances of winning this Saturday.

Well, Scott Morrison started this byelection campaign ahead. The day that Mike Kelly, a very popular local member, resigned from parliament, our vote went from 51 to 48.

That’s according to Antony Green estimates, he’s worth about 3% of the vote. And it’s during a time where it’s very difficult to campaign.

It’s a once in a 100-year pandemic. And that was the last time that a seat changed in terms of a byelection.

Look, what we’re focused on is just fighting for every vote. We’re confident we have the best candidate in Kristy McBain. There’s no one on the Labor side saying that’s not the case, unlike the Coalition, which is really a rabble and a mess.

And this is an opportunity for the electorate of Eden-Monaro to send a message to the government that they need to do better, that they left people behind during the bushfires and they are leaving people behind during this pandemic.

We know that a whole range of people have missed out on jobkeeper and the government is keeping its plans for jobkeeper and jobseeker and the potential increase in the GST all secret until after the byelection on Saturday.

Updated

The pandemic saw telehealth services rolled out in Australia very, very quickly.

Now that some calm has returned to the Australian Covid-19 situation, the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners wants the system looked at.

Particularly, at who you can see over telehealth:

RACGP President Dr Harry Nespolon said telehealth and telephone consultations presented a huge opportunity to improve patient access to care but ensuring quality care was critical.

“The RACGP has long supported expanded telehealth and telephone consultations. They have helped decrease the risk of spreading COVID-19 to patients and practice staff and made care more accessible for vulnerable patients.

“But we have been deeply concerned to see the rise of more and more pop-up telehealth businesses offering low value medical services. These businesses promise a ‘quick fix’ for patients but there is no commitment to the ongoing care of the patient.

“These doctors have no connection to a patient’s usual clinic and won’t know their medical history. Increasing access to health services should never come at the cost of patient health and safety.”

“If you consult with your usual GP on the phone or video, you will be provided with care, informed by your medical history.”

Updated

After people refused to be tested for Covid-19 in Victorian hotspots, there has been talk of forcing tests, through legal means, (I really hope no one is at the “hold them down” talk stage, because for goodness sake) to ensure that the testing blitz is carried out.

Greg Hunt says people need to keep their farms calm:

At this stage, what we’re doing is focusing on having as many people come forward voluntarily as possible. I understand that there’s a very, very high acceptance rate and by having, you know, record numbers of tests yesterday, concentrated in these areas, what we’re doing is finding more cases than ever before, but giving our contact tracers the chance to do it.

The Victorian premier, who – they do have the capacity if they wish to do this – is I think reasonably concerned about people simply not answering the door, about creating a backlash and resistance but what we want to do is encourage everybody, encourage as many people as possible to seek out the tests or if approached to take the tests.

Updated

AAP has a little more on that:

Health Minister Greg Hunt has urged authorities to throw the book at hotel coronavirus rule-breakers after allegations security guards slept with guests.

Claims of widespread rorting and misconduct have rocked the security firms responsible for patrolling Melbourne’s hotel quarantine regime.

Companies charged taxpayers for shifts never worked, leading to less security workers on duty and higher risk of infections, The Herald Sun reports.

“If those claims are correct then that is completely and utterly unacceptable,” Mr Hunt told Sky News on Thursday.

“We would encourage the Victorian authorities to throw the book – either individuals or if there’s any systemic inappropriate action - at those who are responsible for it.”

The Victorian government has launched a judicial inquiry into hotel quarantine after Melbourne’s infection spike was linked to guards sharing cigarette lights.

Mr Hunt said there was an unacceptable set of breaches in hotel quarantine.

“Many Victorians are going into lockdown today,” he said.

“The hotel quarantine system has been a contributing element to that.”

Updated

Greg Hunt was also quite conciliatory when it came to Victoria’s hotel quarantine situation, given some of the accusations in today’s papers:

I think overwhelmingly the states and territories have done an extraordinary job with their public health responses, including hotel quarantine.

There are two cases here – two hotels where clearly there have been breaches and on the allegations themselves, if they are correct, then Victoria should – should throw the book at them. I’m not here to judge or be critical because, as a country, we’re in the position we’re in because the commonwealth, the states and the public have all worked together and I think – it’s very important to emphasise that, but there have been clear failures and they need to be investigated which Victoria is doing.

Right now the offer is there if additional support is required, additional support will be provided and so it’s a matter for them how they accept that.

Updated

Greg Hunt was asked about the border issue on the ABC this morning:

Well, we’re opening up borders progressively. Queensland and South Australia have announced actions. What we have seen with the Northern Territory, Tasmania’s heading in the same – in the same direction.

So overwhelmingly, we are opening up borders. The national cabinet has never endorsed border closures and that remains our position. The medical expert panel has never endorsed border closures.

But the direction is opening them up and that’s about giving people access to their families, it’s – supporting communities to recover and so all of the movement is generally in the one direction, but what we’re trying to do is make sure that Australians get their lives back, get access to their families back, but at the same time, we keep each other safe which is why we have this model of rapid testing, rapid tracing, local containment where there are outbreaks.

So those two things are occurring at the same time – progressive border opening and local containment.

Updated

Meanwhile, despite what you may have heard, the higher unemployment payment has not stopped people from applying for work. Quite to the contrary, as Luke Henriques-Gomes reports:

Dress your kid in yellow and prepare to have your TV interview invaded.

I don’t make the rules. It’s bigger than all of us, apparently.

Yellow is the ultimate power colour.

Updated

Meanwhile, the Age has reported some people in Victorian hotspot suburbs tried changing their addresses to avoid being locked down:

Residents from Melbourne’s 10 coronavirus hotspots have attempted to change the address on their driver’s licence to get around restrictions as they enter strict lockdown conditions for a second time.

VicRoads has moved to stop a significant surge in licence amendments as people rushed to change their addresses in the hopes of getting through police checkpoints.

Updated

Via AAP:

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has vowed to crack down on organised crime syndicates targeting coronavirus welfare schemes.

Federal police have reportedly frozen more than 50 bank accounts after criminals targeted JobKeeper wage subsidies, the boosted dole and early access to superannuation.

“We’re working to ensure that where there is fraud it’s uncovered and those people face the full force of the law,” Mr Frydenberg told Sky News on Thursday.

The government has established a serious financial crimes task force bringing together the Australian Federal Police, the tax office and home affairs.

JobKeeper is the biggest single spend of any welfare program.

“Organised crime is a problem both for the public and private sectors, that’s nothing new, particularly when you’ve got a program of this scale of size,” Mr Frydenberg said.

AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw said busting open superannuation fraud had helped detect other crimes.

“We have restrained assets in relation to fraud against government COVID-19 programs and we will work with other agencies to continue to do so,” he told The Australian.

The UK site Polifiller has taken a look at the most-used phrases by politicians and come up with the top political jargon of the year.

I hear these phrases in my sleep.

Updated

The ABC’s Dr Norman Swan, who has had a real moment in this pandemic, was asked by the broadcaster this morning if Australia should have gone for eradication, like New Zealand, rather than suppression, when it came to Covid-19.

Here is what he had to say:

My personal view is, yes, we did make a mistake not going for eradication.

We should have and could have and some states have.

You have essentially eradication in Queensland, Western Australia, Tasmania, South Australia, Northern Territory.

Getting close in New South Wales although there’s still the virus in New South Wales.

New South Wales can’t be complacent about this, nor are they, and they are looking – I don’t think they’re looking down on Victoria at all. They’re just looking nervously at Victoria.

And we could have gone – we’re an island, controlling people coming in and could have gone for that.

The trouble we had in this case is we probably needed another couple of weeks of full lockdown and I don’t think people were tolerating it very well at all and it would have been hard to do and so we came out a bit earlier than probably we should have in New South Wales and Victoria.

Updated

Gladys Berejiklian had a chat to the Seven Network this morning.

The NSW premier said she would be keeping her state’s borders open because there was no health advice to the contrary. And she said Victorians, who were not from a hotspot area, were still welcome to visit NSW.

She also said it was inevitable that at some point NSW would be in the same situation as Victoria is right now:

I hate to state the obvious – there is no doubt in my mind that during the course of the pandemic, we will get a spike. It is about how you deal with it.

Updated

Daniel Andrews appeared on the ABC’s 7.30 program last night and spoke about the inquiry into Victoria’s hotel quarantine program.

It differed from other states in that it used private security firms, where the other states used either police, or police supervision of private contractors.

There have been some pretty explosive allegations about what went on in the Victorian quarantine system.

Andrews said it was for the inquiry to investigate:

Those questions, that process, should be done at arm’s length and that’s exactly why we have announced a really important inquiry. What is best here is to deal with those things that we can influence. We can’t go back, we can’t change beyond the very important reforms and the changes that have been made right across the journey. We have got more staff in there that come from different places, we are confident today that challenges that occurred many, many weeks ago will not be repeated.

Updated

There is a national cabinet being held tomorrow - in recent times, they have been held once every two weeks, but the spike in Victorian cases and the localised lockdown response has meant an earlier meeting.

Scott Morrison wants to use it to urge the state’s who have closed their borders to Victoria - which is practically all of them, in either real terms, or in the case of NSW, in very heavily worded terms - to open them back up again.

Not sure that will be successful.

In Queensland, you can go to a nightclub but you can’t dance. You have to take a seat.

In South Australia, you can go to a nightclub but you can’t drink if you are going to dance. You have to choose.

Stephen Wade said it wasn’t a “bungle” in the guidelines – it’s a response to the second wave in South Korea, which was traced back to nightclubs.

This is not a bungle. This is a clear public health measure. We’ve seen in Seoul, for example, that nightclubs were the source of their second wave.

We need to accept that nightclubs, where you’ve got dancing and alcohol, a large number of adults in close proximity is a risk, it needs to be managed.

We’re not saying no. We’re saying if you want to get involved in an activity which is high risk, you need a Covid-19 management plan …

That’s based on public health advice. This is not a wowser approach. This is based on real problems we’ve seen around the world in terms of high-risk activities with dancing and alcohol and adults in close proximity.

Updated

But the border between South Australia and Victoria will remain closed. Which is a concern for those in the border towns. As a gal born in Mount Gambier, who still has a lot of family there, I can tell you the SA/Vic border is more of a blurry guide than a hard border most of the time. If you live in Nelson, or Dartmoor or any of the other small towns close by, you head into the Mount for your needs.

Stephen Wade said it just couldn’t be risked at the moment. And the Coalition state government has the support of the Labor opposition in SA (unlike in Queensland, where the LNP has been pushing to open the borders):

We will look at all options but I need to be clear – only last week we had a fourfold increase in cases in Victoria. We’ve only had a plateauing this week. I think we need to be careful.

We’ll continue to act on the public of public health advice. We have arrangements in place to try to maintain the continuity of health services, particularly for people in communities like Alice Springs, Broken Hill and Mildura, but a complete opening of the borders needs to be done carefully.

Even the staged opening would need to be done carefully. We’ll continue to work with our public health clinicians to make sure that whatever we do is safe.

Updated

The South Australian health minister, Stephen Wade (there are almost as many Stephen/Stevens in Australian politics as there are Andrews in the press gallery), had a chat to ABC News Breakfast this morning.

He said SA would probably be keeping its border to Victoria closed for a while yet, although it may open to NSW and the ACT (it has opened its border to residents of other states already):

There’s a whole series of challenges in terms of taking the borders back. We’ve made very strong steps in South Australia. We’re actively considering New South Wales and the ACT. We’ll continue to open up the country to the extent that it’s safe to do so.

It’s clearly a significant challenge in Victoria at the moment. It’s the judgment of the South Australian government that it’s too early to open our borders to Victoria.

Updated

Good morning

Spare a thought for more than 300,000 Victorians who suddenly find themselves back in March.

2020 just keeps bringing the goods.

Given that this was the plan developed by national cabinet, the residents of 3038, 3064, 3047, 3060, 3012, 3032, 3055, 3042, 3021 and 3046 could be any of us, if Covid-19 takes hold in our area.

As of midnight last night, people in the hotspots can now only leave their homes for food and supplies, to exercise, to receive or provide care, to study or work, if they absolutely can not do it from home.

Extra testing clinics have been set up in the neighbourhoods, and everyone, absolutely everyone is being urged to get tested –even if you don’t have symptoms.

It’s the level of community transmission that has everyone worried. Of the 73 new coronavirus cases recorded yesterday, three were returned travellers, nine have been linked back to known outbreaks, 19 were from “routine testing” – going to a clinic and 42 are still under investigation.

Melbourne will no longer take international flights and the former judge Jennifer Coate will lead an inquiry into Victoria’s hotel quarantine program, and what went wrong, after at least part of the outbreak was traced back to security staff at two of the hotels.

Meanwhile, the states have sent health staff, and have opened their labs to help process the Victorian tests, which are close to 20,000 a day.

When it comes to the borders, it’s a different story. Victorians have been banned from Queensland and South Australia. NSW has issued “do not travel” guidelines to its residents and also set up fines and possible jail terms, to anyone from a hotspot found to be breaking quarantine in the state. WA isn’t letting anyone in and won’t for some time.

We’ll keep you updated with all the Covid-19 news in Australia, as well as what’s happening politically. There is just a few days left in the Eden-Monaro byelection, which is taking up a lot of Anthony Albanese’s time, with Labor not certain it will hold the bellwether seat.

You have Amy Remeikis at the helm of the good ship blog for most of the day, with the entire Guardian crew onboard.

(It’s Thursday. I haven’t had enough coffee yet, obviously)

Let’s get into it.

Updated

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