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

PM announces new business restrictions to stop Covid-19 spread – as it happened

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Still confused about what has been shut down? Pin this to your browser, we will probably be updating it as the week goes on.

Updated

The national cabinet's new announcements

Let’s quickly recap what was announced tonight.

From midnight tomorrow, all libraries, museums, galleries, beauty salons, tattoo parlours, shopping centre food courts, auctions, open houses, amusement parks, arcades, indoor and outdoor play centres, swimming pools, and indoor exercise activities will be shut down.

That adds to the earlier closures, enforced from midday Monday, of all cafes and restaurants for everything other than takeaway or deliveries, as well as the closure of pubs, clubs, casinos, gyms and places of worship.

Weddings will be restricted to five people including the couple. Funerals will be restricted to 10 mourners.

Hairdressers and barbers remain open for appointments of less than 30 minutes; outdoor personal training and boot camps can continue for groups of less than 10.

All retail stores, including supermarkets and bottle shops, remain open.

All Australians have been told to stay at home except for essential outings, including work, grocery shopping, and medical appointments and supplies. Exercising outside alone or with a friend is fine.

States and territories will look at possibly making it an offence to hold house parties. Dinner parties, barbecues and children’s birthday parties should not be held. Gathering in groups in public, even small groups of friends in a park, should also not occur.

Schools remain open. After the Easter holidays, Morrison says schools in the ACT and Victoria that are currently closed will reopen. All schools will offer a mix of distance and in-person learning, and there will be efforts made to ensure vulnerable teachers do not have to go to work.

There is now a travel ban on Australians going overseas except in exceptional circumstances.

Updated

The national cabinet will meet again tomorrow night and discuss the issue of rent relief, which was on the agenda tonight but not resolved.

The supply of personal protective equipment – face masks, hand sanitiser, etc – will also be on the agenda tomorrow, as will the continued supply of tests and testing materials.

Updated

Asked how he intended to get this information about social distancing restrictions out to the general public, Scott Morrison said there would be a text message campaign happening soon.

He said the media also had a role to play in getting that information out and urged people to share the official campaign among their friends.

The text messaging, yes, that will be coming very, very soon – very soon. We will be using all of those devices to get that message out, but I think it’s pretty clear that most people, if not every person in this country, would know that the coronavirus is having an impact on our country and on the lives of Australians. I mean, it is hard to avoid when you look at the Centrelink queues and not understand that something very serious is going on. So I would encourage Australians to seek out that information from the trusted sources.

Updated

Centrelink’s mutual obligation requirements have been suspended until 31 March and this will be extended beyond that time if needed, Morrison says.

He suggests there will be some industries that need to hire people during the pandemic, including Centrelink call centres, which are hiring 5,000 new staff.

Updated

Scott Morrison is asked why personal trainers are able to work with groups of 10 people, while weddings are limited to five.

He says that is because boot camps and personal training sessions are businesses. Weddings, we note, are also businesses.

On the boot camp issue, Morrison says:

That is a business, that is someone’s livelihood, and you are saying that I should turn their livelihood off ... I am not going to be cavalier about people’s jobs and their businesses.

Updated

This is a pretty extensive list, so I will try to list them individually. All these changes come into force at midnight tomorrow.

Included in the new ban:

  • Auction houses and open house inspections
  • Food courts in shopping centres (shopping centres themselves remain open)
  • Outdoor and indoor markets (states and territories may leave some major food markets open)
  • Beauty salons including waxing, tanning and nail salons
  • Tattoo parlours
  • Amusement parks and arcades
  • Indoor and outdoor play centres
  • Galleries, museums, and libraries
  • Swimming pools

Allowed to remain open or take place, with restrictions:

  • Hairdressers and barber shops, with strict social distancing and provided appointments do not go for more than 30 minutes
  • Personal training and boot camps must be limited to 10 people
  • Weddings are limited to five people including the couple and celebrant
  • Funerals limited to 10 mourners

Heavily recommended against, with state and territory laws to follow:

  • Dinner parties, house parties, and in-home gatherings
  • Gatherings in public places, like parks

Brendan Murphy says the national cabinet has not adopted the advice of the Group of Eight university experts because it “certainly wasn’t a unanimous view”.

He says the Group of Eight position was “very seriously considered”, but he is reluctant to recommend very severe restrictions, which the universities call for, before they are necessary.

Updated

Scott Morrison is asked about the queues forming at Centrelink, caused by the first round of social distancing measures that left more than a million people unemployed.

The closures announced tonight will leave thousands more without jobs.

Morrison says the government is “deeply sorry”.

I would say to Australians, yes, we are terribly sorry, but at the same time, we are asking Australians, even in these most difficult of circumstances to be patient. Everyone is doing their best. What we are dealing with is unprecedented. No system is built to deal with the circumstance and events we are facing as a nation.

I would urge people, as difficult as it is, work with us, we are working to get it as high and far as we can, but we have had multiple, many times over what is expected from the system, and it has been upgraded and upgraded again and will be upgraded again.

He says it may take “a few days” for people to be able to sign up to welfare but the support “will get to you”.

Updated

The ABC’s Andrew Probyn asks if schools are required to remain open, they are becoming “human petri dishes” for the virus.

Scott Morrison does not like this question.

I think it is important, Andrew, [that] media don’t use that alarmist language. I don’t think it helps. I would encourage more moderate language on the issues, particularly based on the medical advice you’ve heard from us day after day on this issue. I would encourage a more measured way of talking about these issues, because I think that can cause unnecessary alarm amongst parents.

Morrison says he expects schools to reopen after the Easter break with a mix of online and in-person learning.

Brendan Murphy repeats that children are not likely to be at significant risk from the virus, but says that teachers who are vulnerable should be allowed to stay home.

We do not see fit, healthy children with this virus and schools can do things to make them a safe place, with good hygiene ... some parents are choosing to keep their children at home and we think a well-structured class room is better than children roaming the community, which they probably would.

Updated

Scott Morrison says he hopes the measures will not be extended to shutting down retail stores, and says he believes that by cracking down on social gatherings, such as dinner parties and casual football games, a retail ban will not be necessary.

But it is important for people to go to the shop. It is important to go to the shopping centre. It is important that they get access to these normal services. It is important for them, because they need it, it’s also important for our economy that it continues to operate and function as much as possible. So I don’t leap to that conclusion.

Morrison says he has seen some people suggest Australia should move to a total lockdown, as Italy did.

Be careful what you wish for on something like that. Be very careful. Because that would need to be sustained for a very long time. And that could have a very significant and even more onerous impact on life in Australia. And we should seek to try to avoid that where it is possible

Updated

On the tougher social distancing rules announced tonight, Brendan Murphy says:

Because of the great rise in cases, we felt it was very important to recommend that those restrictive measures be well articulated and made clear and to some extent tightened, because we have to get people to take this seriously.

We have to change the way we interact, as human beings, in our society, for quite a long time. This virus will be with us for some time. We have to all think about avoiding any unnecessary interactions where you are close to someone and could place them at risk.

These measures are really draconian. We know that. But if we’re going to control community transmission, we have to stop the capacity of this virus from spreading from person to person. And I have said many times, it is a long haul and that is why we are keen to keep society functioning but keep society safe.

Updated

The chief medical officer, Prof Brendan Murphy, says he is very worried about the rate of rise in cases of Covid-19 being reported in Australia.

We are very worried about the rate of rise of the number of coronavirus cases in Australia, particularly over the last few days. It is a very, very steep growth and it is very concerning.

Still, a significant proportion of those new cases are returned travellers or contacts of returned travellers ... I want to emphasise again that we are really serious now about a returned traveller. You leave the airport, you go home and stay there for 14 days, and the states and territories will be checking on you. We will not tolerate anybody putting the community at risk as a returned traveller.

Murphy says there is no exception to the requirement that returned travellers stay home for 14 days.

So returned travellers, please, stay at home, don’t go anywhere on the way from the airport or the cruise ship or wherever you are from.

He says there have been cases of returned travellers going to the chemist, and even people who have been diagnosed with Covid-19 going to the chemist.

If you are isolating because you are a positive case or you’re a contact, you go home and you isolate and you obey those rules. That is a really, really important part of the control.

Updated

Australia to introduce a ban on all overseas travel

This is a significant escalation. Scott Morrison says the travel advice from Dfat will be escalated from a “do not travel” warning to a ban on all overseas travel, except in exceptional circumstances.

Exceptions will include people providing aid work in the Pacific, compassionate travel and essential travel for employment.

Morrison says the ban has been introduced because “there are people defying that advice and looking to go overseas on leisure travel”.

He says the Australian government will also introduce new offences for people profiteering from bringing essential medical supplies into the country.

Updated

On school closures, Scott Morrison says the medical advice has not changed. That is, it’s still safe to send your kids to school.

Morrison is meeting with the education minister, Dan Tehan, and the national education unions to ensure that schools remain open and that teachers can be protected.

I said this the other day: This is incredibly important. It’s going to be a tough year in 2020 and one of the things I don’t want to have yielded up is a year of a child’s education, which is so important. We need to work so hard together to try and ensure that those kids get that education and that is not lost to this virus.

Morrison says all schools around the country will reopen after the Easter holidays, but it will be a mixture of in-person and distance learning.

He says schools will remain open for “essential workers” and, under his definition, every worker is essential.

Everyone who has a job in this economy is an essential worker. Every single job that is being done in our economy with these severe restrictions that are taking place is essential. It can be an essential service whether it’s a nurse or a doctor or a schoolteacher, or a public servant who is working tonight to ensure that we can get even greater capacity in our Centrelink offices, working until 8pm under the new arrangement in the call centres, these are all essential jobs.

People stacking shelves, that is essential. People earning money in their family when another member of their family may have lost their job and can no longer earn, that’s an essential job. Jobs are essential. And everyone who has one needs to be able to keep doing their job, and that means they will need to continue to be able to send their children to school for an education.

Updated

Scott Morrison:

You should only go outside your home to go to those essential things I talked about, not to go and congregate in groups. We need you to stop doing that. That is not going to help.

If we do all these things then we are going to be able to put greater pressure on slowing the rate of the spread of this virus, which in particular in New South Wales and Victoria has been growing at a much more rapid rate than other places.

Updated

All of these bans will come into force from midnight tomorrow.

Scott Morrison says he wants Australians to show common sense in engaging in social distancing, and “to stay at home unless it is absolutely necessary you go out”.

Going out for the basics, going out for an exercise, perhaps with your partner or family members, provided it’s a small group, that’s fine.

But going outside and going out and participating more broadly in the community, unless you’re shopping for basics or there are medical needs or you’re providing care and support to an individual at another place.

Going to work and where you cannot work from home. That is encouraged, strongly encouraged to work from home where you can do that.

Visits to your premises, to your house, to your residence, should be kept to a minimum and with very small numbers of guests. We don’t want to be overly specific about that, we want Australians to exercise their common sense.

The PM says states and territories may look at introducing specific offences for people who hold house parties.

He says people will also be told not to gather in groups in public.

Updated

Funerals of more than 10 mourners banned, weddings restricted to five people

Scott Morrison says funerals of more than 10 mourners will now be banned. He says he knows this will be “very difficult”.

Weddings will be restricted to just five people – the couple, the celebrant and two witnesses. These are the same rules that were introduced in the UK recently.

Morrison says he knows this will be a particularly difficult change for people.

Updated

Bans on indoor gatherings extended

Scott Morrison says the national cabinet has agreed to extend the restrictions on indoor gatherings, announced on Sunday, to include a range of new closures.

They include auction houses, food courts in shopping centres and some markets, although the markets will be decided by state and territory governments.

There are also bans on beauty services, tanning services, tattoo parlours, waxing salons and nail salons.

Hairdressers and barbers can continue to operate provided each client is in and out in 30 minutes.

Updated

Scott Morrison says the national cabinet as well as the federal and state and territory governments “have considered the many many difficult issues that we are having to address”.

We are not unconscious of the real impact these measures are having on the lives of daily Australians so we will continue to do everything we can, both as a federal government and at state government and territory governments around the country, to do all we can to support our people through what is going to be an incredibly difficult time.

Morrison says the government “will work night and day to ensure that we can get more capacity into [Centrelink] systems. But what this reflects is the size of the need.”

Updated

The prime minister, Scott Morrison, is talking now.

Updated

While we wait for Scott Morrison, this is what the advertising expert Dee Madigan had to say about the Australian government’s communication campaign so far:

I understand the government doesn’t want to panic people, but in the face of so much mixed messaging people have been confused. Now it’s at the point they need to scare the fuck out of people to get the message across.

You can read more of what experts are saying on the need for clearer messaging and a clearer rationale on Australia’s coronavirus strategy, here:

Updated

We have just been told that Scott Morrison will give a press conference at 9.20pm.

As Amy Remeikes reported earlier, the national cabinet tonight was discussing possible stage two social distancing measures. Stage one was the closure of cafes, gyms and places of worship announced on Sunday.

We know that experts asked to provided advice to the chief medical officer, Professor Brendan Murphy, recommended much stronger social distancing measures and said localised measures, shutting down particular suburbs as Morrison suggested earlier in the week, wouldn’t work as well as tough national rules.

The national cabinet was also discussing the ability of the health system to respond to a projected increase in cases. Those Group of Eight experts suggested the number of cases in Australia could reach 50,000 by Easter.

Updated

Not now, Northern Territory politics.

We are expecting to hear from the prime minister, Scott Morrison, shortly, with an update on what was decided at the national cabinet meeting tonight.

Updated

The Greens senator Rachel Siewert says she worked with the federal government to ensure mutual obligation requirements were suspended.

Siewert says:

I have been working with the minister to get this fixed. I’m very pleased that mutual obligations have been suspended until at least 31 March.

She said it was “incredibly stressful” for people who are reliant on welfare to try to meet those fortnightly reporting requirements at a time when queues for Centrelink are several blocks long, and 3.2 million people have accessed the MyGov website in 20 hours.

If welfare recipients did not meet their reporting requirements, they risked having payments suspended.

Updated

Universities warn Australia could see more than 50,000 cases by Easter

The Group of Eight universities have written to the health minister, Greg Hunt, with new advice on social distancing requested by the chief medical officer, Brendan Murphy.

Perhaps the most concerning observation from the experts is that:

As government is aware, the doubling time is approximately every 1.6 days in Australia, compared to 6 days in February. The reduction in doubling time is an indicator that the window for proactive intervention is very small. At this current rate Australia could theoretically expect over 6,000 cases by the end of next week and over 50,000 cases by Easter.

The experts say they “support the stronger decisions being now taken by government and what we term as the ‘go now, go hard and go smart’ strategy”.

But their recommendations go much further:

  1. Australia without delay implements national stronger social distancing measures, more extensive banning of mass gatherings, school closure or class dismissal.
  2. Australia urgently seeks mechanisms to enable a much-enhanced and coordinated regime of Covid-19 testing without delay. This should include community testing to estimate the rates of disease in the population and this should guide further decision making.
  3. Strengthen the messaging around the importance of people complying with all of the requirements of isolation or quarantine and having increased compliance monitoring and support to allow them to do so.
  4. Social distancing, especially when introduced vigorously across so many areas of life, will have significant costs for individuals and groups in society. These consequences will impact unequally. Governments should plan for this and ensure flexible and supportive policy responses for all who may be disadvantaged.

The experts warned that an estimated 20% to 30% of the population “will not comply” with social distancing rules.

As national cabinet meets to discuss stronger measures (or “stage 2 measures”), the Group of Eight experts warned that “interventions need to be comprehensive and simultaneous to have the most impact and a slow trickle of interventions, or suburb-by-suburb lockdowns likely will not be adequate”.

Updated

Centrelink mutual obligations lifted

The Australian government has lifted the mutual obligation requirements for welfare recipients, meaning people will not have their payments suspended if they are unable to meet fortnightly reporting requirements.

The employment minister, Michaelia Cash, and the social services minister, Anne Ruston, released this joint statement a short time ago:

The Coronavirus has, and will continue to have, a devastating impact on Australian jobs and businesses.

Due to the high demand on government services, jobseekers have experienced difficulty with reporting their mutual obligations.

During this challenging time, the Morrison Government is lifting all mutual obligation requirements for jobseekers until capacity can be restored to the MyGov website.

Requirements will be lifted until 31 March, 2020, however if congestion continues, the Government will consider extending these arrangements.

What this means is that no one will be penalised for not being able to report their attendance at appointments or activities – no one’s payments will be suspended and no compliance action will be taken.

The Morrison Government remains committed to mutual obligations and their success with jobseekers and believes in the importance of Australians continued connection to the workforce during this difficult time.

Updated

Queensland reports 78 new cases of Covid-19, bringing state total to 397

Figures just released by the Queensland health department show the state recorded 78 new cases of Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number to 397.

The majority of cases are still from patients who have travelled overseas or had direct contact with a known case, Queensland Health said.

The majority of cases to date – 208 – are in the Brisbane region. Another 79 are on the Gold Coast and 46 were recorded on the Sunshine Coast.

Updated

Scenes from the new border checkpoint in Eucla, Western Australia.

The border closures of Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory came into force today.

Just to recap, there are now more than 2,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Australia.

As of 3pm today, according to the Australian health department, there are 2,136 confirmed coronavirus cases in Australia. That’s 427 new cases in the past 24 hours.

These figures are already out of date.

Updated

3.2 million people logged into MyGov, says Stuart Robert

The government services minister, Stuart Robert, says 3.2 million people have logged in to MyGov in the past 20 hours.

He says new Centrelink call staff are being trained urgently, with some to start tomorrow.

Robert made the comments on Twitter, in what seems to be his first statement after that interview with Alan Jones this morning where he admitted the government had been inadequately prepared for the high demand for unemployment services caused by coronavirus shutdown measures.

He said:

There is unprecedented demand for Centrelink services right now. We know that. We are doing everything we can to increase capacity for myGov and our call centres.

The scale of this challenge is immense and it will take some time to get everyone into our systems but please be assured support is here for you and your family.

Yes, there are significant delays on our phone lines as well. We have trained large numbers of staff and are rapidly training more people to work on these phone lines – even as soon as tomorrow.

Again, we need everyone to be patient so we can help you – we aren’t going anywhere and will here through this difficult time. Payments will be available and Centrelink staff are working as hard as they can.

If you missed the minister’s comments on 2GB earlier today, he said:

Again my bad not realising the sheer scale of the decision on Sunday night by national leaders that literally saw hundreds of thousands, maybe a million, people unemployed overnight.

Let me heartily recommend political editor Katharine Murphy’s view on that interview, for your reading pleasure:

Updated

A second student of the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) has tested positive for Covid-19.

In a statement, UTS said the student attended its Sydney campus on Wednesday 11 March and Thursday 12 March. They received their positive test result last night.

UTS said both students who have tested positive to Covid-19 are second-year students in the faculty of health, but “there is no evidence they are linked”.

It said all the classrooms the student attended have received a “deep clean” and UTS was now delivering most teaching online, with most staff allowed to work remotely.

2020, what a horrible year.

The national cabinet meeting is scheduled to be under way now. We will bring you any updates from this meeting as soon as they become available.

Updated

There is already talk of a potential class action for passengers of the Ruby Princess cruise ship. As of today, 133 passengers from that ship have tested positive to Covid-19 and one person has sadly died.

Shine Lawyers says it has been contacted by passengers from the ship and is “investigating multiple avenues to compensate distressed and disappointed passengers who contracted Covid-19 as a result of this alleged negligence”.

In the meantime: do not go on a cruise. If you have been on a cruise in the last 14 days, even if it’s not the Ruby Princess, stay home for 14 days and monitor your health for possible symptoms of Covid-19.

Updated

Commercial charter flights to rescue Australians stranded in locked down Peru and Argentina are slated to fly Friday, but airlines are still waiting on final approval from those South American governments in order to fly.

Hundreds of Australians remained stranded in both countries, and, even if those flights are able to repatriate some citizens, others, in more remote parts of those countries, will be unable to get to airports to be evacuated.

For others, the cost of the repatriation flights — more than $5000 for an economy class seat — is too great.

Foreign affairs minister Marise Payne has said the Australian government understood that tightening lockdowns and closed borders was making it hard for many to get home.

She said:

To those who are seeing border closures and flight disruptions, our diplomatic and consular personnel are talking to host governments, airlines, travel companies, so that we can help you in finding transport options. We continue to urge you, if you want to come home, to do so as soon as possible via commercial means.

Shadow foreign affairs minister Penny Wong said the Australian government needed to follow the lead of other countries, and send planes to rescue its citizens.

Qantas and Virgin are set to cease international flights on March 30, Wong said.

Wong:

Closing borders and airports, changing travel warnings, and cancelled flights are leaving many Australians with no commercial travel options. It’s not just countries like Peru that are in lockdown; major hubs like Singapore have banned transit altogether by non-citizens.

Australians overseas and their families are deeply worried for their safety and welfare. Scott Morrison must act now, while the airlines are still operating, to address this problem.

The Queensland government has issued a fact sheet for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on how to conduct funerals and sorry business during the coronavirus crisis.

It reads:

We know sorry business and other cultural reasons for large gatherings in communities are very important, but it is important to understand that it will put Elders and others who are already ill at serious risk if you don’t observe health advice.

A brief, highly edited message from the deputy prime minister Michael McCormack, who says that freight movements will not be impacted by state border closures.

It is good to clear this up – I have seen some concern and confusion from the transport and agricultural industries this week.

McCormack says that “freight movements around the nation will continue across state borders as it did before this crisis began”.

There is no need to worry about essential supplies of food, medicine, or other goods because freight is an essential service.

Updated

Meanwhile, Labor’s government services shadow minister, Bill Shorten, has issued a list of suggestions that the opposition believes could help solve the ongoing problems with Centrelink.

They include having Centrelink staff speaking with people in queues to “start triaging”, distributing a one page form to people in queues to give them a customer reference number (CRN), separate hotlines for new Centrelink customers, and a “callback” function so people do not need to stay on hold indefinitely.

Shorten said:

These are our suggestions made in good faith. If the government has better ideas we are open to them. But there should be no more excuses, only solutions.

Shorten also said the government should rehire about 4,000 experienced staff cut in recent years. The government said Sunday it was hiring up to 5,000 new staff. It has also promised streamlined Centrelink application processes and pledged to increase the capacity of the MyGov website to avoid further crashes.

Updated

Welfare recipients should not be penalised for reporting requirements

When you look at all the images of the newly unemployed gathered outside Centrelink offices and read the accounts of their struggles with myGov website, spare a thought for those already receiving welfare benefits and who also need those services.

Many of them will have needed to report their circumstances to Centrelink. It’s a fortnightly obligation and failing to do so usually triggers and automatic payment suspension. The way to fix that (and ensure you get your payment on time) is, yes, you guessed it – to contact Centrelink.

“The government has a moral obligation to guarantee that people already on Centrelink will not get their payment suspended if they can’t report online or complete mutual obligations while Centrelink is experiencing this unprecedented surge in people needing its services,” the Greens senator Rachel Siewert said today.

The government has so far declined to fully suspend mutual obligations or promise that no payments will be suspended during the crisis.

“This is why I have been calling and continue to call for the minister to suspend all mutual obligations, the system is not set up to handle a health and economic crisis like this,” Siewert said.

The Guardian has contacted the government services minister, Stuart Robert, for comment.

Updated

Roger Cook says that healthcare workers in WA who record a temperature of more than 38C and have “influenza-like illness” will also be tested at Covid-19 clinics.

He said the state would move to an “aggressive outreach program” to target high-risk communities.

Cook said:

We will now be targeting geographically localised areas where we’ve become aware there’s community transmission.

We’re will also be testing people in other settings where we identified localised outbreaks. So you can understand if we have a localised outbreak in a particular community that will then lead to a heightened awareness around the public health units in that community and start testing a wider group.

The new testing regime also includes anyone who has disembarked a cruise ship in the past 14 days, even if that ship has not been in international waters.

Cook said they would also conduct testing in areas where there had been examples of respiratory illness occurring among vulnerable or close-quartered populations, even if there was no confirmed community transmission of coronavirus in those areas.

That includes aged and residential care settings, remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, detention centres or prisons, boarding schools, military barracks or equivalent.

If we see respiratory illness in those cases, two or more, we’ll undertake testing then.

Five of the new cases reported on Tuesday are in regional areas: two in the Kimberley, one in the mid west, one in the wheatbelt and one in the great southern.

Updated

Western Australia reports 35 new cases, and announces new testing regime

The Western Australian health minister, Roger Cook, says that WA has recorded 35 new cases of Covid-19 in the past day, bringing the total number of cases to 175.

Two of the new cases are young children, aged four and 10. Those children are members of the same family and contracted the virus from a known contract.

Cook says:

Of these new cases, eight are passengers of the Ruby Princess. And four are from the Ovation Of The Seas. The cruise ships that were docked in Sydney Harbour. Now you see just what an impact those two cruise ships have had nationally.

He says more than 10,500 people have been tested to date and WA would expand its testing regime to “scan the horizon” for new outbreaks.

The testing regime that we will now be pursuing essentially has three aims. One is that we want to protect the vulnerable. Two, we want to pick up individual cases and to be able to scan the horizon to see them easily. And, three, we want to increase our awareness of any community transmission as that starts to take place.

However he said the Covid-19 clinics would remain focused on overseas travellers and confirmed contacts.

Updated

In Western Australia, the state government has reportedly converted its $1.6bn Optus Stadium into a coronavirus crisis management centre.

Former WA premier Colin Barnett was pretty heavily criticised for investing a big chunk of the surplus from the mining boom into this stadium, but perhaps he knew all along that it would be useful as a staging area in the event of a pandemic that caused the shut down of all the sport for which it was built.

But probably not.

According to New.com.au, the premier Mark McGowan said the stadium would primarily be used by police as a staging point for “maintaining law and order”.

McGowan told reporters:

They will turn the directions that come out of the state emergency committee meetings, which happens at least twice a week, into operational guidance for officers.

It is one of four crisis management centres being established in WA.

The New South Wales parliament has passed an amendment to its Long Service Leave Act to allow public sector workers to take their long service leave entitlements early, if their employer agrees.

NSW treasurer Dom Perrottet said it will “help support families during this difficult time”.

SBS News will be broadcast from Canberra tonight because an employee based in its Sydney newsroom has tested positive to Covid-19, executive editor Sally Roberts said.

HSC exams to go ahead in NSW

Year 12 leaving exams will go ahead in New South Wales, after a meeting of the state’s education standards authority today.

In a statement released this afternoon the chair of the NSW Education Standards Authority, Prof Peter Shergold, said the state’s higher school certificate would still go ahead, with individual principals to be given discretion over the number and weighting of assessments.

He also said any student who became sick would not be disadvantaged as a result.

Shergold sought to reassure students who have this week been told they should no longer attend classes unless they need to be there.

We know you are worried. While we recognise we are facing an unprecedented situation, we want to assure you that you will be able to get a HSC certificate this year, and that the certificate will facilitate access to university, further education and employment, as it has for students over the past 50 years.

Keep learning, do your assessments as advised by your school, make progress on your major projects where you can and, most importantly, look after yourself, whether you are at school or at home. Reach out to family, friends and your teachers if you need to.

If you get sick, your school and NESA have provisions to ensure you are not disadvantaged.

He said the NESA board was still working on a solution for students who would usually do vocational work placements or performances as part of their HSC.

The board discussed at length issues of disadvantage, dislocation and social isolation.

Decisions and advice will be based on the principles of fairness and equity that have always underpinned the internationally recognised HSC credential.

Updated

We’ll bring you the national cabinet decisions tonight, when the prime minister emerges and holds his press conference.

Calla Wahlquist will take you through the evening on the blog. I’ll be back tomorrow – please, take care of you.

The national cabinet will meet this evening (over the teleconference system).

Rental relief will be considered – as will further restrictions, including on house gatherings.

Updated

South Australia has its first case of community transmission

South Australia had another 36 people diagnosed with Covid-19, bringing its total to 170 cases.

That includes its first case of community transmission.

This is a woman in her 50s. She has had recent contact with people from overseas. But the information I have been given to date is that these people did not have symptoms when she was in contact with them.

Which is obviously concerning. However, the rest of our confirmed cases, to this day, have either had overseas or interstate travel or they have had contact with a confirmed case.

Today so far

NSW records its seventh death, a woman in her 70s, who was a passenger on the Ruby Diamond cruise ship.

That brings the nation’s total fatalities to eight.

Queensland will close its borders from tomorrow, with permits needed for those who regularly cross the Tweed.

Queensland has also announced a $4bn rescue package for business and displaced workers.

WA has closed its borders and restricted travel within the state.

Tasmania has said it will turn away all non-residents and non-essential travellers on the Spirit of Tasmania.

Jacinda Ardern has asked for New Zealanders living in Australia to be allowed temporary access to welfare.

Students will be included for the coronavirus payment.

The phone network is under immense pressure from the volume of calls to government call centres.

Centrelink is facing immense wait times.

The government is working on doubling the number of ventilators in ICU units to 4,000.

Telehealth is being extended to all services.

Updated

Michael McGowan tells me the HSC will still be going ahead in NSW. At this stage.

He’ll have more information on that for you soon.

Amnesty International wants state and territory governments to release children who are on remand and are detained in adult watch houses.

“We’re talking about kids as young as 10 in adult prisons,” Amnesty International Australia’s Indigenous rights lead, Lidia Thorpe, said.

“Most of these kids are later released without conviction, only underlining that it’s totally unacceptable to leave them in prison when they would be safer at home with their family.

Thorpe said under the convention on the rights of the child, detention of a child before trial or after sentencing must be used only as a measure of last resort, for the shortest time possible, and separate from detained adults wherever possible.

“Given that the spread of Covid-19 is a particular public health concern in custodial environments, the authorities should urgently release these children and seriously consider the same for other groups at special risks,” Amnesty said.

Earlier today the NSW government announced new emergency powers aimed at keeping the justice system functional, including giving the corrections minister power to early release or parole certain prisoners on a case-by-case basis.

Updated

Nothing like a graph to you show you just how insane things are

People will no longer need a “separation certificate” from their (former) employer to apply for the JobSeeker payment.

Updated

National parks (in some areas) are joining the closed list.

From environment minister Sussan Ley’s office:

Parks Australia has today announced that the Australian national botanic gardens, Booderee, Kakadu and Uluru-Kata Tjuta national parks will close to visitors and other non-essential travellers for a minimum of two weeks.

Following consultation with key stakeholders including traditional owners Parks Australia has determined that the following closures will take effect:

· Australian national botanicgardens, Canberra, from 5pm Tuesday, 24 March 2020

· Booderee national park, Jervis Bay Territory, from 5pm Wednesday, 25 March 2020

· Kakadu and Uluru-Kata Tjuta national parks, Northern Territory, from 5pm, Thursday, 26 March 2020

(The varying closure dates reflect individual requirements following consultation for each site.)

At Booderee national park, camping will be cancelled until 1 May 2020, and no forward bookings taken until there is greater clarity on longer-term arrangements. Existing bookings will be refunded.

Parks Australia will continue to facilitate access to Booderee, Kakadu and Uluru-Kata Tjuta national parks for residents of the parks and surrounding Aboriginal communities, essential services, and those working in the community.

Key operational staff will continue to work on site in each park to maintain these significant protected natural and cultural environments, including the living collections and seed collections at the Australian national botanic gardens.

Updated

In a sign of the desperation sweeping through the hospitality industry, United Workers Union will support moves to temporarily alter the hospitality award.

The union will support changes to minimum hours requirements in a bid to salvage jobs during the coronavirus crisis.

The proposal is before the full bench of the Fair Work Commission at 4pm.

Jo-anne Schofield, the national president of United Workers Union says: “As the Fair Work Commission full bench hears this application, there are close to a million hospitality workers across the country facing cuts to their hours, being stood down, or losing their jobs.

“Our hospitality members want job security and certainty above all else and we hope this variation will help to deliver this.

“Altering the award temporarily is an important step to help protect workers and their shifts during this unprecedented time.

“We have moved quickly to ensure the temporary changes provides a measured response that supports equity so that as many workers as possible can access hours of work.”

Schofield said penalty rates, allowances and job security would all be preserved under the proposal.

Updated

Qantas has responded to Virgin Australia (and the ACCC) regarding this story from Ben Butler and Josh Taylor:

It’s a tough time for everyone in aviation, which is why we said that any assistance should be to be industry-wide and proportional. We don’t think that’s controversial or anti-competitive, and it’s exactly what the government has done with its aviation support package.

In the past fortnight, Virgin has made legal threats to us directly and has now gone to the ACCC to claim we’re the source of various rumours circulating widely in the market. We’re not.

What is true is that we’ve been very candid in our assessment of what’s happening to airlines around the world and the fact we’re determined to be different. Saying you want to survive is not anti-competitive.

Telstra confirms phone network struggling with volumes of calls to government call centres

This would explain the terrible reception most of us have had all day.

Updated

Not only is myGov still almost impossible to access, so are the call centres.

Updated

NSW student absences increase, as parents take the advice to keep their kids at home, if they can, on board.

Updated

The Australian sharemarket closed up 4.2% on Tuesday, almost clawing back losses from Monday.

Despite the solid performance, the market is still more than a third down from where it was a month ago, before it was gripped by a coronavirus-inspired selling frenzy.

And several big companies that are most affected by the pandemic are suspended from trade, meaning they cannot weigh down the benchmark ASX 200 index.

Graincorp shed more than 50%, but its drop was not coronavirus-related – today was the first day of trade for its malting arm, which it has spun off into a separate company.

Consumer-exposed financial stocks that were smashed on Monday bounced back, with debt collector Credit Corp ballooning 46% and buy-now-pay-later operator Afterpay skyrocketing 26%.

Travel agent Corporate Travel, which has been smashed by the virus and is also a perennial short-seller target, soared 31%.

Updated

The mayor of the Tweed shire council says the closure of the New South Wales-Queensland border will cause traffic chaos in both states and potentially create long delays for thousands of essential service workers.

Katie Milne told Guardian Australia her council had not been consulted about the Queensland government’s border plan and remained “very much in the dark” about how it would be enforced.

“We’ve got 8,000 Tweed residents who work on the Gold Coast (and) we’re very worried about how that is going to be managed,” Milne said.

“There are 5,000 Gold Coast residents who work in the Tweed. There are a lot of friends and family who live on either side, the communities are very intertwined.

“We don’t know what will happen to people who rely on buses, whether they will be made to get off and show they have legitimate reasons for travelling.

“There’s a lot of questions and we would have really loved to have been consulted. I do appreciate the [Queensland] premier’s intent, and I understand where she’s coming from but the practicalities are extremely difficult.”

The closure of Queensland borders will be logistically more difficult than in other states, where there are main highway routes in and out. Suburban areas of Tweed Heads and Coolangatta blend together and in some places border crossings are not signposted.

Milne had been calling for a coordinated national lockdown, that would have itself prevented the sorts of long-haul movements that the Queensland border closure is attempting to stop, without causing localised disruption.

“Our main concern is looking after our doctors and nurses and medical staff and making sure they are not overwhelmed and they can get to work. We now have a bit of an understanding about how they will manage the freeway (but) still don’t really know what is going to happen on local roads.

“We don’t know who is going to manage that traffic congestion and whether we are supposed to have our workers out there in hazmat suits to cop the abuse. One hundred and thirty council staff live in the Gold Coast.”

Updated

Netflix has agreed to the governments request to wind back its streaming configurations to help lower the impact on the nbn:

Paul Fletcher:

“I welcome Netflix’s proactive decision to temporarily dial back its streaming configurations to lessen demands on Australia’s broadband network, at a time when more and more Australians are relying on residential broadband for their connectivity and productivity.

“NBN is accommodating increases in peak hour traffic, and there is substantial headroom for retail service providers to meet further demands. The measures taken by Netflix are sensible and helpful in anticipation of greater traffic and data use on residential broadband in the near-term. At the same time, there is unlikely to be a noticeable change for viewers.

“Last week I held discussions with the telecommunications industry about planning and preparedness for increased numbers of people working from home, and I wrote to video streaming and gaming platforms asking them to consider actions they could take to optimise broadband conditions for all Australians as they respond to the COVID-19 outbreak.

“I have every expectation that other over-the-top providers will adopt similarly helpful measures in the community’s interest over this period.”

The National Farmers Federation wants governments to guarantee that the border closures happening across the country (except Victoria and NSW) will not stop the agricultural supply chain:

Governments must assure all Australians that the agricultural supply chain will not be disrupted by state and territory border closures and mandatory quarantine periods, the National Farmers’ Federation has reiterated today.

“Protecting human health is the most important priority and the requirement for state border closures and mandatory quarantine is understood,” NFF CEO Tony Mahar said.

“However, we are calling on Governments to immediately formally implement and communicate nationally consistent, straight-forward exemptions for farmers and transport operators, so Australians’ access to fresh produce can continue to be guaranteed.

“Getting produce from paddock to plate is a complex process that often spans multiple state and territory jurisdictions.

“Whether it’s moving fruit from north Queensland to New South Wales, or livestock from selling centres in Victoria to processors in South Australia, freedom of movement is critical.

“Logistics that deliver inputs such as fodder, fertiliser and packaging to farms, meat processors and packing facilities are also fundamental.

“Right now, the last thing the people who are doing the important job of producing, processing and delivering every-day essentials need is inconsistency across states and territories and a mountain of cumbersome paperwork.”

[Cont from previous post]

Last week, Solomon Lew’s retail empire said the coronavirus pandemic had slashed customer traffic in its Smiggle stationery stores around the world.

Lew, who has been complaining about high rents for years, said Premier closed two Hong Kong stores due to Covid-19 “and we are prepared to close many more stores globally if landlords do not respond to the current crisis”.

Others have put on a brave face – on Monday, JB Hi-Fi said it was doing well, pointing out that it sold things people need to respond to the crisis, including home office equipment. But despite the brave talk, it withdrew its profit forecasts anyway.

Bizarrely enough, Myer, which has long been struggling, hasn’t updated the market for more than a week.

Its main rival, David Jones, is no longer listed on the exchange after being taken over by South African group Woolworths.

But Woolworths is listed, on the Johannesburg exchange. Last month it said sales at DJs and womenswear chain Country Road, which it also owns, were already down in the usually lucrative pre-Christmas period due to the bushfires and Country Road pulling its stock out of Myer.

Updated

With the market relatively quiet today, it’s a good time to have a look at what’s going on in the retail sector – and what’s going to happen.

A walk down your local shopping strip will show you that some retailers have already pulled the plug rather than try to tough it out any further in a sector that’s already been smashed by years of persistently low consumer confidence, which means households are reluctant to spend.

The hospitality and entertainment sectors have already been almost completely shut down, tipping huge numbers of people into the dole queues we’ve seen stretching around the block over the past two days.

Non-essential retail is also getting hammered and is in line to be shut down next – remember, the Victorian and NSW governments announced just that on Sunday afternoon, before abandoning the plan later that evening at national cabinet.
Shopping centre owners have already lost their foodcourts and analysts say they are likely to have to give up trying to collect rent from at least some tenants – a big turnaround from their usual habit of regularly hiking rents.

Analysts at Macquarie forecast this will cut shopping centre rents in half for at least three months.

Macquarie analysts and their rivals at UBS both think most shopping centre operators have enough money in the bank to absorb the pain.

But their tenants are in a lot more trouble.

Today, Retail Food Group, which is the franchiser of a raft of foodcourt favourites including Gloria Jean’s, Brumby’s, Donut King, Michel’s Patisserie, Pizza Capers and Crust Pizza, withdrew its profit forecasts.

“A reduced customer count amongst RFG’s domestic franchise network, as a consequence of the increasingly onerous restrictions made in a series of announcements by the government since last week, is anticipated by the company (and supported by recent trading data referable to that period),” it told the ASX.

“The trend will likely be more pronounced, in the company’s view, amongst outlets operating within shopping centres.”

Updated

AAP has more on what the border shutdown will mean for residents who live in the Tweed (right next to the Queensland border with Coolangatta):

Thousands of people living in northern NSW will have to apply for permits to travel into Queensland from Wednesday in a desperate bid to stop the spread of Covid-19.

Residents living in the Tweed and in the New England areas will face a border policed in an RBT-style with officers to determine who needs to cross.

While still in the planning stages, police said residents could be issued with stickers to place on their cars to ensure travel is “as seamless as possible”, deputy commissioner Steve Gollschewski told reporters.

“We acknowledge this inconvenience may be quite challenging for some people, but we appeal to them to comply with our directions to help manage the impact of Covid-19 on our community,” he said.

“You will see police officers and other officials, government officials, out on the road as of one minute past midnight tomorrow night, making sure that these measures work.

“If any person is allowed to come into Queensland, they have to recognise that if they don’t have these reasons to come in, an essential purpose, they will be required to do 14 days self-quarantine regardless of whether they are symptomatic or not.”

Anyone travelling by road, air, sea and rail for non-essential purposes will essentially be cut off

Travelling to work, to the supermarket, the pharmacy and the petrol station is classed as essential.

Updated

New South Wales and Victoria are now the only jurisdictions without additional movement restrictions.

WA to restrict movement between regions

Mark McGowan says if drivers reach the WA border by 1.30pm WA time – including waiting in your car in the queue, you won’t have to undergo the new restrictions (which includes 14 days of forced quarantine)

The WA premier also says he will be moving to keep WA residents at home – with restrictions between regions to be cracked down upon.

Our new border restrictions have helped put a complete stop, a major restriction or stop on any unnecessary travel into the state.

I also want to expand that advice across Western Australia. That means that any unnecessary intrastate, internal travel in Western Australia, needs to be avoided. We’ll be putting in place restrictions on the movement between Western Australia’s regions.

It is important we minimise the spread of this virus. Clear guidelines around this will be released soon. Essential travel cannot be avoided. That is understandable. But we need to avoid everything else. I’m asking West Australians for their understanding during this very, very difficult time. This measure we’re putting in place in the future will protect our regional citizens, especially the elderly, and especially Aboriginal people.

If people don’t stay away from the beaches, McGowan says the state will also shut down all beaches.

Updated

[continued from previous post]

Police are being provided with daily lists of people who are supposed to be in isolation by authorities like the health department and Australian Border Force. Nugent said they were concerned that mandatory isolation could lead to an increase in family violence, and police had been told to be alert to those signs when they conduct self-isolation checks.

At the moment those checks are occuring in person, but they may soon move to video calls.

Police are also patrolling public areas in Victoria on the lookout for mass gatherings, and going to shopping centres to ensure there is no squabbling over toilet paper.

Australians have also been dobbing in their neighbours; Nugent said they had received “tens” of calls a day reporting suspected breaches.

Asked if he was upset such a “draconian” response was required to ensure people followed public health rules, Nugent said:

“We have seen internationally what’s going on with this virus and we are seeing nationally the spread, the rate of spread, and we need to be doing all we can to limit that spread. If police have to play a stronger role, and it’s a role we have not had to do before, then that’s our role. Because our role is about helping people in need of assistance. It is our role, it’s in the act.”

Updated

Police in Victoria will be conducting spot checks on people who are supposed to be undergoing mandatory self-isolation to make sure they are complying with the rules, deputy commissioner Rick Nugent said.

At a press conference in Melbourne earlier, Nugent said the checks had been going on for a few weeks and not everyone had been remaining indoors, as directed.

A statewide police operation, Operation Sentinel, is being stood up this week, and 500 police will be out every day specifically monitoring coronavirus provisions.

Nugent said:

“Unfortunately there are people who are not taking these restrictions seriously. What we are finding in doing these spot checks is that people are not actually staying home and quarantining themselves. They have been visiting the movies, going out for breakfast or other meals. This is just putting too many people at risk.

“People who ignore the restrictions are placing others at significant risk of catching the virus, and people will become infected … It’s actually quite selfish and we know it will put lives at risk.”

To date, no one has been fined. The fines in Victoria are $20,000 for individuals or $100,000 for corporations – the same fines apply to those who breach mass gathering rules.

Nugent said that those who had breached the mandatory self-isolation requirements had done so out of “a degree of ignorance”. People had said they had stayed at home for the most part, but just popped out for breakfast when they needed “a break”.

“When you have explained that they can’t do it at all they have been quite apologetic,” Nugent said.

He said “we don’t want to have a big stick approach to this” but would fine when there was a “blatant, selfish disregard” for the public health guidelines.

Updated



Jacinda Ardern says she has asked the Australian government to allow New Zealanders to access welfare benefits during the coronavirus crisis.

She told a press conference today:

I have raised this issue with Prime Minister Morrison. I have specifically sought, ‘Could we have a short-term exemption?’ Just for these exceptional circumstances for New Zealanders to be supported. Not least because it will encourage compliance at a time when we need everyone to be self isolating if they have to for instance.”

Ardern said both she and the deputy prime minister, Winston Peters, had asked for the exemption with their counterparts.

Most New Zealanders are banned from accessing welfare benefits and other social programs such as the National Disability Insurance Scheme under immigration laws brought in by the Howard government.

Updated

Another 78 cases of Covid-19 in Queensland

There have been 78 new cases of Covid-19 in Queensland overnight.

That brings the state’s total to 397. Most of those people who have caught the infection, caught it overseas.

Queensland has done 37,334 tests for Covid-19, and health minister, Steven Miles, says that accounts for one in four tests being done in Australia.

Updated

The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has released more information for pregnant women and health staff, who have questions about Covid-19.

You can find it here

Jacinda Ardern has asked Scott Morrison for a short-term welfare exemption to allow New Zealand citizens in Australia to access Centrelink.

Updated

Labor has put forward its idea for the rental assistance the national cabinet will be considering tonight.

Jason Clare, Bill Shorten and Linda Burney think this should be included:

The package, to be discussed tonight should consider:

  • Eviction moratorium – preventing landlords commencing eviction proceedings for a failure to pay rent as a result of financial hardship caused by the virus.
  • Payment flexibility – allowing rents to be paid over time. This could be a smart way to transfer the mortgage flexibility given to landlords by banks, to the tenants who live in these dwellings.
  • Utility payment holidays – extended, and penalty free, periods to pay the phone, the gas, the internet, and the power bills, without fear the service will be cut off.

Last week the UK and US governments announced measures to protect mortgage-holders from foreclosure and tenants from eviction. We should do the same.

UK landlords will not be able to start proceedings to evict tenants for at least a three-month period.

The states have had a number of days now to consider the most impactful measures and create a comprehensive and workable package. We urge governments to act immediately tonight.

Updated

Palm Island is also shutting itself off from non-residents and non-essential visitors:

The Palm Island Local Disaster Management Group (LDMG) has approved travel restrictions to the community after the Queensland premier’s state disaster declaration on Sunday.

“From midnight on Wednesday [25 March] night, travel to Palm Island will be restricted,” LDMG interim-chair deputy mayor Roy Prior said.

“That means only people involved in the provision of essential services in the community, and people undertaking essential medical travel as provided by Queensland Health, will be allowed here.

“We recognise many members of our community may be vulnerable to coronavirus, therefore these measures are necessary to try and ensure the ongoing health, wellbeing and safety of all our residents in these challenging times.

“It is understood some of these difficult decisions are contrary to our culture, however the concerns surrounding coronavirus and the possible impact on our community are really important at this time.”

For more information see the council’s website at www.palmcouncil.qld.gov.au

Updated

Western Australia is shutting its border very, very soon (1.30pm WA time)

More on who is allowed in – or not – in Queensland

It remains the greatest nation on earth, even if it has locked me out.

More than 300 Australians are stranded across Peru, which has closed its borders and enforced a nationwide curfew, enforced by the military and police.

Australian citizens there are scrambling to book seats on potential commercial charter flights out of the country – which have not yet been confirmed – but many in regional areas can’t leave because all internal movement is prohibited.

Australia’s ambassador to Ecuador and Bolivia Diana Nelson posted a video message from Lima, assuring citizens the government was seeking ways to get its citizens home.

“We understand that this is an incredibly stressful and difficult time as we deal with these unprecedented circumstances.

In Canberra, the government is working around the clock to find solutions to bring you home to Australia.

And here in Peru our dedicated embassy team are liaising closely with Peruvian authorities, other embassies, airlines and travel companies.”

Updated

Just further to my post about shadow social services minister Linda Burney telegraphing further changes to income thresholds ... it seems there has been some form of in-principle agreement between Anthony Albanese and Scott Morrison but what the changes are is not clear.

Morrison has asked social services minister, Anne Ruston, to propose options for moving the thresholds with a view to increasing the eligibility – but there is not one particular solution that has been proposed and agreed.

So Australians out of work who are ineligible for jobseeker payments because their partner earns more than $48,000 will need to wait a little longer to see what the new threshold is.

Updated

Australians are turning to GoFundMe to try and fill income gaps – the fundraiser hosting site says that almost one in every three fundraisers started this week, are Covid-19 related.

SBS has a confirmed case of coronavirus in its Sydney newsroom and the SBS World News with Anton Enus will be presented out of Canberra tonight.

An unidentified newsroom staffer tested positive for the virus and has been sent home.

They were last in the Sydney headquarters of SBS on Friday, staff were told by management.

The newsroom has been shut for the day and is being sanitised.

Updated

Some more information has come through on Tasmania’s new restrictions (TT Line runs the Spirit of Tasmania)

TT-Line is currently contacting all bookings of caravans and motorhomes of non-Tasmanian residents to advise them of the restrictions in relation to travelling to the state.

Non-essential travellers must enter 14 days of self-quarantine and this self-quarantine in caravans and motorhomes is not permitted.

The message is clear – if you are not a Tasmanian resident returning home or an essential traveller, do not get on the Spirit with your caravan or motorhome as you will not be able to self-isolate in it.

Anyone whose booking has been cancelled as a result of these important restrictions will receive a full refund and should call TT-Line on 1800 634 906.

Tasmanians returning home to the state, regardless of whether it is by air or sea, must adhere to the 14-day self-quarantine instructions currently in place.

It is absolutely vital everyone plays their part to reduce the spread of Covid-19 to save lives.

Updated

We are now a nation where toilet paper heists are a thing. From NSW police:

Police are appealing for public assistance to identify two men following a series of thefts and attempted thefts from supermarkets in Sydney’s south west at the weekend.

Between 7pm and 8.30pm last Sunday (22 March 2020), two men attended supermarkets in Granville, Auburn, Bass Hill and Lidcombe, and accessed restricted storage areas.

The pair appeared to be targeting toilet paper and stole multiple packs from the Granville and Auburn stores, however, left empty handed from the stores in Bass Hill and Lidcombe.

It was also reported that one of the men threatened an employee with a knife at the Auburn store.

Officers from Wetherill Park Region Enforcement Squad (RES) have commenced an investigation and are now appealing to the community for information.

The first man is depicted as being of Mediterranean/Middle Eastern appearance, about 185-190cm tall, aged in his 30s, with a solid build. He has tattoos on his arms and was wearing a grey collared shirt with long blue track pants.

The second man is described as being 175-180cm tall with a slim build, aged between 30-35, and at the time was wearing black Adidas pants and a camouflaged hooded jumper.

Updated

In addition to arguing for students, Abstudy and Austudy recipients to get coronavirus supplement payments, Labor is now claiming victory in its efforts to persuade the government to change income testing for jobseeker payments.

According to shadow social services minister Linda Burney, as it stands:

  • Australians out of work will receive nothing at all if their partner earns around $48,000 or more
  • The JobSeeker payment tapers out by 60 cents for every dollar a person’s partner earns over $26,000

She said:

“The government agreed to a commitment to adjust the income test to make more families eligible, and we anticipate the government will shortly announce the details.

“Labor also secured a significant amendment to the stimulus legislation that means the government can fix the partner income test and expand payments as needed – including for age pensioners, people on DSP, carers, those out of work and anyone at risk of slipping through the cracks.”

Updated

If you are looking to see what is happening with your local library, you can see what is still open, here

Penny Wong DOES NOT have coronavirus:

As soon as I am feeling well enough to travel I will return to Adelaide from Canberra.

I would like to thank the medical professionals who have been so helpful, and my colleagues and the many members of the community who have sent me kind messages.

I would also like to thank Kristina Keneally, Katy Gallagher, Anne Urquhart and the entire Labor Senate team for representing all the Australians who rely on Labor so effectively in challenging circumstances on Monday.

Australia faces an enormous crisis. We mustn’t have reason to look back and say that we should have acted sooner on any part of this crisis.

Also in Canberra

The national cabinet and health experts will be focusing their attention on stopping people gathering in their homes, after the social crackdowns introduced yesterday.

Greg Hunt a little earlier:

These ideas that some have heard of, of house parties – they are out. They are absolutely out. Let me be absolutely clear on that. I will let the group charged with that to do that work today. But we are developing a staged approach.

We recognise and appreciate what has happened in other parts of the world.

Indeed, all of us are learning from each other.

But obviously, this notion of greater isolation, more time at home, less time out in groups, is what we are encouraging.

Updated

Meanwhile, the ACCC has told Australia’s two major airlines to calm their farms and stop the public war.

From Ben Butler and Josh Taylor:

Competition regulator Rod Sims says Australia needs two big airlines and he will be contacting Qantas to ask it to end a public campaign it has mounted against rival Virgin Australia during the coronavirus crisis.

Sims, the chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, told Guardian Australia he would be investigating a complaint Virgin chief executive Paul Scurrah lodged against Qantas over the weekend.

“It’s an important complaint and I’ve said to Paul Scurrah that we will look into it, and we will,” Sims said.

Sims slapped down Qantas CEO Alan Joyce for making comments over the past week that airlines were in a battle of the “survival of the fittest” and said now was instead the time for cooperation between business rivals to make sure companies remain in place so that there can be an economic upswing when the pandemic ends.

Updated

Other NSW public warnings include:

There are two cases of Covid-19 in teachers at Normanhurst West Public School in Thornleigh confirmed on 21 March and 23 March. Close contacts at the school have been identified and are being contacted placed in self-isolation. The school will remain closed today.

There are 13 cases in NSW linked to the Ovation of the Seas which docked in Sydney on March 18, and seven cases diagnosed in NSW who were onboard the cruise Voyager of the Seas and disembarked on 18 March.

There have been a further three positive cases at Dorothy Henderson Lodge, bringing to a total of 11 residents and five staff testing positive for Covid-19.

There has been one additional case from a University of Sydney rugby match on March 14. The second case resides in the ACT and ACT Health are conducting the interviews and contact tracing. The second case had been identified as a close contact of the first, and had been in self-isolation.

Updated

Ruby Princess passenger becomes NSW's 7th Covid-19 fatality

NSW Health have provided their latest update.

A woman in her 70s, who had travelled on the Ruby Princess cruise ship, and was taken from the ship to the hospital on March 19, passed away this morning.

This patient was one of the initial three passengers who were confirmed to be Covid-19 positive following testing of retained specimens from onboard the Ruby Princess.

NSW Health passes on our condolences to the family of this patient. Seven people have now died in NSW having tested positive to Covid-19.

So far, 133 passengers from that one cruise ship, which docked in Sydney and was given the all-clear to disperse passengers, have been diagnosed with coronavirus.

It should be noted, no cases of Covid-19 had been identified by doctors onboard before docking. Five people who had displayed influenza-like illness were tested in Wellington, New Zealand on 14 March, and all were negative for Covid-19.

A dozen people are in NSW intensive care units, with eight needing ventilators.

Updated

A warning from Queensland police:

Queensland Police have received reports where scammers are posting legitimate-looking job ads on official jobseeker websites and asking “successful” applicants for personal information as part of the application process, including:
• current residential address and phone numbers;
• personal bank details;
• tax file number;
• photocopies of passports, driver licences.

They usually ask for this to be uploaded via an email link or through their bogus website.

This information can be used by cybercriminals to carry out identity theft, including opening bank accounts or lines of credit in your name.

Some victims have also been asked to transfer money as part of the job application process.

Updated

The ABC is working on a new programming schedule and updated content for iview to take account of the restrictions in TV production and also the requirements of parents working from home and home schooling children.

Kids TV and ABC News are attracting huge audiences, especially ABC News Breakfast which had 301,000 viewers on Monday. (Sunrise had 379,000 and Today 314,000.)

When a new episode of Bluey was released last week it got record ratings.


The ABC’s television chief Michael Carrington told Guardian Australia his team was working on “support programming if parents are home with kids” for ABC Kids, ABCMe and iview, which will be revealed at the end of the week.

“I absolutely have a plan and we’re just working through it,” Carrington said. “We’re mindful of the fact we’re coming up to school holidays. Normally we have an enriched schedule of content on ABC Kids, ABCMe and iview in the school holidays, which is obviously entertainment driven.”

Updated

NSW attorney general Mark Speakman goes on to say the health care workers on the frontline in fighting this virus are “the new Anzacs”.

He thanks them all for their efforts and mentions his own daughter Kate who is an intensive care specialist, and who is now unable to be with her family in person.

“Normal familial affection” is denied us right now, Speakman says, but he looks forward to the time when we can all enjoy these freedoms again.

Labor’s Paul Lynch says as a “responsible opposition” they have made the commitment not to oppose these measures proposed and commends the bill to the house.

Updated

Victoria sees four fold increase in Covid-19 cases in just one week

Victoria has recorded 64 new cases of Covid-19 today, bringing the total number of cases to 411.

If you can remember this time last week, Victoria had just 94 cases. So that’s a four-fold increase in seven days.

We have also, I think, had the youngest person so far to test positive. The new cases include people from preschool age to late 80s.

This time last week Victoria had conducted 14,200 tests. Today, it’s more than 25,000.

The number of cases in Victoria confirmed to be from community transmission remains at six.

Twelve of the 411 are in hospital, two of whom are in intensive care, and 113, or 27% of all confirmed cases, have recovered.

The majority of the cases in Victoria remain in the city. Just 41 are in regional areas.

They are: 10 in Greater Geelong, four in Ballarat, two in the Baw Baws, three in Greater Shepparton, two on the Surf Coast, two in Warrnambool, two in the Macedon Ranges, three in Mitchell, three in Mount Alexander. There is also one confirmed case each in the Bass Coast, Gannawarra, Hepburn, Latrobe, Mildura, Moira, Moorabool, South Gippsland, Wellington and Yarriambiack.

The department of health and human services reiterates that the penalty for not complying with mandatory self-isolation requirements is a fine of up to $20,000 for individuals or $100,000 for companies.

Updated

NSW parliament is now discussing the broad powers the government wants to control the spread of the virus.

The Covid-19 bill seeks “extraordinary provisions but these are extraordinary times”, attorney general Mark Speakman saying in introducing the law.

“These are powers we hope we will never have to use,” Speakman says, but the development of the virus may make such measures necessary.

In terms of prisons, vulnerable offenders and others who “pose a low risk” to the community would be considered for conditional release.

“Offenders sentenced for the most serious offences cannot be released under these changes.

Any conditional release would be subject to strict parole conditions … including home detention, pre-approved schedule of movements and electronic monitoring.

Updated

Earlier on we mentioned the police taskforces being established in states including Victoria and Queensland to enforce the closures of non-essential venues.

The Victorian department of health has just issued a statement saying non-compliance with isolation and distancing orders could result in significant fines for both individuals and businesses. The department says:

“While most Victorians are voluntarily complying with requests to isolate, police have strong powers to enforce the direction if it’s required. Under the State of Emergency people who don’t comply with a directive could receive a fine of up to $20,000. Companies face fines of up to $100,000.”

Victoria police will hold a press conference later on Tuesday afternoon about the task force.

There were 64 new cases confirmed in Victoria overnight, bringing the total number of cases in the state to 411. The health department has given a breakdown of the areas affected.

“Multiple cases have occurred in the regional local government areas of Greater Geelong (10), Ballarat (4), Baw Baw (2), Greater Shepparton (3), Surf Coast (2), Warrnambool (2), Macedon Ranges (2), Mitchell (3) and Mount Alexander (3). Bass Coast, Gannawarra, Hepburn, Latrobe, Mildura, Moira, Moorabool, South Gippsland, Wellington and Yarriambiack have all recorded one case.”

The department says it follows up and monitors all close contacts of confirmed cases.

Updated

Mike Bowers has been out and about (at the appropriate physical distance):

Health Minister Greg Hunt at a press conference
Health minister Greg Hunt at a press conference. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian
Health Minister Greg Hunt, Chief Nursing Officer Alison McMillan and Principle Medical Officer Professor Michael Kidd
Health minister Greg Hunt, chief nursing officer Alison McMillan and principle medical officer professor Michael Kidd. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian
Anne Ruston late for a plane
Anne Ruston late for a plane .
 Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese at a press conference
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese at a press conference. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

Updated

The Queensland treasurer (and deputy premier) Jackie Trad, says she expects the impacts from Covid-19 to last longer than six months. She says the state needs to step in and fill the gap with the federal assistance, which includes displaced workers in vulnerable, seasonal work:

Displaced workers expect the state government to step up and help them as well, and our $500m worker displacement program will be there to help them get jobs in areas where we know there will be shortages – in healthcare, in cleaning, in agriculture.

We will be working with the business community and with the unions to get this program right and to make sure it’s supporting workers right across our state.

Additionally, we will be helping iconic Queensland companies, important, large Queensland employers, who we absolutely need to survive this downturn in our economy.

We need them to get through this difficult time as we need to get through this difficult time, so that when our economy bounces back, they are part of the rebuild.

They can scale-up and they can start re-employing Queenslanders. But fundamentally, this is all focused on supporting workers, and supporting workers in industries that are feeling it tough.

I know that there has been a lot of conversation between different jurisdictions - I sit around the table with a number of treasurers from right around the country and we are having a phone hook-up with the federal treasurer later on today.

We are working as one.

Making sure that our assistance packages, our support packages are complementing and amplifying the efforts of each jurisdiction and that we, together, are helping workers and helping industry get through this very difficult time in our community.

Updated

The Australian stockmarket was up about 3.5% at lunchtime on Tuesday as several stocks heavily hit by the coronavirus pandemic rebounded.

It’s important to note that the market remains extremely volatile and today’s gains claw back little of the gargantuan losses experienced over the past month or so. According to research by MST Marquee, this has been the fastest sharemarket collapse in a century.

Shares in debt collector Credit Corp and buy-now-pay-later company Afterpay, both of which were savaged on Monday following new restrictions on making people bankrupt and the closure of the hospitality and entertainment industries, bounced dramatically in morning trade.

Shortly before 1pm Credit Corp was up an absurd 42% while Afterpay was up 26%.

The biggest loser was grain distributor Graincorp, which lost half its value - but that’s because it has spun off its malt division, United Malt Group, which began trading as a separately listed company on Tuesday morning.

Updated

The ACT has seen another seven people diagnosed in the past 24 hours, bringing the territory’s total to 39.

Updated

Thank goodness for the yoof:

The government is working on some sort of visual permit, for workers and travellers who may need to cross the border – there are plenty of people who may live in the Tweed, but work over the border or vice versa – for police to identify who is allowed in.

The deputy premier Jackie Trad estimates that more than 50,000 people lost their job in Queensland just yesterday, when the hospitality industry was all but shut down.

Queensland now has a $4bn business package, on top of the federal government package.

Updated

It is all borders – air, rail, road and sea. Police will be enforcing the turnbacks.

The state disaster co-ordinator:

We accept that there will be significant impact upon persons who are ordinarily crossing our border daily.

We will give messaging around that, so people clearly understand how they’re impacted, particularly those that live in border communities.

However, essential services, lawful businesses and trade will not be impacted. We will provide information to these people who regularly cross the border for work purposes and give them advice as to how we can manage that so we can make it as seamless as possible.

We ask our community for a high level of compliance and we will be showing a high level of compassion and communication while we deal with them.

We acknowledge this inconvenience may be quite challenging for some people, but we appeal to them to comply with our directions to help manage the impact of Covid-19 on our community.

You will see police officers and other officials, government officials, out on the road as of one minute past midnight tomorrow night, making sure that these measures work.

If any person is allowed to come into Queensland, they have to recognise that if they don’t have these reasons to come into us, an essential purpose, they will be required to do 14 days self-quarantine regardless of whether they are symptomatic or not.

Updated

The Queensland border restrictions will come into place at midnight tomorrow.

Annastacia Palaszczuk:

I urge people, if you are living in other states, please do not go through with your school holidays, your school break - stay at home.

Stay in your state, and stay in your suburb.

The measures we are putting in place are for serious public health reasons. I don’t take this decision lightly. I’m quite sure in 1918 they didn’t take the decision lightly either to close the border.

That does not mean if you are an essential worker, of course you will be able to come to Queensland.

If you are delivering freight, of course you will be able to come to Queensland. We do not want people coming to Queensland to have a holiday break. This is not holiday break season. This is the season to stay at home with your family.

Annastacia Palaszczuk:

The chief medical officer has advised me there are serious health issues of people coming from other states to Queensland.

Now, that is a big problem, because if we have people who are coming here, who have the coronavirus, we do not have the resources to spend on contact tracing all of those people and checking up on where they are staying under a 14-day quarantine.

So, unless you’re returning home to Queensland or coming to Queensland for an essential purpose like work or a medical appointment, or freight issues, then the border is closed to you.

This is for your own public health.

So, let me make it very clear: Queenslanders should stay in Queensland, people in New South Wales should stay in New South Wales and people in Victoria should stay in Victoria.

Updated

Queensland to close borders – permits needed to cross the border

The Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has announced strict new entry measures for non-residents.

Greg Hunt:

I want to speak directly to the Australian people. I know – deep in my heart I know – these are uncertain times and there are many people who will legitimately be concerned, whether it’s about their employment, but above all else about their health or the health of their family members.

Our task is for all of us – for all of us together – to take the steps with regards to distancing.

It’s so contrary to our nature but it’s essential to our future.

So to take those steps, which will protect each of us in ourselves but all of those around us and at the same time our task is to reduce the infection and reduce the spread but to increase the capacity.

These announcements today, particularly for primary care, are about providing increased capacity but also letting the Australian people know that as we flatten the curve, and reduce infection, we’re increasing the capacity and these are the things that over the coming six months will allow us to get through it, because get through this together – we will.

Updated

Whole-of-population telehealth is coming, but the health experts are working out how that is rolled out.

Updated

[continued from previous post]

· Justice: amendments to ensure NSW courts can continue to deliver justice, with fewer people required to physically attend court.

The supreme and district courts will have greater discretion to order judge-alone trials, reducing the need to summon large numbers of potential jurors.

Vulnerable people will be exempt from jury summons.

Increased use of A/V and pre-recording evidence of key witnesses and apprehended domestic violence orders will be extended from 28 days to six months.

· Corrections: amendments will give power to the governor to decide who might be eligible for potential conditional release on parole.

“These extraordinary measures are only to be used to respond to the threat of Covid-19, and would allow the commissioner of corrective services to prioritise vulnerable offenders and others who pose a low risk to the community for consideration for conditional release.

“Offenders sentenced for the most serious offences cannot be released under these changes.

“Any conditional release would be subject to strict parole conditions, as well as any other requirements the Commissioner considers appropriate, including home detention, pre-approved schedule of movements and electronic monitoring. In addition, the commissioner may prohibit or restrict any person from entering or visiting correctional facilities.”

· Better regulation: In response to panic buying and stockpiling, an amendment to the Retail Trading Act will allow supermarkets to stock their shelves and trade throughout the Easter long weekend and Anzac Day this year, ensuring food and other essential items are available at standard retail prices.

But the Greens MP and justice spokesperson, David Shoebridge, said:

“Parliament must retain critical oversight of any emergency measures.

“Extraordinary powers cannot be allowed to proliferate in the absence of any scrutiny, particularly given the tensions we will see play out between our fundamental rights and freedoms, and the unquestionable need for strict public health measures.

“We will be opposing the government’s plan to adjourn the parliament until 16 September, any special adjournment should be no longer than 1 month.”

Updated

NSW parliament is now sitting to discuss an emergency bill giving the government broad new powers to combat the spread of Covid-19.

The attorney general, Mark Speakman, said the government was acting swiftly to ensure we are as prepared as possible to respond to the evolving threat of coronavirus, while reducing the risk of further transmission in the community.

“Our No 1 priority is the health and safety of the people of NSW,” Speakman said.

But the opposition parties have reservations about giving the government broad powers to change the law without oversight of parliament for the next six months.

The Covid-19 legislation amendment (emergency measures) bill proposes:

· Health: to give police power to take immediate action on suspected breaches of Covid-19 public health orders, including returning those in breach to their residence or place of quarantine.

NSW Health will have more flexibility to use private health facilities when urgently required and streamline the establishment of state vaccine centres to better manage the flu season.

The mental health tribunal will be able to conduct inquiries by telephone and extend existing community treatment orders for a further three months.

Updated

Health minister warns of further lockdown restrictions

Further lockdowns are coming.

Greg Hunt:

We have always indicated as the prime minister said and the national cabinet said, this was stage one.

It is not the last stage. I think I should be very upfront and honest about that.

Right as we speak, those next stages are being designed and the timing and the implementation measures for it are being carefully considered.

What’s the value of the national cabinet? It pools our health professionals together and our leaders together, to take these steps together.

Updated

Greg Hunt says direct text messages are coming, with information on Covid-19 and the government’s response.

Updated

Alison McMillan is the Australian government’s chief nursing and midwifery officer.

She makes an appearance at this Greg Hunt press conference as well:

If you’re sick, stay at home. Do not go out. Get other people to do things for you, but you need to stay at home. For everybody else, this means we need to maintain that social distancing.

We’ve all seen it out there in the community already. We’re all walking around each other. Please keep that up. It’s really important.

Hands – wash your hands frequently, wash them before you eat, wash them after you’ve been to the bathroom, or use the alcohol hand sanitiser as often as you like.

Cough etiquette and sneezing – remember it’s really important you cough or sneeze into your elbow. If you use a tissue, throw it away straight away and wash your hands.

All of us need to play a part in this and this is how the community can help protect everyone.

The minister has spoken around intensive care. We will need to expand and double our intensive care capacity.

That work has been done in collaboration with the intensive care doctors and nurses out there who are going to rise to this occasion and provide the care we need to those most vulnerable. I speak finally to one particular topic.

That is that we ask everyone, if you are tested positive, that is the moment you go home, don’t go to the pharmacies or anywhere else, the shops – please go straight home and ask others to help you.

There is a pharmacy system that now will come to you. You can find the details of that and the details of many of the things you ask on our website, health.gov.au.

Updated

Australia has 2,000 ventilators in its intensive care wards.

Greg Hunt says the government is working to double that capacity.

The health panel is also urgently working on which consultations can be fast tracked through the telehealth system, and which still need face-to-face appearances.

Updated

Mildura’s only newspaper, the Sunraysia Daily, has announced it will suspend printing and stand down its staff due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The newspaper announced its own closure in an article, saying staff had been informed of the decision on Tuesday morning.

“It was proposed that Saturday’s paper would be the last edition until further notice,” the paper said. “Staff were told the intention was for operations to eventually resume.”

Owned by the Elliott Newspaper Group, the Sunraysia Daily is Mildura’s only daily newspaper and is in its 100th year of operation.

The meeting happened at about 10.30am this morning, with staff addressed by the paper’s general manager and owners. They were told the virus had seen an already challenging advertising market completely dry up.

Staff at the paper estimate there about 50 people onsite, including at the in-house printing press. The Elliot Newspaper Group also publishes the Sunraysia Life, the Guardian in Swan Hill and Gannawarra Times, all of which will be impacted by the closure.

The closures mean the local ABC radio station becomes the only news outlet serving the region. Mlidura’s local Win television station also closed in 2015.

“Basically we go until Friday and then after that line up at Centrelink,” one staff member told the Guardian.

Updated

An additional 150,000 Covid-19 test kits have arrived in Australia.

Updated

Masks for medical staff:

In relation to the medical community, with regards to masks, we’ve just had 1.5m masks arrive in the previous couple of days.

There is mask production being developed in Australia and I mentioned previously that we are expecting 54m masks by the end of April.

I’m now advised that in fact 30m of those will be in the country within the next two weeks, ahead of schedule, which I think is important.

We will count them when we’ve got them.

What that will allow us to do is to provide a very important commitment to our general practitioners of 5m masks, delivered through the primary health networks, to support them in their work over the period between now and 30 June.

But doctors will still have to use those carefully, Greg Hunt says, as we are “operating at our capacity” in terms of orders.

Updated

Greg Hunt says Australia has stepped up its testing:

In terms of progress, with regards to testing, the latest figures is there have now been approximately 147,000 pathology tests carried out in Australia.

On a per-capita basis on the advice from the National Incidence Centre, that means we now have 557.9 approximately tests per 100,000 or greater than 0.5% of the population.

This is on the advice I have, higher than even Korea, which has done a magnificent job with their testing on a per-capita basis.

Why is that important?

What it means is that we are picking up a very large proportion of those tests through the breadth and width of our testing, that approximately 1.2% of total cases tested have been positive, and so just under 99% of total cases have been negative.

Updated

Greg Hunt press conference

The federal health minister says there have been “disturbing reports” of abuse of health workers

Our doctors and our nurses, our receptionists, our health workers, our allied health workers are our heroes for the months to come.

If we take care of them, they can take care of us.

Hunt says people will be be charged if they abuse workers.

Updated

Australia’s sporting leagues are trying to work out how they survive (like so hundreds of thousands across the nation) given that they have all shut down, at least for now.

Sponsorships and broadcast payments make up the bulk of payments for these leagues, meaning that everything is up in the air at the moment.

AFL players have offered to take a 50% pay cut while the season is suspended. For some clubs, that won’t be enough.

Members are reporting that their memberships are still being taken by the clubs, which, for people who have found themselves in financial stress overnight, is an issue.

There are no answers there as yet.

Updated

The Australian Council of Social Services has put together an advice sheet for accessing Centrelink:

If you already receive Newstart or another payment, you do not need to contact Centrelink to get the extra support announced.

If you are still getting paid, still have income coming in, if you can wait a few days, that may help. If you don’t need payments urgently, wait a day or two to connect.

For people who have lost their jobs and need to apply for a payment urgently:

Online: If you have digital access, try applying online through MyGov. Try again later if you cannot get through.

The government has enacted Intent to Claim processes so people don’t have to lodge a full claim immediately, and they will be back paid to the day they lodged their intent to claim. In other words, people won’t miss out on income support because of delays to lodge a completed claim.

Phone: We know many people do not have online access. The phone number for Jobseeker Payment is 132 850.

In person: If you do decide to line up, please practice social distancing.

We are also monitoring advice from Centrelink. Don’t give up. For those who can access Centrelink via online or phone, please don’t give up – try again later.

We will see unprecedented levels of demand for Centrelink. Understanding on all sides as Centrelink staff are doing all they can to help people trying to get support. Things may take some time.

The Government’s commitment to hiring 5,000 extra Centrelink staff is very welcome and we urge Government to move quickly to get these staff on deck.

Updated

Michael McGowan will have more information on this for you soon.

The Queensland premier and deputy premier will be holding a press conference in the next hour to explain how they plan on closing the border.

Updated

Queensland police have followed Victoria police in creating a taskforce to ensure that people and venues are adhering to social distancing and shutdown measures.

In a statement, Queensland police said the multi-agency taskforce would ensure compliance with directions now in place for all pubs, registered and licensed clubs, gyms, indoor sporting venues, casinos and nightclubs. The statement said:

These measures are aimed at reducing the spread of Covid-19 and ensuring overall public health and safety. Police have certain powers under the Public Health Act 2005 (Qld) to ensure compliance with the intent of the legislation, and penalty provisions apply.

Yesterday the Victorian government refused to answer my questions about the kinds of actions that would be taken against those found to be breaking the rules. The government and Victoria police said they would not be expanding on their initial statement, which read:

Victoria Police has conducted a number of spot checks to ensure people are self-isolating in accordance with the advice of the Chief Health Officer. Police will continue to do spot checks and respond to requests from the Department of Health and Human Services.

For operational reasons, we will not disclose how these checks are being undertaken or how many have been conducted so far. At this stage, no one has been charged with refusing or failing to comply with direction.

Meanwhile in the Northern Territory, parliamentary sittings resume in Darwin today to debate emergency legislation to deal with the response to Covid-19.

Updated

There are still massive wait times to access myGov.

Updated

Centrelink clarifications

Right.

So, answers.

Partner earning threshold:

Currently, if your partner earns more than $48,000 you will NOT be eligible for the coronavirus payments.

The government is working to change that threshold to $75,000 but that change has not come in as yet.

Getting a CRN:

You DO NOT have to go into Centrelink. You DO have to get one over the phone and there are very, very long wait times. But you DO NOT have to physically attend a Centrelink office.

Identity can be verified OVER THE PHONE. You DO NOT have to attend a Centrelink office to do that.

Students:

If you receive youth allowance, as a student or apprentice, you will receive the supplement after an amendment to the bill last night.

Skilled visa holders:

The government is working on what you can be eligible for, but at the moment, nothing has changed there.

Already receiving Centrelink payments:

You DO NOT have to do anything. It should be applied automatically.

Updated

The myGov website is still showing an error message for lots of people – the numbers, despite being boosted, are still not enough.

Anne Ruston says she is working through the number of visa types in Australia, to see what is available for those people to receive social security payments.

In relation to visas, certainly there’s been some commentary around it. We made the decision, which was announced on Sunday, that anybody who is on a pathway to citizenship and is serving their new arrival waiting period, that waiting period would be waived so they would be automatically eligible to access the same benefits as a jobseeker, and everything that goes with that ...

That’s in relates to those on the pathway to citizenship. There are a range of different visas that sit and there are so many of them. I am currently working my way through those visa types to see what options there are available to assist those people. But what I would say is that I already have the capacity as the minister for social services in legislation – the capacity to grant what we call special benefit to those people on visas that would not otherwise be eligible to Australian social security payments if they are in a time of financial hardship.

That is already in place, but yesterday they supercharged those powers by the regulation last night, which means that I can look more broadly at all of them.

Updated

Anne Ruston confirms that if your partner earns over $48,000, you will NOT be eligible for the coronavirus payments:

Once you get to, I ... think it’s $48,001 or thereabouts, is currently when it will cut out.

Below that, the partner only needs to be eligible for $1, so slightly under that, so they will be eligible for the coronavirus payment as we sit here today but, as I said, the powers that were granted to me last night will enable me to make changes to that if that’s the decision which could change that and see that move up.

Updated

How was it screwed up, so comprehensively, given every human and their cat knew this was coming?

Anne Ruston:

Well, I wouldn’t accept your categorisation. What I would say is there’s been a number of factors that have played into the increased demand spike that we saw yesterday.

Obviously, the rapid escalation on Sunday when we saw a number of changes by the federal government and the state government that escalated the people yesterday, finding themselves in a position when they went to work in the morning that they no longer had a job.

The other thing that it would be great to get out to people is that we are seeing a lot of misinformation on social media telling people to go and do things that aren’t correct, and so what I’d say is truth-test anything that you see on social media.

Truth-test it with the media that are in this room who are credible media. Go on to a government website, whether it be the myGov website or the Australia.gov.au website, and truth-test what you’re seeing on social media, because I think that a lot of people have been led to believe things that aren’t true because of what they’ve seen. We certainly understand that yesterday was an extraordinary spike in the number of people that were looking to use the service and overnight Sunday night.

We increased capacity. Yesterday, we put another 5,000 people on to meet the demand.

This is an unprecedented situation.

Updated

Social services minister's press conference

Anne Ruston is holding a press conference to try and clear up the mass confusion over the coronavirus payments, not helped by her partner minister, Stuart Robert, who has continually issued the incorrect information:

What is the cut off for the coronavirus payment?

At the moment, for a single person with no dependents it’s $1,850. But anybody who is eligible for $1 of payment or their spouse is eligible for $1 of payment, will also be eligible for all of the other benefits that people who are on social security are able to access.

The minister has been given the powers to change that, if she deems it necessary.

Do you need to attend a Centrelink office physically to apply?

Yesterday Centrelink made changes so that you are no longer required to attend a Centrelink site to provide proof of identity – which is what you’re referring to. Yesterday, the changes came into place which require you only to provide proof of identity over the phone, so you can ring up any of our Centrelink call centres, you can say, identify yourself, we will not require you to provide any physical demonstration.

We will only require you to actually advise us and we’ll take your word for it, understanding these are exceptional circumstances and we don’t want people attending Centrelink sites in person.

They will then give you a validation that says, yes, you are who you say you are on the basis of what you’ve said, and then you can go online and register through myGov, or equally, if you don’t want to do that, you can remain on the phone and do your rental operation on the phone.

Updated

Stuart Robert is still trying to clean up the mess he created.

After saying you could get a customer reference number (CRN) online (which was not true), he is now admitting it has to be done over the phone.

And on Stuart Robert’s admission he “jumped the gun” and blamed a cyber attack for the myGov failure yesterday, when it was just a case of the system being overwhelmed because he didn’t prepare for the sheer numbers of people who would need help, Anthony Albanese says:

Stuart Robert, you know, has said today, flippantly, apparently, you know, “My bad.” Well, it’s a bit more serious than that. And the minister and the government need to be accurate in the information that they’re putting forward at all times, but particularly at this time.

Updated

In terms of future lockdowns, Anthony Albanese says it should be whatever the health experts think:

I’m saying that the health experts need to be listened to, shouldn’t be second-guessed by politicians. If the health experts are saying that is going to happen, then we should be responding accordingly.

He also said there needs to be clearer messages:

We’re not trying to look for – be very clear here – we’re not trying to look for false distinctions with the government here. I think, indeed, it is important that there be as much unity as possible. I think there were very confusing messages, to be frank, even yesterday. I think the idea that we say schools are open, but we don’t want kids to go there, is a mixed message. And we need to be much clearer about it.

Updated

Most the Australian passengers who were trapped on the Costa Luminosa in Italy have finally been allowed on land.

After repeated changes of plans, and even the Australian embassy being left in the dark, it seems those who were allowed off the boat in Savona and have been packed on to buses destined for Rome.

They will now have to wait out a two-week quarantine period in hotel rooms. The embassy has assured passengers there will be adequate medical care.

But the family members of passengers say those who have tested positive for Covid-19 have not been allowed off.

They do not yet know if the ship will stay in the port of Savon as they wait out their illness or will travel to Tuscany as originally planned, where there is now less strain on hospitals.

Updated

Labor wants the $750 payments (one at the end of this month and one in July) put together and put out as fast as possible.

It also wants answers on rent relief.

Anthony Albanese:

One of the things that small business has said to me is that a number of them – your local cafe all of a sudden has shut up, doesn’t have any work, still has to pay rent. They can do some things in terms of takeaway, but a range of businesses can’t. Gyms, for example, can’t do gym work by remote, off-site. It can’t happen.

All of a sudden, they have had their income reduced to zero. I know of one case that pays $30,000 a month in rent.

And when they contacted their landlord, they were told, “No, you’ve gotta keep paying your rent.”

Well, that business won’t survive. We need relief in terms of small business, in particular, but we also need to plan for individuals.

The concern that we have is if people are literally unable to pay their rent and evicted from property, then what we will have is consequences that are dire, indeed, for health, in terms of it’s impossible to self-isolate. One of the things I said in parliament yesterday was, “How do you self-isolate if you’re homeless?”

The national cabinet will be looking at this issue tonight.

Updated

Anthony Albanese:

We have got to remember this is all about people.

Today the queues outside Centrelink are longer than they were yesterday. We’ve got to remember so many people out there are anxious, are scared about their futures.

So many people rely on the day-to-day income, whether it be their wage or their Newstart payment, or their pension, to get by on a day-to-day basis. It’s why the messaging has to be clear on these issues.

The government have said they’ll need to come back for further stimulus measures, and we think that’s right. We don’t believe this package is perfect, and it’s not the package that Labor would have put forward. But we weren’t going to stand in the way of a package which was urgent.

Updated

If you are already in the Centrelink system (as in you are already receiving a payment), and are eligible, you should not have to do anything more to receive the additional payments.

If you need to access Centrelink for the first time, you will need a customer reference number – a CRN – before you can access it online. You can get this from the phone service, but there are massive delays.

If you have access to a phone, you can avoid Centrelink, physically.

Updated

Anthony Albanese says Stuart Robert’s “my bad” response to misrepresenting why the myGov system had failed (he blamed a DDOS attack, when it was just overwhelmed by people desperately and legitimately trying to access the site) was “not the finest moment in Australian politics”.

“If we have people just making things up then that is a very bad thing indeed, because it breaks people’s trust in the system,” Albanese says.

The government is pushing this site – australia.gov.au – as having the “most up to date” coronavirus information.

It hasn’t been updated since 4.50pm yesterday.

In that time, a lot has changed – the stimulus package passed, Centrelink confusion, more border lockdowns and an increase in cases.

Updated

Market update

The Australian market opened up about 2% on Tuesday morning despite a raft of companies revealing the damage the coronavirus pandemic was doing to their operations and falls overseas overnight.

The mining giant Rio Tinto said it was cutting production in South Africa and Canada due to the outbreak.

The broadcaster Seven West Media withdrew its profit forecasts, citing a fall in ads and the postponement of the Olympics.

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, which was formed from the merger of the Australian Westfield group with France’s Unibail-Rodamco and owns shopping centres across Europe and the US, will cancel its final dividend this year but is pressing ahead with an interim one, due to be paid on Thursday.

Shaver Shop has cancelled its dividend.

Many of the companies worst affected by the pandemic, including the travel agency Flight Centre and the online flight sales site Webjet, are suspended from trade.

Updated

Anne Ruston’s press conference has now been moved to 11am.

I guess the minister is having trouble getting clear information as well.

The A-League season has been postponed, bringing all top-level sport in Australia to a halt as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Football Federation Australia announced on Tuesday morning the competition would be put on hold at least until the decision was reviewed on 22 April. Monday night’s game between Newcastle and Melbourne City, won 1-0 by the Jets, proved to be the last for the time being, despite FFA’s hopes of playing out a condensed version of the season.

The A-League was one of few major sporting competitions globally still running at the beginning of the week but the federal government’s advice on Monday against all non-essential travel within Australia effectively made the continuation of the season untenable.

The decision follows that of the NRL on Monday to suspend its season indefinitely, while the AFL had put its men’s competition on hold a day previously and cancelled the AFLW season outright.

The W-League season was able to be completed at the weekend, with Melbourne City crowned champions after the grand final was played in an empty stadium.

The FFA’s chief executive, James Johnson, said:

Our priority is to ensure the safety of both the football community and the community at large. As each passing day raises additional concerns for the safety of both, it is imperative that we follow the lead of governments at national and state level and take the necessary precautionary and proactive measures and in doing so play our part in preventing the spread and impact of Covid-19.

To get so close to completing the competition, only to pull up a few weeks short, has been heartbreaking for the players, clubs and fans. That said, the health and safety of our fans, players, volunteers and staff has always been the overriding consideration for us.

Updated

The social services minister, Anne Ruston, will be holding a press conference at 10.30am as the government scrambles to give people a clear message on what they are supposed to do to access the coronavirus payments.

To be clear, the coronavirus supplement does not start until 27 April.

Until then, it is just the standard jobseeker payment.

The $750 stimulus payment will be paid at the end of the month.

Updated

A-League season postponed

The A-League season has been postponed, bringing all top-level sport in Australia to a halt as a result of the coronavirus pandemic

This is why the confusion is reigning. No one is getting the same answer twice

How to make a jobseeker claim

There is a lot of confusion about about what is happening with Centrelink payments. This especially seems to be a problem for people who haven’t received income support before.

We are still trying to make sense of the situation, too. We have compiled an explainer. But here are some quick tips.

Making a claim for jobseeker payment

After you create a MyGov account, which is where you can make a claim, you will be asked for a Centrelink customer reference number.

  • The government says you can get this by calling Centrelink. (There will probably be delays.)
  • You DO NOT need to go into a Centrelink office. That is what the minister Stuart Robert said yesterday.

When does the $550 a fortnight coronavirus supplement start?

  • From 27 April
  • The following payments will be increased by $550pf: jobseeker payment; youth allowance; parenting payment (partnered and single); Austudy; Abstudy; farm household allowance; special benefit
  • You will be back paid from when you inform Centrelink you want to make a payment claim, not when it is approved

If your experiences don’t reflect this advice, please email luke.henriques-gomes@theguardian.com.

Updated

That is a big change from Tasmania.

Before it had said it would require all visitors to self-isolate.

Now it is turning non-essential travellers (health workers and the like are essential) and non-residents away from the border.

Updated

If you have been on a cruise ship, STAY INSIDE and self-isolate for two weeks.

If you have travelled overseas, STAY INSIDE and self-isolate for two weeks.

Updated

Tasmanian authorities are trying to contact trace passengers from four cruise ships:

The Ruby Princess

The Ovation of the Seas

The Celebrity Solstice

The Voyager of the Seas

All of which were allowed into Sydney and for the passengers to disperse. Tasmania is seeing its infection rate increase because of Tasmanians returning home after cruises

Updated

If you're not Tasmanian, stay away, premier says

Tasmania is moving into a hardline stance about who can enter the state, shutting down the Trans-Tasman ferry line, the TT line, to all but “essential travellers” and Tasmanian residents.

It has had six more cases, bringing the total number of people diagnosed to 28.

Four of those six had been on the Ruby Princess, which was allowed to dock in Sydney last week. Another person had been on another cruise ship, the Celebrity Solstice, which was also able to dock in Sydney. The sixth had travelled overseas.

There is NO community transmission – as yet.

But the lockdown is getting more serious.

Peter Gutwein:

In terms of TT line, as of today there is a hardline position in place today that unless you’re an essential traveller, or a Tasmanian returning home on the TT line, you will not be travelling with us.

The self-isolation rules have been applied and largely are being adhered to but I want to be absolutely certain and so, as from today, if you are travelling to Tasmania and it’s non-essential travel, do not come.

Do not get on the TT line. What we will do is turn you around and ask you to go back.

Updated

The Taronga zoos are closing because of Covid-19:

For the health and safety of our guests, staff and the broader community, and to comply with social distancing measures, mandated by government and health authorities across the country to prevent the transmission of COVID-19, Taronga Zoo Sydney and Taronga Western Plains Zoo are required to temporarily close, effective 5pm Wednesday 25 March 2020.

This closure includes the Taronga Institute of Science & Learning, all overnight accommodation across both Taronga Zoo Sydney and Taronga Western Plains Zoo and the Taronga Function Centre.

While both Zoos will be closed to the public, Taronga’s essential staff will continue to ensure the welfare and safety of the animals in our care remains at the highest possible standard. Whilst non-essential staff will work mostly remotely, ensuring our commitments to conservation and education continue at this challenging time.

Updated

New Zealand will move into its alert four-stage lockdown very soon – which means an almost total lockdown, as is being seen in Germany and the UK.

Donald Trump says the US is “not built to be shut down” and he is working on reopening regions.

We also have a large team working on what the next steps will be once the medical community gives a region the OK, meaning the OK to get going, to get back, let’s go to work. Our country wasn’t built to be shut down. This is not a country that was built for this. It was not built to be shut down.

Updated

Doctors are calling for people to be released from Australia’s immigration detention centres:

Updated

The cruise ship full of more than 100 Australian doctors, nurses and medical experts that was trapped off the coast of Chile after the country closed its borders will dock at the Falkland Islands soon to get the passengers out and back home, the cruise company has confirmed.

The flights will leave Stanley in a few days, according to Hurtigruten.

“Over the past weeks, Hurtigruten has helped thousands of guests safely home,” a spokeswoman said. Travel restrictions due to the coronavirus outbreak are making all travel more complex.

“We are confident that we will get everyone on MS Roald Amundsen home as well – in a timely manner considering the travel restrictions and other circumstances.”

The medical experts had been on board for a trip to Antarctica after a medical conference. The spokeswoman said there were no confirmed or suspected cases of coronavirus onboard the ship.

Updated

Stuart Robert also says it was “heartbreaking stuff” to see the scenes of people lining up outside Centrelink offices:

Decent people finding themselves very quickly in very desperate circumstances”.

That sort of narrative says everything about the minister. There is no delineation between people who found themselves on welfare payments before the coronavirus crisis and now. You are no less worthy for needing Centrelink before a pandemic.

That the government has finally seen fit to increase the payment, because of the sheer numbers of underemployment and job losses we are about to see, says everything about how impossible it was to live on what was on offer as part of the “social security blanket” before this crisis.

'My bad' says Stuart Robert over Centrelink failures

The minister in charge of government services, Stuart Robert, spoke to Alan Jones on Sydney radio 2GB about his insistence yesterday the MyGov failures were the result of a DDOS attack, before being forced to admit that yes, the system was just overwhelmed.

He was as compassionate as ever:

“I probably should have waited for the investigation before jumping the gun.

“ ... We prepared, over the weekend, for 55,000 I didn’t think I’d have to prepare for 100,000 concurrent users.

“Again my bad not realising the sheer scale of the decision on Sunday night by national leaders that literally saw hundreds of thousands, maybe a million, people unemployed overnight.”

Updated

The union which looks after retail workers (including supermarket staff) is calling for new measures to be put in place to protect workers:

On top of measures already introduced, the SDA is calling for retailers to:

1. Go ‘cash free’ and accept card payments only.
2. Install plexiglass screens at cash registers to protect workers who cannot keep at least
1.5 metres from customers.
3. Display signage and floor marking to ensure social distancing.
4. Ensure sanitiser with at least 60% alcohol content is readily available to all staff.
5. Provide workers with gloves and personal face shields.
6. Provide bags free of charge for each purchase to avoid handling of customer bags. No
use of customers’ used bags unless the customer bags it themselves.
7. Continue to increase security to assist in enforcing purchase limits and in dealing with
unreasonable customers. Police resources may also need to be deployed to protect
workers. Ensure regular cleaning and sanitisation of workstations and personal
protective equipment.
8. Take a zero tolerance approach to customer violence and abuse.
9. Publicly promote the SDA’s No One Deserve A Serve campaign to improve customer
behaviour.

Updated

Ed Husic is on Sky News talking about the urgency with which people need to get advice and access to the Centrelink payments.

As Laura Jayes rightly points out, there are people with less than $10 in their bank accounts, and this idea people have savings to fall back on, is farcical.

There was a five-day waiting period for processing claims BEFORE this crisis.

Updated

The ACCC has approved some new measures for supermarket chains to ensure the supply chain is not broken.

Supermarket operators will be able to coordinate immediately to ensure consumers have reliable and fair access to groceries during the Covid-19 pandemic following the ACCC’s granting of interim authorisation.

The interim authorisation will allow supermarkets to coordinate with each other when working with manufacturers, suppliers and transport and logistics providers.

The purpose of this is to ensure the supply and the fair and equitable distribution of fresh food, groceries and other household items to Australian consumers, including those who are vulnerable or live in rural and remote areas.

The authorisation allows a range of coordinated activities but does not allow supermarkets to agree on retail prices for products.

Updated

Lines for Centrelink (now Services Australia) are still resembling Great Depression lines for help.

There are thousands of people all around the country lining up outside the office. People just want help and advice and a clear instruction over what they need to do.

Staff at Centrelink have been cut over the past six years, with more and more services migrating online. Anyone who has had anything to do with Centrelink in the last few years knows that even if you go in you get directed to a computer.

Anne Ruston, the social services minister, is urging people to go on the MyGov website, instead of lining up:

The day that you actually start your application with Centrelink will be the day from which you’ll be eligible to receive your payment. So we would be asking the Australian public for calm, because we need to make sure these services are open for those people who really are in the most desperate need for them.

The website can only handle (at this stage) 55,000 people accessing it at once. Previously, that was 6,000 people at once – but even with the increase, with an additional million people expected to come on board the system, it’s not enough.

Ruston says if you already receive a Centrelink payment, you should just see the money come into your account:

We are asking the Australian public, if you don’t need to go on to the MyGov website – so, for instance, if you’re already on payment, you don’t need to contact Centrelink.

The payments will automatically turn up into your bank account. So we’d be asking you perhaps not to contact or to use the Centrelink services for the next few days.

Updated

Gladys Berejiklian is having to defend her schools decision – there has been confusion over the message “schools are open, but keep your children home if you can”.

Berejiklian says the absentee rates had hit 41% even before the announcement, but the schools need to stay open for parents who have no other choice.

So schools are open. If you can keep your children at home, you should. If you can’t, then your children will not be turned away from school.

Teachers and staff who are uncomfortable staying at work, or who are in the high-risk category, can work from home. Principals have been advised to make sure that happens.

Updated

The NSW premier says the state is ramping up its compliance because enough people aren’t following the rules.

Good government means prudent planning, it means making sure you have a no-regrets policy.

And I have a no-regrets policy.

I’m incredibly pleased with the decisions we’ve taken to date.

I don’t regret any of them. Because I believe they’re in the best interests of our citizens, and I continue to make decisions based on the best interests of our citizens, because we are in uncertain times.

And I want to look back and think that every time we made a decision it was the right one for our people.

And I don’t care when criticism I get. Throw it at me, because I’m doing it because I believe it’s in the best interests of the citizens of New South Wales.

We are a different state to the rest of Australia.

We have the most people returned from overseas.

We have the highest number of cases. We have the highest concentration. But to give you assurance, we also have the highest rates of testing, and that’s what’s giving me comfort.

Gladys Berejiklian:

We need to make sure everybody who’s in self-isolation stays in self-isolation. We are ramping up our compliance.

We’re making sure that people are followed up. If they’re supposed to be in self-isolation and they’re not, there are harsh penalties and we’ll enforce that. We have to take this seriously.

And if New South Wales citizens follow the health advice, which is if you’re self-isolating, stay in self-isolation. That includes contacts, direct contacts of people who have been diagnosed with the virus.

If you are under those instructions, please, please follow those instructions. Do not go out into the community. The quicker we stop the spread, the more handle, the more control we’ll have over this virus.

Gladys Berejiklian says NSW has 149 new cases of Covid-19

The NSW premier is holding her morning press conference.

She again urges people to stay inside and follow the rules.

NSW has seen an increase of 149 cases overnight, with 818 people in the state now diagnosed with Covid-19.

Updated

With nearly two million people expected to access the coronavirus supplement payment passed over night, there are a lot of people who have never navigated Australia’s complex social service network before.

You might some value in this:

Nationalisation of some industries is still on the agenda – particularly when it comes to the airline industry in Australia.

Nationalisation just means the federal government steps in to help prop up the business (in this case, it would be a partial nationalisation, if it happens at all).

But some of the states and jurisdictions are moving ahead to try and save some of the smaller airlines which are the only services to some of the most remote communities. Queensland has been subsidising Rex airlines, which has stopped flights everywhere but that states, and now the Northern Territory is also stepping in.

The territory Labor government will immediately deliver a $2m support package to retain the regular passenger transport (RPT) aviation services, which are essential for our regional and remote towns in the territory.

The territory aviation sector has been significantly impacted by the necessary decision to limit travel in and out of remote communities to essential personnel only.

Continuing the supply of essential goods and services will ensure the protection and support of our communities under these trying circumstances.

Although the coronavirus infection rate in the territory remains very low, the economic impact of this pandemic is already hitting many territorians and sectors, including businesses and industries.

Updated

The Essential pollsters were out in the field last week, so if you are reading this, keep that in mind, but this is worrying when it comes to the overarching issue of trust. From Katharine Murphy:

One-third of people in the latest Guardian Essential survey believe there has been an overreaction to the threat of the coronavirus, and only 35% of the sample trust the media to give them honest and reliable information about the pandemic.

The latest survey of 1,034 respondents suggests men, and voters aged under 34, are more likely to think there has been an overreaction than voters over 55, and women.

A majority (64%) say they feel informed about the evolving health crisis and the impact on their family, but the feedback from voters shows there is a substantial trust deficit about information presented by the media.

Queensland will shut its borders tomorrow.

There aren’t a lot of details on how that will work as yet – the premier announced it over Twitter following a cabinet meeting, but there hasn’t been any more information, other than it will take affect from midnight tomorrow.

The southern border is the problem – a lot of people live on one side of the border and work on the other. We should get more details on that soon.

Updated

The UK prime minister, Boris Johnson has announced all non-essential shops will be closed, and gatherings of more than two people will be banned.

Germany went there yesterday.

Australia is not yet there, although the Victorian premier, Dan Andrews, announced a 500-strong police taskforce, to enforce the physical distance rules, as well as warning people could not “get on the beers” with their mates at home.

Updated

For anyone still confused about schools, here are the changes:

Victoria: schools are CLOSED, with the holidays brought forward to today.

NSW: Schools are OPEN, although parents are encouraged to keep their kids at home, if they can.

ACT: Schools are PUPIL FREE, although any students dropped off at school will be cared for.

All other jurisdictions, schools are OPEN, although if parents wish to, they can keep their children at home, although they are responsible for ensuring they stay at home.

Updated

The cruise ship, the Magnifica, will dock in Fremantle to refuel, and then travel on to Dubai.

This is the ship Mark McGowan was talking about yesterday.

Good morning

The parliament passed the necessary legislation to make the coronavirus stimulus package law and has changed all the procedures to postpone the next sitting until August.

As it’s in “emergency mode” if urgent legislation is needed, it can reconvene. But there are a couple of break-in-case-of-emergency regulations built into the legislation last night, so the parliament shouldn’t have to sit any time soon.

Labor and the Greens combined to amend the legislation to ensure students were included, which passed.

The government is predicting at least 1 million people will need to access the coronavirus payment. That is on top of the people already on the JobSeeker payment. Australia is facing an unemployment rate which triples – which in people terms, is about two million people.

About half of those are trying to get on the system for the first time. Hence the delays. The government has apologised for those waits – but only after the minister responsible for government services, Stuart Robert, tried to blame a DDOS attack. Turns out the MyGov system crashed for entirely legitimate reasons – people need help. People are already lining up outside Centrelink (now Services Australia) and the sun isn’t up.

The national cabinet (the one with the premiers and the federal leaders) will meet again tonight, where things like childcare and the rental relief plan will be discussed. Localised lockdowns will also be on the agenda. The Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has already told residents to stay in their suburbs. In areas where there are breakouts of community transmissions, which are being seen in very early stages in places like Sydney and the Gold Coast, the governments are looking at putting in even stricter restrictions. But the supermarkets will remain open, so there is no need for panic buying.

We’ll take you through all of it.

Updated

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