Two serial offenders in the western Sydney suburb of Mount Druitt are among those fined $1000 under social distancing laws. LIVE COVERAGE
This coronavirus article is unlocked and free to read in the interest of community health and safety. For full access to the Daily Telegraph journalism, subscribe here.
LATEST NEWS
A man found asleep in public and another sitting on a park bench are among the latest people fined for breaching coronavirus isolation in NSW.
Police gave a man a warning after seeing him in a Mount Druitt shopping mall yesterday, then found him asleep on a nearby bench two hours later, handing him a $1000 on-the-spot fine.
On the same patrol police fined a 20-year-old man found sitting at a picnic table in Mount Druitt when they discovered he had repeatedly been warned about being outside without a reasonable excuse.
Two men in their 20s were fined for being at the Lake Macquarie home of two women, with police saying there had previously been reports of social gatherings in the house.
Police also charged an alleged drink driver with failing to self-isolate after he failed a breath test on the Central Coast yesterday then failed to give a reasonable excuse for being out.
Chifley police fined a 41-year-old man for walking along the street in Bathurst “who gave several different reasons for being out of his home”.
Police have now fined 136 people since the new restrictions were brought in on March 17.
It will include a common scheme for using anonymous, aggregated data to trace people who came into contact with those infected and to monitor those under quarantine.
To assuage privacy concerns, there will be a strict limit on the processing of personal data, which will be destroyed when the virus crisis is under control.
The latest Health Ministry data added 35 deaths between Tuesday and Wednesday morning, taking the total number of casualties to 149.
The number of cases stood at 5,194, a jump of 773.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 21-day lockdown on March 24 to contain a possible surge of new coronavirus cases in the country of 1.3 billion people.
All except those working in health care and providing essential services and commodities have asked to stay at home.
The lockdown is due to end on April 14, but as the number of cases continues to rise, several state governments have indicated they would prefer an extension.
NUMBERS
* Confirmed cases in Australia: 6,013
* Australian deaths: 50 (21 in NSW, 12 in Vic, four in Qld, six in WA, three in Tas, two in ACT, two in SA). 13 were passengers on the Ruby Princess.
* Daily infection rates have fallen to just two per cent, with the highest per population in Tasmania, with four per cent.
* 2813 people have recovered
* 730,000 businesses have registered for the JobKeeper scheme
—
MEASURES
* The federal government has committed $320 billion, or 16.4 per cent of gross domestic product, to combat the virus' health and economic effects.
* A $130 billion JobKeeper scheme providing coronavirus-affected businesses $1500 a fortnight to pass onto employees over six months.
* Free child care for people still in paid work in a $1.6 billion package to childcare centres.
* Small businesses with a turnover of up to $50 million will be protected from eviction and have their rent reduced in line with falls in revenue under state-enforced legislation.
* The ATO will make it easier to claim working from home deductions with an 80 cents per hour flat rate for expenses from March 1 to June 30.
* Welfare recovery scheme robo-debt has been frozen for six months.
* All Australians must continue practising social distancing and stay at home unless going out for essentials or exercise.
* Australians returning home from overseas must be quarantined for two weeks in hotels or other accommodation before being allowed home.
* People risk being fined by police if caught travelling for non-essential reasons over Easter.
* Victims of domestic violence in NSW will be told if their alleged abuser is granted bail as more offenders are being released to reduce overcrowding in prisons.
* Still open: supermarkets, pharmacies, banks, public transport, some schools, hairdressers, petrol stations, postal and freight services, bottle shops, newsagents, retail shops. Restaurants restricted to takeaway/delivery in most states.
* Closed: schools in Victoria and ACT, gyms, indoor sports venues, pubs, cinemas, nightclubs, casinos, places of worship, theme parks, auction houses, food courts in shopping centres, beauty therapy, tanning, waxing, nail salons, spas and tattoo parlours, galleries, museums, libraries, youth centres, community halls, clubs, RSL clubs, swimming pools, amusement parks, arcades, indoor and outdoor play centres, social sports that involve large groups, outdoor and indoor markets, outdoor playgrounds, outdoor gyms, skate parks.
—
OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
* The record $130 billion JobKeeper program is set to pass into law late on Wednesday, providing support for six million workers for up to six months.
* The first 288 Australians quarantined in a Sydney CBD hotel have left to return to their homes.
* NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says tough social distancing restrictions will be reviewed on a month-by-month basis.
* NSW Police have started to investigate whether Australian or NSW biosecurity laws were breached when passengers on the Ruby Princess were allowed to disembark in March.
* UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, 55, is stable after his second night in intensive care after receiving oxygen support for COVID-19 complications.
—
GLOBAL CORONAVIRUS
* Cases: at least 1,432,373
* Deaths: at least 82,114
* Recovered: at least 302,288
*Source: State and federal government updates and worldometers website
NSW Transport has pleaded for people to stop stealing toilet rolls from their public toilets.
“As a result of ongoing theft and vandalism, and limited supply, Transport for NSW will no longer be able to reliably supply toilet paper at rest areas across NSW until further notice,” NSW Transport said.
“In the event supplies at a rest area have been exhausted, drivers who wish to use toilet facilities will need to supply their own toilet paper or flushable paper-based product to use.”
Read more here
Waverley Public School and Bronte Public School told parents that the three staff members, who were linked socially and had been at both schools, were “external providers”.
They were not teachers at the schools.
Parents were told to keep their kids home in an email from the schools last night.
Read more here
Johnson, who tested positive nearly two weeks ago, was taken to hospital on Sunday evening as he had a persistent high temperature and cough but his condition deteriorated on Monday and he was rushed into an intensive care unit.
The 55-year-old British leader received oxygen support but was not put on a ventilator and his designated deputy, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, said he would soon be back at the helm.
"The prime minister is in a stable condition, he's comfortable and in good spirits," Edward Argar, a junior health minister, said today. "He has in the past had some oxygen but he's not on ventilation."
The revered 73-year-old musician had been due to tour Australia next week but cancelled the visit in February on doctor’s advice due to an existing hip injury.
His wife and manager Fiona revealed on March 17 she had tested positive for coronavirus after they returned to Nashville from a European tour.
Prine was admitted to intensive care at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center on March 26 and died today.
Read more here
Landon Spradlin started to feel sick while in New Orleans, where he went to preach to the crowds gathered for the city's famed Mardi Gras celebrations.
A month later, Spradlin – who was also a seasoned musician inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 2016 – died.
“His mission was to go into pubs, clubs and bars, play the blues and connect with musicians and just tell them that Jesus loved them,” Spradlin’s daughter Jesse Spradlin said.
As he battled symptoms, he shared a controversial meme on Facebook on March 13, which said the public reaction to the pandemic was “mass hysteria” and the media was using the outbreak to hurt US President Donald Trump.
Read more in the New York Post here
They'll patrol caravan parks and use technology such as number plate recognition to ensure people are following social distancing rules.
"The big focus will be on our country roads, those back streets, our main highways, the caravan parks right across country NSW," Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said.
"People will be given one opportunity to pack up, go back to your home state, go back home, otherwise we will unfortunately have to issue tickets."
The government has repeatedly urged Easter holiday-makers to cancel their non-essential travel as part of efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19.