Rolling coverage: No new COVID cases in Victoria as Degraves St set for transformation
Extra flights will help stranded Australians get home to Melbourne after Emirates suspended services indefinitely. It comes as Victoria relaxed its border rules with Queensland.
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Victoria will loosen its border restrictions on people travelling from Greater Brisbane from 6pm on Saturday.
Premier Daniel Andrews said the region would be downgraded from a red to an orange zone after Queensland appeared to have contained the spread of the latest COVID-19 cluster.
Mr Andrews said Victorians wanting to return home and visitors would be able to apply for a permit and then travel freely after they took a test within 72 hours of arriving, and received a negative result.
The new permit system for all domestic travel, introduced earlier this week, is based on a traffic light system.
Travellers who visited “red zones” in the past 14 days are not permitted to enter the state, unless they have an exemption.
“It is a condition of entry and it is a condition of staying safe and staying open. So we will boost our testing capacity, but again there will be queues, there will be lines, just like there is every single day,” Mr Andrews said.
He suggested plans to travel to Brisbane be postponed.
“This virus moves so fast, so rapidly and we have to follow the advice and be as risk-averse as we have been.
“We simply can’t allow outbreaks. We can’t do anything that would make it more likely that we finish up with community transmission.”
Chief health officer Professor Brett Sutton said the situation in Greater Brisbane was “looking good”.
“There has really been no community transmission beyond the cleaner and her partner,” he told reporters on Saturday.
“There has been extensive testing of the many close contacts of those who had already left hotel quarantine.”
Prof Sutton said travellers who developed COVID-19 symptoms after receiving a negative result should be retested.
He added there was no change to borders restrictions with Greater Sydney because there were still cases of community transmission being recorded.
Mr Andrews said he was “hopeful” an announcement would be made in a couple of days and would be based on health advice.
There were no new cases of coronavirus recorded across Victoria on Saturday as more than 14,900 people were tested in the past 24 hours.
Three cases were detected in the state’s hotel quarantine.
There are 26 active cases of COVID-19 across the state.
EXTRA FLIGHTS FOR AUSSIES STRANDED OVERSEAS
Australians are being charged up to $15,000 for one-way tickets home after airline Emirates cut flights into Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane until further notice.
The federal government on Saturday announced an extra 20 chartered flights would be organised to bring people home.
Thousands of Australians have been waiting months to get home — many quitting jobs and ending leases, only for their flights to be cancelled — leaving them couch surfing.
Caps on flight into Sydney, Brisbane and Perth were this month halved. They will be reviewed on February 15.
Melbourne has continued with its smaller cap that was introduced since it emerged from the second lockdown caused by the outbreak from hotel quarantine.
Announcing the flights on Saturday, Senator Simon Birmingham said: “These flights will fly from priority areas from around the world, making sure that the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (use) their intelligence and knowledge of where Australians most need assistance …”
National Cabinet late last year cut the numbers of arrivals by commercial flights until at least mid February amid concerns the hotel quarantine systems would not cope.
The new flights would be on top of flights already coming here.
“It will create additional places for Australians to get home over and above those caps,” Senator Birmingham said. Passengers would be sent to the Northern Territory’s Howard Springs quarantine facility, and locations in Canberra and Tasmania “willing to work above those caps”, Senator Birmingham said.
“We will work with authorities in those jurisdictions to make sure they are done with the strictest procedures and protocols to keep people safe here in Australia, while returning people here to Australia,” he said.
Senator Birmingham said the decision by Emirates was a commercial one.
He conceded the caps on arrivals made it difficult for Australians to return but said the capacity for other airlines would increase as they could absorb the seats that had been allocated to Emirates, making them “slightly more commercially viable”.
Asked whether it was appropriate for international tennis players to come to Australia when many citizens could not, Senator Birmingham said the Victorian government was working with Tennis Australia to make sure safety protocols were adhered to but he could understand the “frustrations for many people in what is a deeply challenging environment”.
Jessica McAlister should have been returning to Australia on January 31 aboard a Japan Airlines flight, but the flight has been cancelled.
She said she wanted the Prime Minister to know people’s lives were being “tipped upside down”.
“It’s a roller coaster ride that’s not ending. We all have families and lives in Australia we’d like to be able to return to,” she said.
“We are so happy that our loved ones are safe at home and we’ve all seen what COVID can do.
“We’d like to know what the plan is to allow us in.”
TENNIS STARS IN LOCKDOWN AFTER COVID POSITIVES
Health authorities have confirmed Australian Open players are among the 66 individuals who were onboard a Los Angeles Charter Flight carrying two passengers with COVID-19.
The 66 individuals are considered close contacts and will not be able to leave their rooms to train during their 14 day quarantine, ruining their preparations for the Grand Slam.
A COVID-19 Quarantine Victoria spokesperson said equipment has been delivered to players’ rooms to aid in their training.
An Australian Open participant - who is not a tennis player - and an aircrew member are the two confirmed cases and have been transferred to a health hotel, the spokesperson said.
“The aircrew member and passenger arrived in Melbourne at 5am on 15 January 2021,” they said.
“The passenger tested negative to his pre-departure test.”
Authorities did not state whether the aircrew member tested negative before departure.
The remaining flight crew tested negative and left the airport at 7 am today to return, without any passengers, to their home port.
“We have had multiple cases of airline crew testing positive on passenger flights to Melbourne,” the spokesperson said.
“We have taken the same approach to passengers and crew on this tennis charter flight.
“The passengers are all in quarantine hotels, where they will undergo the routine testing that applies to all international arrivals.”
At this stage no other passengers have tested positive.
ANDREWS DEFENDS THE AUS OPEN CRITICISM
Daniel Andrews defended the Australian Open following criticism from Australians stranded overseas, who are furious international tennis players can fly in and quarantine while they are still unable to get a spot on an airplane home.
He said it was “inaccurate” to suggest the location of Melbourne’s grand slam was “chiselled in stone”.
“There are dozens of cities around the world who would pay anything to have a grand slam,” he said.
ANNOUNCEMENTS ‘VERY SOON’ ON INTERNATIONAL TRAVELLERS
Daniel Andrews has told Saturday’s press conference he will have some announcements to make “very soon” on the number of returning international travellers Victoria will take in.
But the Premier was quick to dismiss reports his government was looking to fly in a number of international students.
“I’m not taking a plan to National Cabinet to take in international students on the 5th (of February) and reports on that are simply not right,” he said.
“International education is very important, but there are significant limits on how many people we can bring.
“The notion that you can have tens of thousands international students coming here anytime soon is not feasible.
“It’s just not when you think about it.”
DEGRAVES ST SET FOR TRANSFORMATION
Melbourne laneway traders have joined forces to ramp up business, as scores of city workers prepare to return to their offices on Monday.
Degraves Street traders have permission to close the iconic CBD laneway from 10am to 9pm daily to create a mall-like marketplace.
Lost and Found bar and United Backpackers manager Alex Hill said traders in the once-thriving street had suffered a massive downturn because of COVID lockdowns and restrictions.
“For me it’s been a 90 per cent downturn and for most of the retailers 80 per cent down … I’d be hard pressed to nominate anyone who has suffered less than a 70 per cent drop in revenue in this part of the city,” he said.
Mr Hill said while CBD office workers had been based at home — interstate and international tourists had also all but disappeared from the city centre.
Degraves St businesses had additionally suffered because of CBD roadworks, which Mr Hill said “made us a bit invisible”.
“It’s been a triple-whammy really for us … our whole goal is to increase visitation to this part of the city.
“Degraves St was the key to the city just a year ago and we are trying to reignite it again and get the buzz back into this part of iconic Melbourne.
“We really haven’t been able to use the southern-end of Degraves St at all until now, but we will be turning it into an outdoor market space to draw people back, as long as the weather allows,” he said.
The informal alliance of Degraves St traders is now in the process of becoming formalised to create the Flinders Quarter Traders Association.
The Degraves St revival would initially involve hospitality businesses, but would soon expand to see retailers and other traders selling their wares outside in an alfresco market-like atmosphere.
News of the Degraves marketplace comes as thousands of CBD workers prepare to head back to the offices on Monday, with mask rules easing on Sunday.
Premier Daniel Andrews said 50 per cent of private sector workers and 25 per cent of public servants could return to their offices.
A further increase was hoped for late-February but would be subject to ongoing public health advice.
Many city office workers have been based at home since March 2020.
“While many Victorians will be happy to see this easing of restrictions it’s vital workplaces maintain and enforce their COVIDSafe plans to protect staff and the broader community,” Mr Andrews said.
Mask rules will return to what they were pre-Christmas from 11.59pm on Sunday.
Masks will only be mandatory on domestic flights, at airports, in hospitals, on public transport, in ride shares or taxis, in commercial passenger vehicles, at supermarkets and other large indoor retail locations, including shopping centres.
They will not be mandatory in offices but the government had advised masks should be carried by Victorians whenever they leave home and wear one in all situations where physical distancing is not possible.
Melbourne Lord Mayor Sally Capp said the return to work would be a huge boost for city businesses and a ‘festive’ and ‘vibrant’ Degraves St was well-positioned to benefit throughout January.
“We are committed to opening up spaces outside for businesses to increase trade and help bring back the buzz to our city,” Cr Capp said.
“There will be around a dozen retail and hospitality outlets taking part along the southern end of Degraves Street, and the laneway will be closed to traffic during this time.”
Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry acting chief executive Dugald Murray said returning office workers should make concerted efforts to support retailers, restaurants, cafes and bars ‘that have been doing it tough for so long’.
NEW CHANGE TO WA BORDER RULES FOR VICTORIANS
Western Australia’s controlled interstate border will be adjusted on Monday, with Victoria set to become a “low risk” state.
Travel from Victoria into WA will be permitted as long as travellers complete a G2G PASS declaration, self-quarantine for 14 days and get tested on day 11.
WA currently considers Victoria a “medium risk” state, meaning travellers are not permitted to enter without an exemption.
WA health minister Roger Cook said this was a “cautious but sensible” move, which will minimise the risk of COVID-19 entering WA.
“We will continue to monitor the situation closely, and once Victoria reaches 28 days of no community transmission we can then consider the next step under our controlled border,” Mr Cook said.
— With additional reporting by Stephen Drill
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