As it happened: PM unveils a three-stage plan to recovery; Victoria's lockdown remains unchanged

Thanks for joining Rachel Eddie and I today on the blog in what was a huge day of coronavirus announcements, the blog will be back again at 6am tomorrow.

Before I go tonight, here are some of our top stories:

• Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced a three-stage framework for relaxing coronavirus restrictions in Australia. Under the first stage, people can gather in groups of 10 in public places, and cafes and restaurants will reopen. It is up to individual states and territories to implement the framework
• Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said there would be no announcements in regards to lifting Victorian restrictions until Monday, but hinted that school could return earlier than expected.
• Under the guidelines, gyms would open before pubs and clubs
• AFL chief Gillon McLachlan told coaches on Thursday that players breaching COVID-19 protocols faced being suspended for the entire 2020 season.
• NSW won't rush to lift restrictions
• Queensland restaurants, pubs and cafes will reopen on May 15
• Unemployment will be at 9 per cent at Christmas, the Reserve Bank has warned in some of its most dire economic forecasts yet.
• Anti-lockdown and anti-vaxxer protesters were told not to march in Melbourne's CBD this weekend.
• Coronavirus could kill 190,000 in Africa this year if it is not contained, according to the World Health Organisation.
• Cedar Meats, the meat processing company at the centre of Victoria’s biggest COVID-19 cluster, says it took several days for state health authorities to directly contact it about positive tests results among its workers.

I wish you all a lovely evening, thanks for your comments and for following along. For more updates, you can also subscribe to our coronavirus newsletter below.

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NSW Labor has questioned the decision to hand police chief Mick Fuller an $87,000 pay rise at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, making him one of the state's highest-paid public servants.

Opposition industrial relations spokesman Adam Searle said Commissioner Fuller's pay rise was a "massive increase at a difficult time".

NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller.Credit: Rhett Wyman/SMH

"At a time when the Berejiklian government is proposing to, in effect, cut the wages of public sector employees, it is just not appropriate to be giving a wage increase well outside the 2.5 per cent wage cap," Mr Searle said.

"You should not have one rule for a select few, and a harsher rule that applies to everyone else."

The salary increase means Commissioner Fuller is now paid a salary of $649,500. His exact previous salary is not known, but the tribunal determination states it was "secretary level", ranging between $487,501 to $562,650.

Read the full story here. 

The Australian Federal Police is investigating whether criminals gained access to a tax agent's database to steal about $120,000 from up to 150 super accounts, forcing the government to temporarily suspend its early access scheme.

The program allowing people facing hardship due to coronavirus to withdraw up to $20,000 of their retirement savings has been paused until Monday while the AFP, Tax Office, Austrac and the Financial Crimes Taskforce look into the theft, which came to light last week.

"There has been one tax agent that has been the subject of a hacking or cyber-attack and personal details of clients that are part of that business, they have been exploited," Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton told Sky News on Friday.

The alleged cyberattack did not compromise the ATO or superannuation funds, the ATO confirmed during Senate hearings this week.

Read the full story here. 

Paris has proposed that the European Commission issues bonds to finance a recovery fund for the European Union worth 1-2 per cent of Gross National Income per year, or some €150-300 billion ($249.4-498.8 billion), in 2021-23, according to a French proposal seen by Reuters.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.Credit: AP

The proposal comes as the EU debates how to kickstart growth after the coronavirus slump. The bloc's executive Commission is due to make a formal proposal in the week starting May 18 of a new joint budget for all the 27 member states for 2021-27 and an accompanying recovery fund.

"The size should be at least 1 per cent to 2 per cent of EU GNI per year over the next three years, which would provide the EU budget a top-up of €150 billion to €300 billion each year between 2021 and 2023," the French discussion document read.

"Loans to member states could help closing the gap, but need to remain a top-up to grants. To ensure maximum added value, such loans should have a grace period, very long maturity and low interest rate ... It is also essential that this fund be set-up as soon as possible, possibly before the entry into force of the next MFF."

Australians are being warned to expect new coronavirus outbreaks as the nation emerges from sweeping shutdowns in a three-stage plan to restore 850,000 jobs by July.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison addresses the media during a press conference on the government's response to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Prime Minister Scott Morrison acknowledged the danger of new cases but declared they could not hold back the economic recovery because controls were in place to isolate and quarantine new cases.

Some state premiers moved swiftly to reopen churches, cafes, restaurants and schools after national cabinet agreed to the plan on Friday, but the people of NSW and Victoria must wait to learn how the measures will be applied in their states.

Victorian premier Daniel Andrews signalled a move within days to resume some teaching in classrooms, with the new framework putting schools in the first stage of the restart plan.

You can read David Crowe's full story here.

Ireland's unemployment rate rose to 28.2 per cent at the end of April including those receiving emergency coronavirus jobless benefit, the highest on record and up from just 4.8 per cent before the crisis two months ago, the state's statistics office said on Friday.

A man pushes a pram across an almost deserted O'Connell Street in Dublin's city centre.Credit: PA

The new COVID-19 Adjusted Unemployment rate increased from 15.5 per cent in March after the number of people claiming the higher emergency payment more than doubled to 602,107, on top of the 216,900 on regular jobless benefits.

Excluding the emergency coronavirus payment, the unemployment rate stood at 5.4 per cent.

The adjusted unemployment rate does not include 427,400 more workers on a wage subsidy scheme for impacted companies, where the state agreed in March to pay 70 per cent of wages up to a maximum of €410 ($681) a week for an initial 12-week period.

Australian pub-goers could see their favourite watering holes stay shut despite a plan to ease coronavirus restrictions across the country.

The Australian Hotels Association says the road map to recovery is inconsistent and could force some hotels and pubs shut permanently.

"Hotels have been left blindsided,' chief executive Stephen Ferguson said on Friday.

"They basically will not be able to re-open their businesses until stage three of the recovery process."

Mr Ferguson said the plan failed to account for venues with large floor space and most would be forced to remain closed.

"We are told only 10 people can sit and have a meal in a pub restaurant area even if that area could safely socially distance 50 or 100,' he said

"Why can only 10 people be allowed in a dining area of a huge venue that could safely socially distance 120?"

People are cramming into supermarkets and work side-by-side on building sites, he said.

"Where is the consistency?"

He warned that many operators were already struggling with mounting debts after being closed for more than a month and the recovery plan could force some to close their doors permanently.

"Hotels have done the right thing, put the health of staff and patrons first the moment this pandemic hit - and we will continue to do so - but common sense needs to prevail here too," he said.

AAP

On this week's episode of Good Weekend Talks, we revisit Amanda Hooten's profile of Jacinda Ardern, the young, charismatic world leader just after she was elected New Zealand's Prime Minister.

Amanda is also joined in conversation by Good Weekend editor Katrina Strickland, and political editor Peter Hartcher for a discussion on Arden's handling of the COVID-19 crisis, Christchurch massacre and Christchurch earthquake, and how she compares to other world leaders.

This is one of many podcasts available from The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. You can listen to our daily coronavirus podcasts here.

It's Friday night - and normally you'd expect a lot fewer lights on around Sydney's Eastern Suburbs, with people flocking to the city or to local watering holes.

Instead, as self-isolation rules remain, photographer Janie Barrett has captured these images in which the moon is just one of many bright lights on the skyline.

This Maroubra residence is buzzing - with people staying home.Credit: Janie Barrett

The moon rises over apartments in Coogee, where most people are still self-isolating.Credit: Janie Barrett

AFL chief Gillon McLachlan told coaches on Thursday that players breaching COVID-19 protocols faced being suspended for the entire 2020 season.

Gillon McLachlan.Credit: Getty Images

The warning, which was communicated in a video hook-up to one-third of the senior coaches and then passed on to the other 12, came just hours before McLachlan learned that 16 Adelaide footballers trained as a group at a golf course in the Barossa Valley.

McLachlan also raised the prospect of season-ending suspensions with the 18 club chiefs on Tuesday and received significant support. The prospect of tough new penalties for breaking social distancing has also been put to the players' union.

As McLachlan and his team weighed up potential sanctions for both players and club, Adelaide CEO Andrew Fagan said the Crows should not be judged in light of previous misdemeanours and notably the damaging Collective Minds pre-season camp.

Read Caroline's full story here.