Coronavirus Australia live news: trans-Tasman bubble in trouble; thousands protest Australia Day despite Covid warning
NZ PM says three-day halt to quarantine-free travel is ‘disappointing’, and a threat to the travel arrangement.
- Trans-Tasman bubble in trouble: Ardern
- March halted as thousands protest despite warnings
- Moderna develops booster for variants
- Boris: Separation hard, will continue
- Pfizer vaccine approved for rollout
Welcome to The Australian’s rolling coverage of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says Australia’s ‘disappointing’ three-day halt to quarantine-free travel is a potential threat to a trans-Tasman travel arrangement. People flocked to protest rallies in Sydney and Melbourne today despite COVID restrictions limiting numbers. NSW, Victoria and Queensland have all recorded zero new locally acquired cases. Moderna will develop a COVID-19 booster shot designed to be more effective against variants of the coronavirus.
Nicholas Jensen 9.20pm: EU tightens vaccine exports amid supply issue
The European Union has warned it will be much tougher on exporting COVID-19 vaccines, amid a row with AstraZeneca over a cut in planned supplies.
Last week, AstraZeneca informed the EU it was behind its supply target because of major obstacles in production.
Pfizer-BioNTech has also said supplies of its vaccine will be lower than first projected and will potentially slow the EU’s vaccination drive.
The AstraZeneca row could also impact supplies to the UK of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which has been developed by the US and Germany.
Responding to the prospect of a UK vaccine shortage, the Minister for Vaccine Deployment, Nadhim Zahawi, admitted that supplies were tight, but that he was “confident that (the vaccines) will both deliver for us the quantities we need to meet our mid-February target and of course beyond.”
EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides has said the EU bloc would “take any action required to protect its citizens”.
READ MORE: Lots of pluses and few minuses as operation coronavirus fightback nears
Ben Wilmot 8.27pm: Businesses push for office return
Corporate Australia is making a push to get staff back into offices with landlords seeking to reassure them they will be safe due to extensive precautions taken against coronavirus.
The long-mooted return to work was interrupted by a series of alerts and border closures over summer which stalled some corporate moves to get staff back behind desks.
But for many companies, particularly those with Melbourne offices, a further period of extended work from home is anticipated, partly as companies made adjustments during lockdowns.
A group of top landlords have now banded together in an effort to get workers back to the country’s biggest office and commercial precincts, partly as they face up to work from home being locked in for a significant portion of once office bound staff.
“After a year of disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic which forced many Australians to work from home, office building owners and managers have declared they’re ready for them return to their workplaces after their summer break,” Property Council of Australia CEO Ken Morrison said.
He said landlords were ensuring workplaces were ready for business and for their workers to return. Offices have been overhauled, with foyers, lifts, end of trip facilities and common areas changed.
Nicholas Jensen 7.12pm: Anti-curfew riots continue in the Netherlands
Anti-curfew protesters continue to clash with police in the Netherlands after almost a week of demonstrations and scattered violence.
More than 150 people were arrested across several Dutch cities. In Rotterdam, the police fired warning shots and tear gas, after an emergency order issued by the mayor failed to disperse demonstrators.
Unrest began over the weekend as protesters railed against the newly imposed COVID-19 restrictions. Riot police clashed with protesters in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Amersfoort and Geleen. Police in Rotterdam said a number of officers were injured.
Street fires were lit across The Hague, where police attempted to stop rioters throwing rocks and fireworks at shop windows and buildings. Instances of looting were also recorded in Den Bosch.
The Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has condemned protests and rioters, describing them as unabashed “criminal violence”.
Since the beginning of the outbreak, the Netherlands has recorded nearly one million confirmed cases, with more than 13,500 deaths.
Nicholas Jensen 6.45pm: Tokyo seeks 10,000 medical staff for Olympics
The Japanese government has said it plans to recruit 10,000 medical personnel for its delayed Olympics, despite the pressures inflicted on its healthcare system by a third wave of COVID-19 infections.
Opposition politicians criticised the government over the plans in the National Diet, as medical associations raised the alarm about diminishing capacity.
Despite rising infections Japan’s government and Olympic officials have insisted the Games will open as scheduled this July.
Olympics Minister Seiko Hashimoto said the government was committed to securing thousands of medical staff before the beginning of the Games.
“We are trying to secure necessary medical staff of around 10,000, on the premise of asking doctors and nurses that each of them work about five days during the Games period,” she said.
Officials are still discussing the exact medical provisions needed and how to “deal with COVID-19 infections”, she said.
Just six months before the Olympics are due to begin, Tokyo remains under a state of emergency after a spike in COVID-19 cases.
While Japan has been hit less hard than other countries, with approximately 5,000 deaths overall, doctors have warned medical facilities are at risk of collapse, especially if the Olympics elicit fresh outbreaks.
A combination of rising infections and the detection of the new South Africa variant has renewed doubts about the 2020 Olympics, with polls showing plunging public support in Japan.
Anton Nilsson 6.20pm: Police break up large boat party in Sydney
A large party on a waterway in Sydney’s south was broken up by police on Tuesday afternoon.
The Australia Day bash in the water off the Sutherland Shire suburb of Lilli Pilli drew attention of police who attended in their own vessel.
“They were drinking alcohol and gathering too closely together,” a NSW police spokesman said.
Police have been called to break up a large beach party in Lilli Pilli. More in 7NEWS at 6pm. https://t.co/TWh1KQycs4 #7NEWS pic.twitter.com/00PaWjOZpb
— 7NEWS Sydney (@7NewsSydney) January 26, 2021
There were no arrests or fines issued.
“We put an end to the party and they all moved along,” the police spokesman said.
READ MORE: Multiple arrests at Invasion Day rally
AFP 5.57pm: US ‘well on’ way to herd immunity by summer: Biden
President Joe Biden says the United States should be closing in on Covid herd immunity by summer, with mass vaccinations becoming available in the spring.
“I feel confident that by summer we’re going to be well on our way to heading toward herd immunity,” he told a White House news conference.
Biden said that this milestone could be reached once vaccinations – currently being issued at a trickle across the country of 328 million – become available to the wider public. He predicted this could happen within a few months.
“I think we’ll be able to do that this spring, but it’s going to be a logistical challenge that exceeds anything we’ve ever tried in this country,” Biden said.
The president, who took office last Wednesday, repeated that his first goal is getting 100 million vaccinations administered in his first 100 days in office.
After this, the country will “move in the direction where we are well beyond that in the next 100 days, so we can get to the point where we reach herd immunity.” “I feel good about where we’re going and I think we can get it done,” Biden said.
Nicholas Jensen 5.45pm: New Zealand signs upgrade to China FTA
New Zealand has signed an upgrade to its China Free Trade Agreement (FTA), providing New Zealand goods faster access to Chinese markets and a reduction in tariffs.
Trade Minister Damien O’Connor and China’s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao finalised the deal in a video-link meeting on Tuesday afternoon, more than a year after the deal was initially agreed.
The New Zealand-China FTA Upgrade signed today cuts red tape and delivers a better deal for our exporters while also putting more focus on sustainable growth 🌠Trade is critical to our economic recovery post COVID-19 #TradeRecoveryhttps://t.co/5lqWHr6oDk
— Damien O'Connor (@DamienOConnorMP) January 26, 2021
In Wellington this afternoon, Mr O’Connor said the upgrade ensured that the terms of FTA would be suitable for another decade. New Zealand was the first developed country to sign a FTA with China back in 2008.
“What this does is modernise the free trade agreement that we signed in 2008, brings it up to date. It provides real opportunities for exporters,” Mr O’Connor said.
READ MORE: Trans-Tasman bubble in trouble
Joseph Lam 5.25pm: Heatwave zaps power to 3000 Sydney homes
Thousands of Sydney homes lost electricity on Tuesday as energy providers in NSW struggled to meet demand throughout the hottest part of the day.
AusGrid reported power losses to about 13 suburbs across Sydney, including 1700 homes in the lower north shore suburbs and a further 1600 houses in the Manly area, according to the Daily Telegraph.
Power is currently out to customers in Aberglasslyn, Hillsborough, Maitland Vale and surrounding suburbs. Our crew are working to safely restore power. For more info: https://t.co/bZtdLPjc9L
— Ausgrid (@Ausgrid) January 26, 2021
Channel 7 reported that around 3000 homes woke up without power earlier in the day.
As of 5.15pm power was yet to be re-connected in Aberglasslyn, Hillsborough, Maitland Vale and surrounding suburbs
READ MORE: Helter swelter to escape the heat
Peta Bee 45.20pm: How to reboot your inner optimist
After 2020 did its worst — and this year is continuing in an alarmingly similar fashion — it’s hardly surprising that so many of us feel in need of a mental reboot. But how do you rekindle optimism and restore your self-confidence? Well, Don Macpherson knows what’s guaranteed not to work. “Telling someone to ‘think positively’ is the single worst platitude that I hear rolled out,” says the author of a new book on the subject, How to Master Your Monkey Mind (Bantam Press). “How can you think positively when your mind is in a fog of anxiety or panic? It’s just a slightly more eloquent, but ultimately foolish way of telling someone with clinical depression to ‘cheer up’.”
A mind coach whose clients include Olympians and former elite sports professionals such as Damon Hill and Pat Cash, Macpherson says that straightforward positive thinking — long extolled as a route to happiness — is now considered far from a self-fulfilling prophecy. Instead, he says that research has revealed a wealth of more subtle — and reliable — mental tools that will see people through the worst that life can throw at them. Here, he and other experts reveal their favourite tricks of the trade when it comes to boosting positivity.
Joseph Lam 4.45pm: Covid-positive traces in Sydney sewage
NSW Health is urging Western Sydney residents to monitor for COVID-19 symptoms after fragments which tested positive for the virus were found at a sewage treatment plant in the area.
The positive test results were recorded at a Liverpool waste treatment plant which includes a catchment of about 180,000 people.
Areas in the catchment include the suburbs of Prestons, Bardia, Moore Bank and Holsworthy, home of one of Sydney’s largest military barracks.
NSW Health’s sewage surveillance program has recently detected fragments of the virus that causes #COVID19 at the Liverpool treatment plant. pic.twitter.com/zpctQ1RpW3
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) January 26, 2021
Robyn Ironside 4.15pm: Trans-Tasman bubble in trouble: Ardern
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Tuesday described Australia’s three-day halt to quarantine-free travel by New Zealanders as disappointing, and a potential threat to a trans-Tasman travel arrangement.
Australia had allowed New Zealanders to visit without the need to quarantine since late last year, but the same privilege has not been afforded to Aussies.
On Monday, Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt announced any kiwis arriving in Australia over the next 72-hours would be required to go into hotel quarantine, after a woman tested positive to a highly infectious South African strain of COVID-19 on Saturday.
The woman had been in hotel quarantine in Auckland and only returned a positive test a week after she was released.
Anyone else who had arrived in Australia from New Zealand since January 14 was urged to get tested and self-isolate until a result was returned.
Australia’s response to the case frustrated the travel industry, and Ms Ardern said she had “expressed her disappointment” in a phone call with Scott Morrison Monday night.
“I conveyed the confidence that we have in our systems but also just acknowledged that if we are to enter into a trans-Tasman bubble we will need to be able to give people confidence that we won’t see closures at the borders that happen with very short notice over incidents that we believe can be well managed domestically,” she said.
Asked if the response was an “over-reaction” to a single COVID case, Ms Ardern said “ultimately it was a decision for Australia”.
Ms Ardern said she remained hopeful a trans-Tasman bubble could be established with Australia by the end of March.
READ the full story here.
Evin Priest 4.10pm: Extreme stress: 100 rescues on packed NSW beaches
More than 150,000 people have flocked to beaches along the NSW coastline on Australia Day, in heatwave conditions, causing ‘extreme stress’ for the state’s lifeguards.
Hundreds of thousands of people have headed to the coast for Australia Day, causing havoc for lifeguards on patrol, with 108 people rescued in NSW alone before 3pm.
Surf Life Saving NSW Sydney branch director Matt Spooner said there had thankfully been no “major incidents”, but he expected more people to converge on beaches as the day went on.
“Lifesavers are currently under extreme stress due to a large number of people converging on beaches on the NSW coastline,” he said.
Police were out in force ensuring social distance requirements were maintained on Tuesday morning, while Surf Life Saving lifeguards patrolled Sydney beaches with assistance from the Westpac helicopter.
Plenty of beachgoers noticeably placed themselves in the park areas, away from the beach, as COVID-19 social distancing restrictions forced punters to think outside the square.
Robyn Ironside 4pm: Virgin, Qantas fly right by Aus Day celebrations
Qantas and Virgin Australia have all but ignored Australia Day leaving it to regional carrier Rex to perform a Sydney Harbour flyover in honour of the now controversial occasion.
In past years, Qantas has sent an A380 over Sydney and handed out Tim Tams to travellers at baggage carousels, while Virgin Australia has dished up lamingtons and meat pies in its lounges.
Both airlines denied this year’s lack of acknowledgment was a political or social statement about the national day, but rather a sad reflection of the hardship being experienced by the aviation industry in the current COVID crisis.
A Virgin Australia spokeswoman suggested they were focused on simply getting planes in the sky, while a Qantas spokeswoman indicated they were also tied up with navigating border chaos.
READ the full story here.
Joseph Lam 3.30pm: WA records one new case in hotel quarantine
Western Australia recorded one new case of COVID-19 overnight bringing the total number of active cases in the state to 13.
A man in his 60s tested positive for the virus after returning to Australia from overseas.
Of the 895 cases recorded in Western Australia, 12 are variant strains including four from South Africa and 10 from the UK.
READ MORE: Multiple arrests at Sydney protest
Jade Gailberger 3.15pm: Virus traces at seven new Queensland ld sites
Traces of COVID-19 have been detected in sewage at seven more Queensland sites.
Viral fragments of the virus were found at wastewater treatment plants at Cairns South, Cairns Marlin Coast, Nambour, Maroochydore, Pulgul at Hervey Bay, Condon at Townsville, and Yeppoon.
Queensland recorded no new coronavirus cases on Tuesday.
However, chief health officer Dr Jeanette Young said authorities were treating the detections seriously.
“A positive sewage result means that someone who has been infected was shedding the virus,” Dr Young said, adding it can happen several weeks after being infectious.
“If there is a case we are not yet aware of, it is critical we detect it through our testing mechanisms as quickly as possible to contain any potential spread.”
She urged Queenslanders in those communities who feel unwell to get tested and isolate.
“Symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, fatigue, diarrhoea, nausea or vomiting and loss of taste or smell,” she said.
More than 6300 tests were conducted in Queensland in the 24 hours to Tuesday.
Rachel Baxendale 2.50pm: Victoria orders NZ visitors to test and isolate
Victoria’s sole new coronavirus case on Tuesday is in a woman in her 40s who is in hotel quarantine, having recently returned from overseas, the Department of Health and Human Services has confirmed.
The state’s 31 active coronavirus cases consist of a single locally acquired case linked to the Black Rock cluster, nine hotel quarantine cases linked to the Australian Open tennis tournament, and 21 cases in other recently returned international travellers in hotel quarantine.
Following the detection of a coronavirus case in New Zealand, anyone who arrived in Victoria from New Zealand between 14 January 2021 and 25 January 2021 is required to get tested within 72 hours of arrival (or as soon as possible if they arrived more than three days ago) and isolate until they get a negative result.
The federal government has suspended the current ‘travel bubble’ arrangements between New Zealand and Australia for 72 hours, commencing 4.30pm Monday 25.
Anyone who enters Australia from New Zealand after that time will be required to enter mandatory hotel quarantine for 14 days.
DHHS is currently contacting people who have entered Victoria from New Zealand since January 14 to inform them about isolating, getting tested, and staying isolated until they receive a negative test result.
READ MORE: How to reboot your inner optimist
Frances Vinall 2.30pm: Flag-draped ‘Proud Boy’ swamped by cops
An Invasion Day protest in Melbourne on Tuesday was crashed by a counter-protester draped in an Australian flag who was forcibly removed from the scene by more than a dozen police.
The man was dragged out of the intersection of Flinders and Swanston streets before being taken away by police.
He was wearing a shirt that said ‘Proud Boys’ – a Neo-Fascist, male-only organisation from the US often linked to white nationalism.
An Australian flag was draped around his shoulders and he was carrying an Australian flag beachball.
The man walked provocatively into the centre of the intersection, the end point of the Invasion Day march, and appeared to be alone.
He was approached by protesters before police rushed into the scene and dragged the man away from the protest as the crowd broke into a chant of “fascists, f**k off”.
It came after thousands of protesters gathered peacefully with a heavy police presence in the CBD from Parliament House down to Flinders Street Station.
A line of police in front of a line of police horses blocked protesters from the Parliament House steps when the rally began about 10am.
Almost all protesters were wearing masks but were packed in along the footpaths on both sides of Spring Street.
Protesters carried placards bearing signs like ‘Lest We Forget – Unless They Were Black’ and ‘Let’s Have A Day For Everyone’ but the street was quiet as of 10.45am on Tuesday.
A speaker opened proceedings by telling people to obey marshals and the COVID-safe plan.
By 11.05am the protest, due to begin at 10.30am, had not started as organisers implored the crowd to follow instructions and stay in groups of 100.
“I know it’s painful, I want to get going too,” the crowd was told.
“Find your group of 100. This is for the safety of our community.” — NCA Newswire
READ MORE: Trump trial triggered but Democrats struggle to convict
Rebecca Le May 2.11pm: ABC slammed for Invasion Day ‘disrespect’
An ABC reporter was confronted by a woman live on air while speaking during a minute’s silence at an Invasion Day rally.
“It’s been interesting to see how many people have turned up to the rally. Behind me now, they’re engaged in a minute’s silence,” Edith Bevin said.
“Obviously this is a day that marks what the Aboriginal community in Tasmania refer to as Invasion Day – the day (of) white settlement of Australia – and certainly there are a lot of placards about calling for that date to be changed, to be more inclusive.”
As she continued her piece to camera, a woman approached and repeatedly asked ‘how dare you?’
Oooops ABC 'reporter' ignored the moment and then dopey Ros Child tries to cover it up and says 'we will return after the minute silence' .. umm too late Ros. pic.twitter.com/VdHS6bkyhL
— Jill⌠(@1Swinging_Voter) January 26, 2021
The reporter pushed through regardless, even when a man, presumably the camera operator, tried to move the angry woman away.
READ the full story here
Ellie Dudley 1.19pm: Multiple arrests at Sydney Invasion Day rally
Protesters have been arrested in Sydney and Canberra in what have been as otherwise peaceful Invasion Day rallies.
In Sydney at the Domain, where police told protesters they could gather but not march, four attendees were arrested.
.#BREAKING after clashing with police, protestors have been pulled aside and ushered out of Hyde Park. #InvasionDay #auspol2021 @CentralNewsUTS pic.twitter.com/c4rjO1nReh
— Fred Pawle (@Fredkpawle) January 26, 2021
“They were acting manically, aggressively towards police,” witness River McClossen said. “Really getting in their faces. I think they were disobeying a move-on order.”
The clash between police and rally attendees in Sydney followed a warning from police.
“If you do the right thing, I’ll do the right thing,” an officer told an organiser as 3000 people gathered.
In Canberra, a man waving an Australian flag and wearing a ‘Make America Great Again’ cap was removed from an Invasion Day rally by three men in bikie colours.
As he drove away, the crowd of protesters cheered.
Further south in Melbourne, thousands marched, socially distanced from Parliament House down Bourke Street after a peaceful protest.
Police refused to remove their hats at the rally, in line with police procedures.
READ MORE: States to swelter through Australia Day
1.16pm: Video: Invasion Day protests across Australia
In cities around the country, Invasion Day protesters who want to see Australia’s national holiday changed from January 26 are making their voices heard.
James Hall 12.41pm: Queen given an Invasion Day message
Thousands of people have descended on Brisbane CBD for the planned Invasion Day protest in Queensland.
Nearly all attendees are wearing face masks and have checked in with QR codes amid coronavirus requirements.
Police have closed off George Street between Charlotte and Elizabeth streets in preparation for the rally.
Protesters have already adorned the statue of Queen Victoria with flags and a sign.
A man, draped in the Australian flag, was escorted from the grounds by protesters.
—NCA Newswire
READ MORE: Editorial — We celebrate a nation and its achievement, not a date
Staff writers 12.29pm: Beaches packed to capacity as temperatures soar
Huge crowds are cramming onto Bondi Beach today, despite officials urging beachgoers to follow social distancing rules.
NSW COVID-19 restrictions limit outdoor gatherings to 30 and indoor gatherings limited to five visitors.
Earlier today Waverley Council urged beachgoers to follow COVID-19 safety advice and stay 1.5 metres away from others. North Bondi had reached capacity at 11am the council said.
Freshwater, Coogee and Cronulla beaches have also been inundated with visitors.
Meanwhile, in Queensland swimmers and surfers have been evacuated from a packed Surfers Paradise beach after a shark scare.
Lifeguards ordered people from the water after the sighting.
READ MORE: States to swelter through Australia Day
Rachel Baxendale 12.13pm: New Victorian case not linked to tennis
Victoria’s single new case of coronavirus on Tuesday is in an international returned traveller in hotel quarantine who is not linked to the Australian Open Tennis tournament, COVID-19 Quarantine Victoria has confirmed.
There are currently nine people associated with the tennis who have tested positive for the virus, with no new cases confirmed since the weekend.
There are 281 people, including airline crew and 72 tennis players, who are being treated as close contacts and are therefore in hard lockdown and unable to leave their hotel rooms.
A total of 970 people associated with the Australian Open are currently in hotel quarantine.
This number is two fewer than on Monday for reasons not detailed in Tuesday’s CQV press release.
There were 934 swabs taken from these people in the 24 hours to 11pm on Monday – four fewer than the number taken in the preceding 24 hours.
There have been 8930 swabs taken from the group since January 14 when the Australian Open hotel quarantine program commenced.
READ MORE: Unis face a $10bn hit after hopes dashed
Ellie Dudley 12.02pm: Police halt Sydney protest march
Police at the Invasion Day rally in Sydney have stopped the march from going ahead.
Organisers have been told that police will “smash us if we take to the streets,” so they instead told the crowd to disperse, NITV reporter Rachel Hocking wrote on Twitter.
The crowd has been dispersed by police.
Protesters have clashed with police in Hyde Park, Sky News reports.
#Breaking: Police have arrested at least three men during confrontations at Hyde Park after Invasion Day crowds dispersed from The Domaine. #AustraliaDay2021 #InvasionDay2021 #Sydney pic.twitter.com/7z8fJu24aW
— River McCrossen (@RivOMac) January 26, 2021
Ellie Dudley 11.57am: Marked drop in number of US virus cases, deaths
Coronavirus deaths and cases in the US have dropped markedly over the past couple of weeks, but are still running at a high level
The government’s top infectious-disease expert, Anthony Fauci, attributes the improvement in numbers to the “natural peaking and then plateauing” after a holiday surge, rather than an effect of the vaccine that began rolling out in December.
Around 3100 deaths are being reported per day, down from more than 3350 less than two weeks ago.
New cases are around 170,000 a day, after peaking at almost 250,000 in mid-January.
Dr Fauci warned Americans not to become complacent as the numbers drop.
The coronavirus death toll in the US is over 419,000.
Ellie Dudley 11.39am: Fears police will break up Melbourne protest
Organisers at the Invasion Day protest in Melbourne have admitted COVID-Safe measures are not being followed at a rally at Parliament House.
The rally organisers have requested people move on, as concerns rise that the protest will be broken up by police.
Prior to the rally taking place, organisers said a COVID-Safe plan was in place to have it divided into groups of 100, all 10 metres apart.
READ MORE: Unsung hero on the virus frontline
Ellie Dudley 11.11am: NSW records zero new local virus cases
New South Wales recorded no new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night.
Two cases were reported that had been acquired overseas.
There were 7819 tests reported to 8pm last night, compared with the previous day’s total of 8,689.
“The drop in testing numbers is a concern,” NSW Health wrote in a Twitter post.
“Although NSW has had nine days without a diagnosed locally acquired case of COVID-19, the virus may still be circulating in the community and now is not the time to drop our guard.”
NSW Health also reported fragments of the virus that have been found in a sewage treatment plant in Liverpool, in Sydney’s west. The authority has asked everyone in the surrounding suburbs to come forward for testing if symptoms appear.
A total of 68 COVID-19 cases are being treated currently in the state, none of whom are in intensive care.
NSW recorded no new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night.
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) January 26, 2021
There were two cases acquired overseas. A previously reported locally acquired case has been excluded following further investigation. pic.twitter.com/IQxIVHlP69
Meanwhile, Queensland has recorded no new cases of locally transmitted coronavirus, nor any acquired overseas.
The state conducted 6309 tests over the past 24 hours and has 16 active cases.
READ MORE: Heatwave challenges energy grid
Adeshola Ore 11.05am: Nation must move beyond divisive debate: Albanese
Anthony Albanese says the country must move beyond a divisive debate about the date of Australia Day.
Mr Albanese has previously proposed holding a referendum to recognise Indigenous Australians in the constitution on January 26 to mark Australia Day.
He said there was a generational shift towards changing the date.
“It seems to me that we do need a date in which everyone can celebrate, particularly young Australians are increasingly engaged in this debate.”
READ MORE: Shorten rules out Albanese challenge
Ellie Dudley 10.45am: Thousands gather for ‘Invasion Day’ rallies
Thousands of people are attending an ‘Invasion Day’ rally in Sydney today despite COVID restrictions limiting numbers.
Crowds have gathered in the Domain to protest, with more than 7500 people having registered interest in attending the event.
Mass outdoor gatherings in greater Sydney are currently limited to 500 people as per the public health orders.
Attendees are at risk of being fined or arrested for attending due to strict social distancing measures, however reports so far indicate protesters are seated, masked and socially distant.
In Melbourne, Lord Mayor Sally Capp joined activists at a dawn service to mark “Invasion Day”.
Dozens of people in Melbourne braved the rain to attend a rally at Kings Domain, which organisers said was a commemoration of “all Sovereign First Peoples who defended and died in the Frontier Wars, massacres across Australia, as well as those who continue to die in custody to this day”.
An Invasion Day rally is set to start on the steps of Parliament House this morning.
Protesters are expected to comply with Victoria’s public health orders, which ban gatherings of more than 100 people outdoors unless formally registered and approved as a public event.
Organisers Warriors of the Aboriginal Resistance say there is a COVID-Safe plan in place for the attendees, and all will be divided into groups of 100 people with a 10-metre distance between each.
READ MORE: Lord mayor attends Australia Day protest
Adeshola Ore 10.22am: Australia Day date ‘should remain until we’re a republic’
Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull says the date for Australia Day should not be changed until the country votes to become a republic.
“I think when Australia becomes a republic, that the day the republic is proclaimed, that would be appropriate to be the new national day,” he told the ABC.
“We need a new national watershed, don’t we, and the obvious one is when we have an Australian citizen as our head of state.”
Mr Turnbull has been nominated for the Companion of the Order of Australia today for his eminent service to the people and parliament of Australia.
READ MORE: ABC pressured to remove ‘Invasion Day’ references
Agencies 10.13am: Second wave of rioters rampage through Netherlands cities
The Netherlands has been hit by a second wave of riots, as protesters again went on the rampage in several cities following the introduction of a coronavirus curfew over the weekend.
Riot police clashed with groups of protesters in Amsterdam as well as the port city of Rotterdam, where people smashed shop windows and ransacked their supplies.
The unrest also hit Amersfoort in the east, the small southern city of Geleen near Maastricht, The Hague and Den Bosch, police and news reports said.
More than 70 people were rounded up, public newscaster NOS reported.
Geleen police said in an earlier tweet that they were dealing with “rioting youths who are throwing fireworks”.
In Rotterdam, police used a water cannon after clashing with the protesters, the NOS said.
The city’s mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb issued an emergency decree which gave police broader powers of arrest.
“There is an urgent request to all to leave the area,” the city council said on Twitter.
Images on social media showed rioters looting a shop in Den Bosch and a press photographer being hit in the head in Haarlem, after an angry mob chased him off and threw a brick at him.
— AFP
READ MORE: War on virus moves to maternity wards
Adeshola Ore 9.54am: ‘Thank you to the many who have pulled Australia through’
Scott Morrison has thanked the country’s essential workers for their commitment throughout the pandemic, as he began a speech at the Australia Day ceremony in Canberra.
Mr Morrison said Australians such as health care workers and truck drivers had “patiently done the right thing” throughout COVID.
“On this Australia Day, we say thank you to the many who have once again pulled Australia through,” he said.
“This is not a new experience for our country. For whatever our beginnings and our circumstances, Australians have always demonstrated our ability to overcome.”
Mr Morrison said Australia Day was a time to reflect on the country’s journey and the “price that has been made for our freedom.”
He said January 26 was the day “the journey to our modern Australia began”
“There is no escaping or cancelling that fact,” he said.
READ MORE: Morrison — We write our own story, we create our own future
Agencies 9.36am: US well on way to herd immunity, says Biden
US President Joe Biden says the United States should be closing in on Covid herd immunity by the northern summer, with mass vaccinations becoming available in the spring.
“I feel confident that by summer we’re going to be well on our way to heading toward herd immunity,” he told a White House news conference.
Mr Biden said that this milestone could be reached once vaccinations — currently being issued at a trickle across the country of 328 million — become available to the wider public. He predicted this could happen within a few months.
“I think we’ll be able to do that this spring, but it’s going to be a logistical challenge that exceeds anything we’ve ever tried in this country,” Mr Biden said.
The president, who took office last week, repeated that his first goal is getting 100 million vaccinations administered in his first 100 days in office.
After this, the country will “move in the direction where we are well beyond that in the next 100 days, so we can get to the point where we reach herd immunity.” “I feel good about where we’re going and I think we can get it done,” Mr Biden said.
– AFP
READ MORE: Biden’s bipartisanship pledge faces early test
Rachel Baxendale 8.50am: Victoria goes another day with zero local cases
Victoria has recorded its 20th straight day with no new locally acquired cases of coronavirus.
There was one case detected in an international return traveller in hotel quarantine on Monday.
Yesterday 0 locally acquired cases were reported, 1 in hotel quarantine. It’s been 20 days since the last locally acquired case. 11,656 test results were received, #EveryTestHelps.
— VicGovDHHS (@VicGovDHHS) January 25, 2021
More later: https://t.co/lIUrl0ZEco #COVID19VicData #COVID19Vic pic.twitter.com/f0vspWVKnY
The state currently has 31 active cases of coronavirus, including nine in people linked to the Australian Open tennis tournament.
The latest figures come after 11,656 tests were processed on Monday.
Ellie Dudley 8.47am: AstraZeneca vaccine ‘very effective’ in preventing disease
Acting Chief Health Officer Professor Michael Kidd has said the AstraZeneca vaccines are “very effective” in preventing serious disease, as the Therapeutic Goods Association conducts further clinical trials before it is approved.
“The protection of the population is our number one priority,” he told the ABC.
“The initial trials of the AstraZeneca vaccine have shown variable responses in preventing mild to moderate infections, compared to the Pfizer vaccine, but they were early trials.
“The Therapeutic Goods Administration is looking at the much more updated clinical trial details and the further research which has been presented to them by AstraZeneca, and we will be using this to make its determination about the safety and efficacy of that vaccine over the coming weeks.”
Meanwhile, the Pfizer vaccine will be rolled out in Australia in late February, Mr Kidd said.
After the TGA does batch testing on the vaccines, the doses will be distributed to hubs around the country.
First to be vaccinated will be residents and staff of aged and disability care, front line health workers and people working in quarantine and Border Force.
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Adeshola Ore 8.28am: Speed up vaccine rollout, Bowen urges
Opposition health spokesman Chris Bowen has called for an expeditious rollout of Australia’s COVID vaccines, after the Pfizer jab was approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration on Monday.
Mr Bowen criticised the delay between approval and rollout next month.
“We need to see Australians vaccinated as soon as is prudent and possible,” he told the ABC.
“Australia is far from first in the queue,” he said.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Professor Michael Kidd said Australia’s health authorities do not know how quickly it will take for the country to receive the 10 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine. He said the supply would happen “throughout the course of 2021.”
The rollout of the vaccine is expected to begin with 80,000 doses a week in late February.
READ MORE: Weigh giving jab to frail elderly, says TGA
Ellie Dudley 8.06am: Contacts of infected NZ woman test negative to virus
More than a dozen close contacts of a 56-year-old woman who contracted the South African variant of the coronavirus during her stay in hotel quarantine have tested negative for COVID-19.
Health authorities believe the woman was infected after coming into contact with a fellow returned traveller also in quarantine at the Pullman Hotel in Auckland.
The woman’s husband and her hairdresser both tested negative for the virus yesterday, and today a further 14 close contacts also produced negative test results.
READ MORE: Kiwi bubble burst ‘a heavy blow to travel’
Ellie Dudley 7.55am: Our vaccine program not hostage to overseas production: PM
Prime Minister Scott Morrison says COVID-19 vaccinations will be rolled out shortly, after the Pfizer vaccine was approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration yesterday.
“We now go through the process of receiving that delivery and rolling it out, and training and workforce issues,” Mr Morrison told 2GB on Tuesday.
“We anticipate that will start before the end of February and that over the next month and months that follow it will continue to ramp up.”
He said the TGA is now looking to approve the AstraZeneca vaccine, which Australia is hoping to produce onshore.
“Our vaccination program will not be completely hostage to the production schedules overseas,” Mr Morrison said.
“That sovereign capability to produce the vaccine here is one we made a high priority.”
READ MORE: When can you receive a COVID-19 jab
Ellie Dudley 7.38am: World’s oxygen supplies running low
As COVID-19 continues to spread around much of the world, hospitals are being forced to ration oxygen for patients, consequently driving up the pandemic’s death toll.
While the issue is particularly prevalent in the developing world, it has also been a problem in hospitals in the UK and the US.
In Mexico, Lebanon and South Africa, people are stockpiling oxygen canisters to try to avoid overflowing COVID-19 wards. This is sending prices higher and making it harder for poorer families to rent tanks.
Armed bandits are stealing oxygen tanks in Mexico, while in London some patients have had to be transferred to other hospitals across the city that have a ready supply.
Brazil’s government has flown oxygen supplies to Manaus, importing oxygen from Venezuela which has also been hard-hit by the virus.
Oxygen is a crucial treatment for COVID-19, a disease that attacks the respiratory system.
Several studies have shown lower mortality rates and severity of the disease when oxygen treatment is started earlier, before levels in the blood get too low, a Dow Jones report found.
READ MORE: Creighton — Save the Covid triumphalism — we’ve been lucky
Ellie Dudley 7.15am: Delays threaten Europeans with another summer unvaccinated
COVID-19 vaccine delays and uncertainties regarding delivery times in Europe means the continent is unlikely to vaccinate a substantial amount of its population by summer, raising concerns for more months of lockdowns and restrictions.
The delays are “not acceptable to the European Union,” EU Commissioner for health Stella Kyriakides said after a meeting of member state representatives and the firm.
“The European Union will take any action required to protect its citizens and rights,” she said.
The European Commission, the European Union’s executive body which procures vaccines centrally for the bloc, has ordered 2.3 billion doses from six manufacturers.
Most of the vaccines are expected to be delivered in 2021, and EU member states should be able to vaccinate 70 per cent of adults among the bloc’s 448 million inhabitants by the summer, the group says.
However, delivery delays and manufacturing problems threaten the plan, exacerbated by further uncertainty regarding the timeline on other vaccine approvals in the EU.
The two largest manufacturers providing vaccines to the bloc — Pfizer/BioNTech and AstraZeneca — have experienced delays, largely due to hiccups in manufacturing plans centred in Belgium.
Manufacturing issues aren’t the only problem. The EU has also been slower than the US and the UK in approving vaccines. Since doses can only be delivered after they are authorised, this has left the bloc empty-handed.
Spokesman of the European Commission Eric Mamer said President Ursula Von Der Leyen had told AstraZeneca Chief Executive Pascal Soriot that she expected the company to deliver on its contract.
In the meantime, governments in the region are struggling to bring down case numbers and deaths despite tight restrictions on the population.
READ MORE: Pfizer vaccine — lots of pluses and a few minuses
Ellie Dudley 6.30am: Moderna develops booster for variants
Moderna will develop a COVID-19 booster shot designed to be more effective against variants of the coronavirus, the Massachusetts manufacturer has announced Monday.
As more-infectious variants of the virus have emerged in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil, new concerns have arisen that they could make vaccines less effective.
Moderna is testing two booster-shot options. One will be specifically aimed at the South African variant and another to broadly fight new mutations.
Research using blood from people and monkeys who had received the vaccine found that the UK variant did not appear to reduce the production of neutralising antibodies, but the South African variant showed a sixfold reduction, the company said.
The company said the development of the booster is still a “precaution” because the vaccine already provides substantial protection against the new variants.
“As we seek to defeat the COVID-19 virus, which has created a worldwide pandemic, we believe it is imperative to be proactive as the virus evolves,” Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said in a statement.
Pfizer/BioNTech, who produce the vaccine approved by the Therapeutic Goods Association yesterday, are continuing to run lab studies of their vaccine against new variants, a Pfizer spokeswoman said.
READ MORE: Kiwi burst bubble ‘heavy blow to travel’
Jacquelin Magnay 6.00am: Boris’ Aus Day message: Separation hard, will continue
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has sent a Happy Australia Day message, referencing the difficulties posed by coronavirus and suggesting a bet with Scott Morrison over the Tokyo Olympics medal table.
“This closeness (between Australia and the UK) means that the enforced separation we’ve had to endure in 2020 has been felt all the more keenly,” he told Australians.
“That’s, I’m afraid, likely to go on for a while.”
But he looked forward to the Tokyo Olympics, telling Mr Morrison: “If you want to discuss terms, you know where to find me.”
“I know that Games past have seen UK sports ministers engage in something of a wager with their Australian counterparts over which country will come out on top in the medal table,” he said in the video message.
“I’m not, Scott, sure whether there’s ever been a bet between Prime Ministers – but if you want to discuss terms, you know where to find me”.
Mr Johnson went on to say he looked forward to welcoming Mr Morrison at the G7 in Cornwall later this year.”
“For two nations that are geographically so far apart, the UK and Australia have long been extraordinarily close,” Mr Johnson said.
“We have share so much in our language, our history, our culture.
“And when the UK has called out for those willing to fight for freedom on foreign fields, the brave young men and women of Australia have never failed to respond – that is something for which we in the UK will always be grateful and remember, indeed the whole world will be forever in the debt of Australia.
“This closeness means that the enforced separation we’ve had to endure in 2020 has been felt all the more keenly.
“And while that’s, I’m afraid, likely to go on for a while, this new year brings with it new opportunities to share what makes both our nations so special.
“Some of the very best bits of our very own National Gallery are already winding their way to Canberra for the Botticelli to Van Gogh exhibition.
“And later in the year our cricketers will undertake a similar journey as they set off to reclaim the Ashes.
“And in between, we shall further explore our friendly rivalry at the Tokyo Olympics.
“I know that Games past have seen UK sports ministers engage in something of a wager with their Australian counterparts over which country will come out on top in the medal table.
“I’m not, Scott, sure whether there’s ever been a bet between Prime Ministers – but if you want to discuss terms, you know where to find me.
“In fact, Scott, I’m looking forward to seeing you very much in Cornwall where I’m going to welcome you to the G7 and hopefully also to the COP26 in Glasgow as well.
“And of course 2021 is going to be the year where we work together, the UK and Australia, to deliver that world-class, free trade deal we all want to see. The deal that will make sure we bring Arnott’s shapes to Shetland, vegemite flavoured shapes, and sell even more British barbecues to Brisbane, and deliver greater prosperity to both our peoples.
“If you’re an Australian celebrating today, have a great time.
“And if you’re British, let’s take a moment to celebrate the lucky country, and raise a tinnie to Australia and all her people.”
READ MORE: Unsung hero on the virus frontline
Adam Creighton 5.45am: Spare the Covid triumphalism, we’ve been lucky
One year on from the first coronavirus infection in Australia, we have done a remarkable — almost world-beating — job at containing the virus, it seems. COVID-19 deaths are among the lowest per capita in the world, cases have slowed to barely a trickle.
Epidemiologist Tony Blakely forecast 134,000 would die without lockdown. In May economists Richard Holden and Bruce Preston assumed about 225,000, almost 1 per cent of the population, would have died without our tough response. So far only 909 have died from or with COVID-19.
Indeed, total respiratory deaths in Australia were lower in 2020 than 2019, according to the ABS’s latest figures, which is an extraordinary achievement amid a deadly respiratory pandemic.
“Through the actions of everyday Australians, we have successfully prevented a third wave of infections, a rare achievement given the significant increase in global cases,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison said last week, echoing the relentless triumphalism about our “response”.
In reality, we’ve been lucky. We have far less control over the virus than we think.
READ the full story
Natasha Robinson 5.30am: Pfizer vaccine cleared for first rollout, more planned
Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer says it is open to providing more doses of its vaccine to Australia as it ramps up production later this year, after the Australian medical regulator cleared the way for the first COVID-19 immunisations to take place within weeks.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration granted provisional approval to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, with 80,000 doses of the mRNA vaccine to arrive in Australia in late February.
The vaccine breakthrough came as Australia called a 72-hour halt to its one-way bubble with New Zealand after a returning resident there tested positive to a highly infectious South African strain of COVID-19.
Anyone who arrived into Australia from New Zealand since January 14 has been urged to get tested and self-isolate until the results are known, while new arrivals will go into two weeks’ mandatory hotel quarantine.
Almost 700,000 priority Australians will be first in line to receive vaccinations, including quarantine and border workers, some frontline healthcare workers, aged and disability care staff and aged-care residents.
READ the full story
Pro-Gazan pianist and MSO open to mediation
Jayson Gillham is suing the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in the Federal Court, with a trial likely to be scheduled in March next year if mediation fails.
RBA leaves all options on the table in inflation fight
Despite keeping interest rates on hold at its September meeting, the RBA left the door open for additional tightening in its efforts to tame inflation, minutes show.