Coronavirus Australia live news: Hospital backlog ‘will take 18 months to clear’
Even with private hospitals stepping in to assist, Australians seeking elective surgery face long delays before they go under the knife.
- Hospital backlog ‘will take 18 months’
- 1 million tests, but just 20 new cases
- What new rules allow you to do this weekend
- ‘Make it easier to hire and fire’
- 100,000 people set to regain jobs
Welcome to Saturday’s live coverage of the continuing coronavirus crisis. Hospitals will be under pressure to clear a backlog of elective surgery that is likely to take as long as 18 months to clear, while one million coronavirus tests conducted in 24 hours nationwide has revealed just 20 new cases.
Natasha Robinson 11.30pm: Pressure on to reduce elective surgery backlog
Hospitals will be under pressure to clear a backlog of elective surgery that is likely to take as long as 18 months to clear, as the nation’s Chief Health Officer gave the green light for surgeons to resume all non-urgent operations.
In states with low numbers of cases of COVID-19, or none at all, the elective surgery resumption will ramp up quickly, while NSW is taking a cautious approach and will proceed more slowly.
There will be an immediate full resumption of all elective surgery in South Australia, while Western Australia announced it would allow 50 per cent all categories of elective surgery to proceed from Monday. It’s expected that Victoria and Queensland will also shortly allow half of all elective surgeries to go ahead, while other states and territories are yet to decide on a timetable.
Private Hospitals Association chief Michael Roff said the private sector would continue to take over elective surgery from public hospitals to help clear the backlog of operations, provided that was allowed by state governments in line with caps on surgery.
But he said waiting lists were growing longer each week and the backlog of surgery could take as long as 18 months to clear.
Read the full story here.
Agencies 10.15pm: Mixed moves on tourism in Europe
As Italy and Greece signalled on Saturday they were hoping for northern-summer tourists in a month or two, England discouraged citizens who simply wanted to leave town.
City dwellers in Greece flocked to the beaches while temperatures reached the mid-30s Celsius, hoping for a refreshing swim less than a week after full shutdown measures were lifted, the AP reported.
Easing beach restrictions is seen as key to salvaging the tourism industry over the summer in a country expected to have the worst recession in the European Union as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
But the number of beachgoers cannot exceed 40 people per 1000 square metres and two beach umbrellas must be 1.5m apart. The distance between groups must be 4m.
The Greek government is considering opening bars and restaurants on May 25.
The Italian government is easing travel restrictions imposed due to the coronavirus pandemic, allowing people to move freely inside the region where they live as of Monday, and between regions starting June 3. The government decree announced early Saturday also permits international travel to and from Italy from June 3.
Local officials and tourism boards in England are discouraging people from visiting popular tourist spots on the first weekend since shutdown rules for England were eased.
The County Councils Network, which represents 36 rural and coastal authorities in England, says it is concerned “day trippers” from cities and towns could raise the infection rate in counties and overwhelm parks and beaches.
The British government relaxed lockdown rules on Wednesday to allow people in England to spend more time outdoors. They can play golf and tennis, sunbathe, go fishing and have a picnic. Meeting one other person is allowed with social distancing.
Rules for the rest of Britain – Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – have not been eased.
Agencies 7.20pm: Jacinda Ardern turned away from cafe
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern found out there are no exceptions when it comes to social distancing after she was initially turned away from a cafe because it was too full under coronavirus guidelines.
Ms Ardern and her fiance, Clarke Gayford, decided to get brunch Saturday at Olive, a restaurant in the capital Wellington.
That was two days after the country relaxed many of its shutdown rules, including reopening restaurants. But social distancing rules still apply, requiring groups to remain at least one metre apart from each other. Many restaurants have limited their seating to comply with the rules.
What happened next played out on Twitter.
“Omg Jacinda Ardern just tried to come into Olive and was rejected cause it’s full,” wrote one Twitter user, Joey.
Mr Gayford took the time to respond: “I have to take responsibility for this, I didn’t get organised and book anywhere. Was very nice of them to chase us down st [street] when a spot freed up. A+ service.”
The country has confirmed a total of 1498 cases, including 21 deaths.
Angela Risso 6.45pm: Victorian cases rises by 11 as citizens socialise
Victorians have embraced the first weekend of eased COVID-19 restrictions that allow outdoor activities such as golf and up to five visitors to a home, as the Melbourne abattoir cluster grew to just under 100.
Saturday was a social day for many Victorians, but authorities again warned people to be vigilant about the virus.
“Even in an outdoor setting, even with your own family you have to have an awareness of the risk of transmission,” Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton warned.
Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said the health advice was still to be cautious, physically distant from others, and to get tested if unwell. “It’s important everyone understands this pandemic is not yet over, we have a long way to go (and) it’s important people still take every possible precaution,” Ms Mikakos said.
The state recorded 11 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, with two belonging to the Cedar Meats cluster in Melbourne’s west.
Four others previously confirmed to have COVID-19 have also now been linked to the meat processing facility, bringing the cluster total to 98. The state’s total number of virus cases is now 1554, with seven people in intensive care. — AAP
READ MORE: 100,000 to get jobs back as economy opens
Agencies 5.35pm: Police praise restraint amid reopenings
Police have praised the overall restraint of NSW residents as coronavirus- prompted shutdowns of pubs, bars and restaurants were eased around the state. Dining venues were from Friday able to take up to 10 patrons if they maintain social distancing, including alcohol table service with a meal at NSW pubs and clubs.
NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Joe Cassar told reporters on Saturday police would continue to work with venue proprietors as patrons return to their local haunts.
He admitted rainy conditions in Sydney on Friday night had suppressed the number of people seeking tables, with 10-person limits and distancing requirements easier to implement.
“We’ve got early feedback from our police on the ground there’s an acceptance conditions have been relaxed and there’s been compliance with the new conditions,” Mr Cassar said.
“We’re in a very positive situation with low numbers being recorded and just ask members of the community to continue to comply with those conditions.” Premier Gladys Berejiklian has warned COVID-19 case numbers will inevitably rise as rules are eased, but punters on Friday seemed comfortable returning to their favourite eateries.
In Sydney’s inner west, Shannah Baichoo was among the first to return to popular Summer Hill bar The Rio, resuming what was once a regular Friday night ritual with her husband.
“It’s like a signifier of life becoming normal again. It feels amazing,” Ms Baichoo told AAP.
For The Rio’s operational manager Fabrizio Culici, pouring his first beer into a glass pint felt “phenomenal” after weeks of takeaways and deliveries. “The sense of relief is just fantastic,” Mr Culici told AAP. “We just hope … that this is certainly not going to be a short-lived thing and we go back to deliveries, because it’s going to be very hard to survive if that happens.”
READ MORE: Keg convoy to get pubs back on track
Agencies 5pm: South Australia prepares for second wave
The South Australian government is preparing for a second coronavirus wave and expanding its pediatric emergency department capability, despite having no new or active cases.
The portable ward at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Adelaide will make way for nine new beds to respond to a surge in cases or other respiratory illnesses in children during the coming months. No infections were reported on Saturday with only one new case confirmed over the past 24 days. The state’s total remains at 439.
Premier Steven Marshall said he hoped the site was not needed to be activated. He said there were a number of places around the world that were in the same situation as SA, having no or low COVID-19 cases, only to have a spike weeks later.
“We have worked so hard to get to where we are at the moment and we have to continue,” Mr Marshall said on Saturday.
The extension will be connected to the hospital via an external corridor. There are eight local businesses contracted for the ward’s construction, expected to be completed by the end of the month.
The portable beds, costing the federal government $900,000, can be moved to other South Australian hospitals to respond to future events if necessary. The state government has allocated $550 million to build a new Women’s and Children’s Hospital in its forward estimates.
But Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas said there was a delay with the project, putting it in doubt at a time when jobs were so desperately needed. He said there was no clarity surrounding a start or completion date, a budget or number of beds.
However, Mr Marshall said a final business case was in the process. He said the virus delayed consultation with clinicians but remained on track to be delivered by the 2025-2026 financial year.
READ MORE: Resorts, hotels target wealthy Australians
Agencies 4.40pm: ‘Pandemic not over, risk remains significant’
Australians are enjoying the benefits of restrictions being gradually lifted across the nation – a reward for enduring weeks of curbs that have helped limit the spread of the deadly coronavirus pandemic.
The death toll from the pandemic remains at 98, extremely low by international standards.
But Deputy Chief Medical Officer Michael Kidd said people cannot afford to be complacent.
“The pandemic is not over. The risk to vulnerable people remains significant,” he told reporters in Canberra on Saturday.
Australian Medical Association president Tony Bartone said there is still a risk the virus could flare up as hot spots or small outbreaks.
“If we do the wrong things, we risk undoing all the gains that we’ve made so far,” Dr Batone told ABC television.
“So, the message is, yes, appreciate all the efforts, appreciate the opportunity to release some of those measures, but let’s not have a party, let’s not go to town.” He said people must still maintain social distancing, cough etiquette, washing hands regularly and staying away from others if they are unwell. “Those messages are really the backbone as we progressively lift those restrictions,” he said.
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Adeshola Ore 4pm: One million tests, 20 new cases
Australia’s deputy chief medical officer has confirmed more than one million coronavirus tests have been conducted since the outbreak of the pandemic.
Professor Michael Kidd said 20 new cases of the virus had been detected nationally in the past 24 hours.
He said the COVIDSafe app remained an important feature contact tracing, despite the target of 10 million downloads — or 40 per cent of the population — not met.
Mr Kidd said 5.7 million Australians have downloaded the app.
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Agencies 3.30pm: Latest Tassie case a passenger on Ruby Princess
A man in his 70s who was the first coronavirus case diagnosed in Tasmania for a week was on board the Ruby Princess cruise ship.
The man, from northern Tasmania, brings the island’s total cases to 226.
“The man is a close contact of a previously confirmed case and had also travelled on the Ruby Princess,” Public Health Director Dr Mark Veitch said on Saturday.
He was in quarantine when he was most likely to have been infectious, Dr Veitch said.
It comes as the North West Regional Hospital and its private counterpart in Burnie are up and running following an outbreak in the region in April. The facilities were shut down after dozens of healthcare workers and patients tested positive.
Tasmanians are preparing for further easing of restrictions from Monday, with restaurants and cafes allowed to have up to 10 people seated. Other gatherings of up to 10 people are also permitted, including for real estate purposes, small religious gatherings and weddings.
The state’s strict border controls remain, but Tasmanians wishing to return can quarantine at home.
Primary and some secondary students will return to school from May 25.
READ MORE: Cabin fever — on board the Ruby Princess
Matthew Denholm 3.15pm: Tasmania to shut out tourists from ‘sick’ states
Australians craving a long-promised Tasmanian getaway may have to wait longer than others, with the holiday isle’s Premier considering a selective border relaxation favouring states most on top of COVID-19.
Premier Peter Gutwein told The Weekend Australian he would examine ways to reopen the state’s borders and kickstart the island’s stalled $1.5bn tourism trade without risking fresh virus outbreaks.
Options included restoring direct flights to cities in jurisdictions that had the virus under control, such as Adelaide and Perth, or even New Zealand.
This would avoid the need for tourists to travel via Sydney or Melbourne, cities still experiencing multiple new daily coronavirus cases.
“We’ve had direct flights into both Adelaide and Perth in the past (so) in terms of looking at how our interstate tourism market might reinvigorate itself, then obviously those matters will be considered,” Mr Gutwein said.
Read the full story here.
Adeshola Ore 2.50pm: No cases found using COVIDSafe app
Victoria’s chief health officer has confirmed that no coronavirus cases in the state have been found using the federal government’s mobile tracing app.
Brett Sutton said there had been delays in Victorian authorities being able to access the COVIDSafe app’s data.
“No we haven’t had any detections through the COVIDSafe app to date,” he said.
“As I understand it, the data is now being made available to the department.”
More than 5.5 million people have downloaded the app.
READ MORE: Restaurant rush as the business crowd returns
Adeshola Ore 2.40pm: Plan to tackle state’s elective surgey backlog
New South Wales Health Minister Brad Hazzard says the plan to resume the backlog of elective surgery is being discussed by health authorities and medical professionals.
On Friday, the national cabinet agreed that elective surgery could start, with states and territories able to choose the pace.
Mr Hazzard said health authorities would need to decide on the best approach for New South Wales.
“The surgeons are doing that with public health teams to work out how we prioritise that and how fast do we move. I think it’s fair to say that we probably won’t have a clear vision of that, at least for another week or two,” he said.
READ MORE: Hospitals facing 18-month backlog
Adeshola Ore 2.15pm: ACT records no new cases in 24 hours
The ACT has recorded no new cases of coronavirus, as the territory welcomes an easing of restrictions.
The total number of cases in the ACT remains at 107.
The territory’s acting chief health officer Dr Vanessa Johnston said everyone had a responsibility to keep the community safe.
“That means avoiding large crowds, keeping a distance of 1.5 metres from others, maintaining good hand hygiene with everything we do, and staying at home if unwell,” she said.
“If you’re going out to a local restaurant or cafe – keep your distance when you order and wait for takeaway, and be ready to change plans if a venue is full”
A total of 361 test results were received in the past twenty-four hours.
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Adeseshola Ore 2pm: Sydney man arrested over alleged supermarket attack
A Sydney man has been arrested after he allegedly beat a woman over the head with a bottle after she asked him to socially distance in a supermarket queue in Miller.
On Friday morning, a 59-year-old woman in a supermarket checkout line asked a man who was standing closely behind her to step back.
While she was purchasing groceries, he allegedly approached her from behind and hit her over the head with a bottle, which did not break, and fled the store.
The woman was treated by paramedics and taken to Liverpool Hospital as a precaution.
The man was later seen by police in a Green Valley park and approached. He allegedly brandished a meat cleaver but was tasered, arrested and taken to Liverpool Hospital.
Charges are yet to be laid.
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Agencies 1.20pm: Labor ‘petrified’ of long-term unemployment
Shadow treasurer Jim Chalmers is “petrified” the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic will result in long-term unemployment for some, as was the case after the last recession in the early 1990s.
Figures this week showed nearly 600,000 people lost their job in April as restrictions took hold to try and shield Australians from the worst of the COVID-19 crisis.
This was the largest one-month fall on record, and was combined with a spike in the unemployment rate to a five-year high of 6.2 per cent.
The Australian Treasury expects the jobless rate to peak at 10 per cent in the coming months.
“The thing that petrifies me … people who become disconnected from the labour market in recessions, some of those people never come back,” Dr Chalmers told a Guardian Australia podcast on Saturday.
“Whether it’s older workers or you might lose a generation of younger workers, that is an absolute tragedy which needs to be avoided at all costs.” He said that is why Labor supports a “big fiscal intervention” even if that means more government debt in the near term.
READ MORE: One family’s life comes close to unravelling in lockdown
Adeshola Ore 1pm: China trade friction could spread to commodities
Farmers fear that trade frictions between Australia and China could spread to commodities beyond beef and barley.
China is threatening to slap a large tariff on its barley imports from Australia following an anti-dumping investigation, while it has blocked beef imports from four Australian abattoirs.
It comes within weeks of Australia calling for an inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, sparking a furious response from China.
National Farmers’ Federation president Fiona Simpson said farmers were worried about a potential widening of tariffs threats.
“It’s a big market, not just for beef and barley, but for a number of other commodities as well,” she said.
“Commodities like wool, cotton and seafood depend on the Chinese market. So I think it’s concerning if these sorts of shockwaves and threats do actually start to come,” she said.
She said it was vital for the federal government to continue to invest in a dialogue with China.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has labelled the push for an independent inquiry into the COVID-19 crisis as “completely unremarkable”, saying Australia will stand its ground. But China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has lashed out at foreign politicians for politicising the epidemic.
READ MORE: Coronavirus infection rates — check your suburb
Adeshola Ore 12.25pm: NSW warning: ‘virus is still out there’
New South Wales’ Health Minister has warned people against behaving ‘COVID dangerous’, as the state’s restrictions ease.
Brad Hazzard confirmed there were three new coronavirus cases overnight, taking the state’s total to 3,074.
One was a returned overseas traveller and one was a close contact of a known case. The third case remains under investigation.
Mr Hazzard warned people to remain vigilant despite the new freedoms, saying “this virus is still out there.”
“I saw a group of bicycle riders this morning getting their Saturday morning exercise and then sitting quite close together in a coffee shop. We need to remember that the virus is still among us,” he said.
“Basically treat yourself and others as if they have COVID-19.”
Over 9,000 tests have been conducted in the state in the past twenty-four hours.
NSW Health is treating 101 COVID-19 cases, with six in ICU and three of those requiring ventilators.
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Adeshola Ore: 12.10pm: Fears of a second wave amid new freedoms
Australians are being warned to take their new found freedoms carefully for fear of sparking a second wave of the deadly coronavirus.
States and territories have begun the first stage of a three-stage process to lift restrictions on outdoor and indoor gatherings and business operations. But Australian Medical Association president Tony Bartone urged people to remain vigilant because the virus is still present in the community and could flare up as hot spots or small outbreaks.
“If we do the wrong things, we risk undoing all the gains that we’ve made so far, Dr Batone told the ABC on Saturday.
“So, the message is, yes, appreciate all the efforts, appreciate the opportunity to release some of those measures, but let’s not have a party, let’s not go to town.”
He said people must still maintain social distance, cough etiquette, washing hands regularly and staying away from others if they are unwell.
“Those messages are really the backbone as we progressively lift those restrictions,” he said.
READ MORE: 100,000 to get jobs back within weeks
Agencies 11.30am: Woman attacked in supermarket queue
A man has beaten a woman over the head with a bottle after she asked him to socially distance in a southwest Sydney supermarket queue.
The pair were on Friday morning standing in line for the supermarket checkout in Miller.
The 59-year-old woman says the man stood closely behind her, prompting requests for him to step back.
He later allegedly approached her from behind and hit her over the head with a bottle, which did not break, and fled the store.
The woman was treated by paramedics and taken to Liverpool Hospital as a precaution.
The man was not located by police and is described as of Indian appearance, aged in his 40s, slim and sporting a beard.
READ MORE: Families dread return to normal life
Adeshola Ore 10.50am: Queensland records new case amid nursing home probe
Queensland has recorded one new case of coronavirus, as the state welcomes the next stage of eased restrictions from today.
Health Minister Stephen Miles said most of the state’s new cases were from returned overseas travellers. The latest case is linked to the Coral Princess cruise ship.
Ms Miles said health authorities were conducting tracing of close contacts of the nurse from a Rockhampton nursing home that tested positive to the virus.
He said 42 closed contacts, including 39 staff and three members of the community have been identified. Additionally, 193 people have been tested, including 114 residents, with all results negative.
“Everybody, including the residents, their families, the staff, the entire Rockhamptom community, should rest assured that we are taking the risks here very, very seriously,” he said.
Mr Miles said paramedics will move residents from one wing to a separate facility to ensure remaining residents who may have been exposed can be spread out for infection control.
“It is our goal to have that done within the next 24 hours,” he said.
The state’s chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young said the infected Rockhampton nurse had been “sick for some while.”
“So it’s important that as soon as you get symptoms, as soon as you feel unwell, please come forward,” she said.
“We know that if we have case in a community and we have got more movement going on, we’ll get a lot more cases,”
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Agencies 10.30am: Cafes, parks abuzz as restrictions ease
Queensland cafes, public parks and playgrounds are buzzing with activity as coronavirus restrictions ease across the state.
Restaurants and cafes can now have up to 10 people dine-in, while groups of 10 people can congregate outside for recreational purposes as the state emerges from isolation.
“It is great to see some familiar faces returning,” Coffee Club manager Kaili Yang told AAP as she took orders from a pair of jovial regular customers at their favourite table.
The Brisbane cafe in the leafy inner-city suburb of Ascot was among the many that opened their doors to customers on Saturday.
The eased restrictions also saw group exercise classes returning to the city’s iconic New Farm Park, where fitness trainer Chris Tuck coached his first class in 10 weeks.
“It is awesome to be back together again feeding off each other’s energy,” he said of the group of about six people he had just finished training. Many families are also out and about as children clamber into playgrounds that had also been closed due to control the spread of the virus. “She is loving it,” mother-of-two Jo Williams said as she pushed her four-year- old daughter Hannah on a swing in the same park.
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Adeshola Ore 10am: 11 new cases recorded in Victoria
Victoria has recorded 11 new cases of coronavirus, with four from community transmission and two linked to the Cedar Meats outbreak.
There are now 98 cases of COVID-19 linked to the Melbourne meatworks cluster.
Two clusters in Victoria, at McDonalds and Cedar Meats, continue to push the state’s infections higher with 21 new cases on Friday.
While many Victorians enjoy social visits this weekend, Health Minister Jenny Mikakos told reporters on Saturday the health advice remained to stay cautious and get tested if unwell.
Victorians can now socialise in small groups of no more than five guests to a home.
She said Victoria had conducted almost 324,000 COVID-19 tests, with the testing of teachers being prioritised ahead of schools reopening from May 26.
“Teachers can be tested regardless of if they are symptomatic or asymptomatic and I’m glad to report that since we started teaching testers earlier this week that 1,200 teachers have presented and been tested,” she said.
Ms Mikakos confirmed that Victoria would ramp up elective surgeries to 50 per cent capacity by the end of May, following yesterday’s national cabinet announcement. Full capacity is expected to be reached by the end of July.
One of the new cases is linked to an outbreak at McDonald’s Fawkner in Melbourne’s north, where there are now 10 confirmed cases.
Six of the new cases were household contacts of confirmed cases
One is from a person in hotel quarantine and three are pending investigation.
Victoria has confirmed a total of 1,554 coronavirus cases, with 110 active cases and 158 from community transmission.
READ MORE: The great corona clear-out
Imogen Reid 9.30am: Premier in push to restart travel
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian is looking to relax restrictions on travel within the state but first wants to make sure there is adequate healthcare capacity in regional towns.
Ms Berejiklian said she was looking to boost tourism revenue in regional NSW. While she was assured some would benefit from the move, she said others remained concerned the economic revival could be overshadowed by health consequences.
“People are feeling anxious about the virus and if their town’s been virus-free, they worry that tourists are going to come in and that’s going to change,” she told 2GB radio.
Read the full story here.
Agencies 9.15am: Repayments deferred on 1-in-14 mortgages
Repayments on one-in-14 mortgages have been deferred for six months to assist households during the COVID-19 pandemic, New Australian Banking Association figures released on Saturday show repayments on 429,000 mortgages have been deferred during the crisis, totalling $153.5 billion.
That brings the total number of deferred mortgages on the books of banks to 703,000, worth $211 billion.
ABA CEO Anna Bligh said banks have been prepared to support customers throughout the crisis and assist the economy from the devastating effects of the pandemic. “Australian families who are financially affected by this crisis have had the breathing space they need with a six-month deferral on their home loan repayment while they chart a path through to the other side of this downturn,” she said in a statement.
Banks have also hired 1500 new staff while redeploying over 2200 employees to frontline areas such as call centres to help meet the historic surge in demand for support over the last few months.
READ MORE: Hopes easing will bring sellers back
Agencies 8.30am: Setback for Tasmania ends virus-free streak
As Tasmanians look ahead to a loosening of coronavirus restrictions on Monday, the state’s total confirmed cases have risen by one.
A man in his 70s from northern Tasmania is the first new case in a week, bringing the island’s total to 226.
The North West Regional Hospital and its private counterpart in Burnie are now up and running following an outbreak in the region in April. The facilities were shut down after dozens of healthcare workers and patients there tested positive.
Tasmanians are preparing for further easing of coronavirus restrictions from Monday, with restaurants and cafes allowed to have up to 10 people seated. Other gatherings of up to 10 people are also permitted, including for real estate purposes, small religious gatherings and weddings.
The state’s strict border controls remain, but Tasmanians wishing to return can quarantine at home.
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Agencies 8am: Australia’s coronavirus status, by the numbers
CORONAVIRUS STATISTICS
■ Australia has recorded 7019 cases, but only 584 remain active, while South Australia has reached a milestone of no active cases.
■ The national death toll is 98: NSW 47, Victoria 18, Tasmania 13, WA 9, Queensland 6, SA 4, ACT 3. Two QLD residents who died in NSW have been included in both state’s counts.
■ Two clusters in Victoria, at McDonalds and Cedar Meats, continue to push the state’s infections higher with 21 new cases on Friday.
■ About 5.7 million of an estimated 16 million people have registered for the federal government’s coronavirus tracing app, COVIDSafe, since April 26.
STATE-BY-STATE RESTRICTIONS
■ NSW has eased restrictions on outdoor gatherings and recreational activities, cafes, restaurants, clubs and pubs. People must maintain social distancing and stick to a group limit of 10. Working from home encouraged.
■ Victorians may have up to five visitors in their homes. Gathering limits relaxed to 10 for outdoor activities including fishing, hiking and golf. Weddings can have up to 10 guests. Indoor funerals can have up to 20 people with 30 for outdoors.
■ In Queensland, shopping for non-essential items permitted while up to five members of one household can visit other homes. Up to 10 people allowed to congregate in parks, pools and playgrounds from May 16. Outback pubs and clubs to reopen.
■ South Australia has cleared the way for elective surgeries and regional accommodation to reopen, including caravan parks, hotels, motels and Airbnbs. Alcohol-free dining with 10-person limit allowed at cafes and restaurants. Seasonal workers must self-isolate before entering the state.
■ WA is encouraging people to return to work from May 18, with cafes and restaurants allowed up to 20 patrons. Regional travel restrictions to ease in some areas.
■ The Northern Territory has relaxed restrictions on parks, golf, fishing and swimming. Restaurants and bars can reopen with a two-hour limit from today, with entertainment venues to come. Restricted access to indigenous communities remain in place until at least June 18.
■ Tasmania to ease some restrictions from Monday May 18 with national parks and reserves open to residents within 30km for exercise, while public gathering limits will increase to 10 people. Libraries set to re-open from May 18, likely on a “click and collect” borrowing basis.
■ The ACT will allow outdoor gatherings of up to 10 people from Saturday, easing restrictions on sport and recreation.
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 and delivery in most states.
Agencies 7.20am: ‘R rate’ to determine when UK eases lockdown
The reproduction rate of the coronavirus in the United Kingdom is now somewhere between 0.7 and 1.0, government scientific advisers say.
Last week Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the rate was 0.5 to 0.9. The government has said it will keep a close eye on the so-called “R” rate as it looks at how quickly to ease lockdown measures.
As the number is below one, the virus is not spreading exponentially, but the rise in the number means that infections are falling more slowly now. Government scientific advisers said the outbreak was now concentrated in hospitals and care homes and the reproduction rate was subject to substantial regional variation.
Just 49 people were admitted to hospital for COVID-19 in London on Thursday. Figures from the government published earlier on Friday showed the number of people who have died in the United Kingdom after testing positive was 33,998 by Thursday afternoon.
A total of 236,711 people had tested positive for the virus as of Friday morning, up by 3560 on the previous day. — REUTERS
READ MORE: Jacquelin Magnay — UK poised to take harder China line
Agencies 7am: 113-year-old Spanish woman overcomes coronavirus
A 113-year-old Spanish woman says she is in good health after having overcome infection by the new coronavirus.
Maria Branyas said she “feels good.” She avoided developing severe COVID-19 symptoms and had her latest test come back negative.
Her daughter told Spanish news agency EFE that her mother, who was born in the United States, tested positive for the virus in April.
“As far as my health, I feel good, with the little issues everyone has as we get older, but I feel fine,” Ms Branyas told EFE this week from her nursing home where several residents have fallen ill and died from the new virus.
Local media say at least 17 residents of her nursing home are suspected to have died after developing symptoms associated with COVID-19.
On March 27, Ms Branyas’ social media account run by her children said that “unfortunately the virus has entered our residence.”
Ms Branyas was born in San Francisco on March 4, 1907 after her family emigrated to Mexico and then the US. After living for some years in New Orleans where her father founded a magazine, she returned to Spain’s northeastern Catalonia region where she lives in the town of Olot.
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Agencies 6.30am: New York police to ease face mask enforcement
The New York Police Department, criticised over instances of harsh social distancing enforcement, will no longer be involved in breaking up small clusters of people or confronting citizens about failing to wear a mask, Mayor Bill de Blasio said.
Police will continue to disperse large gatherings that are most likely to present a risk of spreading the coronavirus, Mr de Blasio said. “But we’re not going to have the NYPD focus on, you know, two people together or three people together,” he said. “We’re going to focus on when it starts to be more than a handful of people. And we’re not going to be having the NYPD enforcing on face coverings.”
The change was made after videos circulated on social media showing confrontations between officers and members of the public, including one where a woman with a young child was wrestled to the ground and handcuffed as police removed her from a subway station for not wearing a face covering.
Mr De Blasio said police officers will offer masks to people whose faces are uncovered. “We want to make this a positive approach,” he said.
READ MORE: Katrina Grace Kelly — Safe work? None of your business
Aamer Madhani 6am: Trump backs 15-minute virus test, despite anomalies
US President Donald Trump expressed no concerns overnight (AEST) about a rapid coronavirus test that the White House has been relying on to ensure his safety, despite new data suggesting the test may return an inordinate share of false negatives.
Mr Trump expressed his confidence in the test from Abbott Laboratories after a preliminary study by New York University researchers reported problems with it.
Mr Trump and his deputies have been using the 15-minute test for weeks now to try to keep the White House complex safe. The Food and Drug Administration announced late Thursday it was investigating preliminary data suggesting the Abbott test can miss a large number of COVID-19 cases, falsely clearing infected patients.
“Abbott is a great test; it’s a very quick test,” Mr Trump said at a Rose Garden event to highlight his administration’s efforts to develop a vaccine for the virus.
“And it can always be very rapidly double checked.”
The rapid swab is used daily at the White House to test Mr Trump, key members of his staff as well as any visitor to the White House complex who comes in proximity to the president or Vice President Mike Pence.
Mr Trump said he’s hopeful to have a coronavirus vaccine on the market by the end of the year or shortly thereafter. Moncef Slaoui, a former pharmaceutical executive who Trump has tapped to serve as the administration’s virus tsar, said that early trial data suggests that “a few hundred million doses of vaccine” will be delivered by late 2020.
— AP
READ MORE: Greg Sheridan — Trump suffers covidiocy, but don’t write him off yet
Adam Creighton 5.25am: ‘Tax, industrial reform needed to reboot economy’
Former Treasury secretary John Fraser has called for tax and industrial reforms to reboot the economy in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and has applauded the Morrison government’s handling of the crisis, including its call for an inquiry into its origins.
As the debate about what governments can do to resuscitate growth ramps up, Mr Fraser, who was Treasury secretary for 3½ years during the Abbott and Turnbull governments, recommended making it “easier for business to hire and fire”, and backed former treasurer Peter Costello’s call to expedite legislated tax cuts.
“It is clearly the case that businesses will be more willing to hire people if they can get rid of them if it doesn’t work out,” Mr Fraser said on Friday.
His comments came in a week when the Fair Work Commission canvassed whether a rise in the minimum wage should be deferred for businesses devastated by COVID-19 and forced on the JobKeeper program.
Read the full story, by Adam Creighton and Patrick Commins, here.
Rosie Lewis 5.15am: 100,000 Australians poised to regain employment
Almost 100,000 waiters, bar staff, chefs, sales assistants and other Australians working in the food services and accommodation industry are predicted to regain their jobs over the next few weeks as states lift restrictions and reopen their economies.
Treasury analysis obtained by The Weekend Australian estimates 98,200 jobs will be restored in food services and accommodation during the first phase of national cabinet’s three-step coronavirus recovery plan.
Treasury also predicts 337,900 Australians across the industry — more than a third of the food services and accommodation workforce — will be back in work by July. A further 25,100 transport, postal and warehousing industry workers, 15,000 construction workers and 19,700 people in the professional, scientific and technical services sector, which includes accountants, solicitors, vets and graphic designers, are expected to be working again by next month as the economy reawakens.
Read the full story here.
Yoni Bashan 5am: NSW extends lifeline to international students
The NSW government has finally approved a long-awaited hardship package for international students who have been left jobless and cashless by the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, becoming one of the last states in Australia to do so following weeks of uncertainty.
NSW Treasury secretary Michael Pratt told a NSW parliamentary inquiry on Friday that two funding packages had been sent to the Berejiklian government’s Expenditure Review Committee on Thursday. Both had been approved, he confirmed.
The packages are understood to specifically address the hardship of international students, who Mr Pratt described as the state’s “No 1 service export” and “critical to the NSW economy”, estimated to be worth about $12bn a year.
Read the full story here.
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