Coronavirus Australia live news: SA, Queensland report new cases from people linked to Sydney; NSW has 9 new cases
Queensland, South Australia report new cases with links to Sydney, while NSW issues warnings about a range of venues.
- SA records two new Covid cases
- NSW records nine new cases
- Queensland records two new cases
- Border closures a $3bn hit
- New Year fireworks to proceed
Welcome to coverage of Australia’s response to the continuing coronavirus pandemic. Live coverage has ended for the day, a recap of the latest news is available below.
South Australia has reported two new cases of COVID-19 and one of the cases spent time at Sydney airport. Seven of nine new NSW cases are linked to the northern beaches cluster, while Queensland is on alert after recording two new cases.
There are fears of a major breach in protocol after a person working with sick returned travellers in hotel quarantine also transported a vulnerable retirement village resident before testing positive to COVID-19.
Staff Reporters 10pm: The key events from a Covid Christmas Eve
• NSW reported nine locally acquired cases, with seven of those linked to Sydney’s Avalon cluster.
• South Australia recorded two new Covid cases, one an overseas traveller and the other a possible infection in a man who was at Sydney Airport. SA has not escalated its Covid restrictions.
• Queensland has two new cases, with one linked to Sydney’s northern beaches. Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said a man aged in his 40s had travelled to the northern beaches in Sydney before returning. He was tested, returned a negative result, but then recorded a positive result when tested again.
• The Northern Territory installed, then later revoked a hotspot declaration for Sydney after travellers heading to the territory were faced with quarantining for two weeks.
• Prime Minister Scott Morrison has paid special tribute to older Australians during his Christmas message, while also issuing a shout-out to those stuck in lockdown over Christmas.
Agencies 9pm: Russia sets records for virus cases, deaths
Russia has registered record numbers for daily infections and deaths from the coronavirus, as the country avoids reimposing a nationwide lockdown, AFP reports.
Health officials reported 29,935 new infections, bringing the country’s caseload to 2,963,688 -- the fourth-highest in the world.
They also registered 635 deaths, increasing total fatalities to 53,096 since the beginning of the pandemic.
Russia’s death rate is much lower than that of other badly hit countries, raising concerns that authorities could be downplaying the scale of the outbreak.
Data published by the country’s statistics service earlier this month indicated excess deaths of nearly 165,000 year-on-year between March and October, suggesting virus deaths could be much higher.
Officials on Wednesday also registered a record number of new infections in the capital Moscow, the epicentre of Russia’s outbreak.
The records came after officials said that Russia does not need to reintroduce a nationwide lockdown like the one at the start of the pandemic in the spring.
During his annual end-of-year press conference last week, President Vladimir Putin rejected the idea of imposing the kind of lockdown many European countries have introduced going into the Christmas holidays.
“If we follow the rules and demands of health regulators, then we do not need any lockdowns,” President Putin said.
Although stringent restrictions have been imposed in some major cities, authorities in many regions have limited measures to requiring mask-wearing in public spaces and reducing mass gatherings.
Many Russians however flout social distancing and mask-wearing rules and in recent weeks the outbreak has overwhelmed underfunded hospitals in the regions.
Instead of a lockdown Russia has pinned its hopes on its homemade vaccine, Sputnik V -- named after the Soviet-era satellite.
The capital has launched a mass vaccination drive starting with those in high risk groups, including teachers, health and transport workers.
— AFP
Evin Priest 8.20pm: Shopping malls inundated on Christmas Eve
Massive crowds of people have filled Australian shopping malls on Christmas Eve, as people scramble to buy last-minute gifts and food.
In Melbourne’s bustling Bourke St Mall, many people wore masks along with Christmas hats as they completed their shopping trips.
Australians will devour an unprecedented amount of meat, seafood and sweets this Christmas, as COVID-19 keeps the nation celebrating in its own backyard.
Coles and Woolworths are seeing the last wave of Australians hitting the shelves on Thursday to stock up on Christmas Day supplies.
Once the numbers are counted, it is expected Woolworths customers will have bought 1.7 million kilograms of Australian half leg ham across national stores.
READ MORE: Chaotic Christmas trip that inspired a TV hit
Carla Mascarenhas 8pm: ‘Too risky’ for spectators to gather for fireworks
Deakin University Chair of Epidemiology Catherine Bennett says it’s “too risky” for spectators to gather in large numbers and view Sydney’s New Year’s Eve fireworks display.
“I think bringing people together in large numbers, just getting them to the best vantage point, does pose too much of a risk, unfortunately.” Ms Bennett said.
“It doesn’t mean the fireworks themselves can’t go ahead, it’s about whether they will allow spectators and I think at this stage it is too risky”.
It is a view supported by the NSW branch of the Australian Medical Association.
“You can’t put that many people together and expect there wouldn’t be a lot of contact on the foreshores, because everybody’s natural inclination is to get up close, get a great photo and see the fireworks,” chairman Michael Boney said.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says Sydney’s New Year’s Eve fireworks will still be going ahead but says she will reassess the situation as the state’s Covid-19 numbers come through in the coming days.
— Sky News
READ MORE: PM ‘thanks, honours’ older Australians
Joe Kelly 7.10pm: Albanese praises essential workers in message
Leader of the ALP Anthony Albanese has used his Christmas message to praise the efforts of Australians who have worked through the pandemic.
He said that Christmas in 2020 came “not just as a joy but a relief”.
“It’s been a tough year. But Australians have risen to the challenge. Especially our essential workers: the nurses, cleaners, supermarket workers and the teachers who had to find new ways to teach,” he said.
“Australians stood together. We helped each other. And we’re getting through this together.
“May the festive season bring peace to you and your loved ones.
Robert Craddock 6.30pm: Mixed news for SCG Test hopes
Cricket Australia has drawn a line through Sydney’s brazen bid to poach the Gabba Test amid doubts over the SCG. Read more here
Joe Kelly 6:10pm: PM’s Christmas message honours older Australians
Scott Morrison has used his Christmas message to “thank and honour” older Australians in aged care facilities across the nation and acknowledged the stress and uncertainty inflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic following the horror Black Summer bushfires.
Mr Morrison also singled out Australians celebrating Christmas in the northern beaches of Sydney for special mention after families had their plans disrupted following a breakout of the coronavirus in the lead up to the holiday period.
“This year has not been easy for any of us. Some of us have faced the loss of loved ones. Others the loss of jobs and their livelihoods, separation from family,” the Prime Minister said.
Mr Morrison said that Australians had “rallied to each other” and declared the Australian spirit had “shone brightly again.”
“Though we had to be distant socially, emotionally we connected. And turned to each other,” he said.
“There were the firefighters and volunteers who got us through the black summer, the doctors and nurses, the researchers and scientists doing their utmost to protect and care for us throughout this pandemic.”
Mr Morrison also paid tribute to retail workers whom he said had kept supply chains open and volunteers who “made certain that no one was left behind or left without.”
“Even now up in Sydney in the northern beaches, everyone is still there doing their bit to keep all of us safe right across the country.
“So no matter where you are in Australia, this Christmas, I think, is one where as Australians we can once again count our blessings as a country.”
Despite the difficult year, Mr Morrison said Australians could “give thanks this year for our Christmas because our blessings outweigh our struggles.”
“It is the tradition of these messages to give a shout out to a group at Christmas who have done so much,” he said.
“So I do want to thank and honour all our older Australians in aged care and their carers. They have really endured a lot this year.
Mr Morrison said they had drawn on that “well of strength that you have displayed over your entire lifetime. And in doing so you kept others safe.”
Mackenzie Scott 5:40pm: Sewage testing finds positive traces of Covid in parts of QLD
Routine wastewater testing has shown fragments of the virus at treatment centres in Wynnum, in Brisbane’s east, Bundaberg on the Central Coast and neighbouring Bargara.
The state’s chief health officer Jeannette Young said positive sewage results were particularly concerning in light of the recent NSW cluster. She noted that even though the positive results of waste samples collected on December 21 and 22 does not mean coronavirus is laying dormant.
“While this doesn’t necessarily mean we have new cases of COVID-19 in these communities, I am treating this with absolute caution given the emerging situation in New South Wales,” Dr Young said.
She urged people to get tested if they start to have even the mildest symptoms.
“In particular, if you live in these areas and you have been in the Greater Sydney area on or since 11 December, please come forward and get tested regardless of whether or not you have symptoms,” Dr Young said.
“If there is a case in the community, it is critical we detect it through our testing mechanisms as quickly as possible to contain any potential spread and protect the great progress Queensland has made in recent months.”
READ MORE: Virus spreads at inner-city sports bar
Carla Mascarenhas 5.15pm: NT government removes Greater Sydney as a hotspot
The Northern Territory government has revoked Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Central Coast areas as COVID-19 hotspots a day before Christmas.
Acting Chief Minister Nicole Manison said chief health officer Hugh Heggie was satisfied most of the New South Wales hotspot declarations could be removed.
“A number of suburbs that are already directly located around the Avalon outbreak will remain as hotspot areas,” said Ms Manison.
“What I can say is that the Greater Sydney Area including the Blue Mountains along with the Central Coast will be removed effective immediately.”
She said people from these areas currently in mandatory quarantine in the Territory would be released.
Dr Heggie said a man who flew from Darwin to Sydney Airport and then to Wodonga before driving to the Yorke Peninsula in SA and who returned a weak positive test does not pose a risk because he did not test positive until after he had travelled to Sydney.
READ MORE: Qld’s dig at NSW contact tracers
Carla Mascarenhas 3.30pm: Two new cases in South Australia
South Australia’s chief public health officer Professor Nicola Spurrier has confirmed two new cases in the state.
The first case is a man in his 20s who spent time in Sydney airport, however Prof Spurrier says this could be an old case.
The man, who is no longer considered infectious, flew from Darwin to Sydney Airport, where he caught a regional flight to Wodonga and drove a car to Maitland on the Yorke Peninsula.
He was tested on December 22 and has returned a weak positive result.
The second case is a man in his 70s who is a returned traveller from Doha.
He returned a negative test on day one, but then returned a positive test on day five.
Both men, along with their close contacts are in medi-hotels.
It brings the total number of active cases in SA to five. The three other cases - one woman aged in her 60s and two women aged in their 20s - are overseas arrivals quarantined in medi-hotels.
There are no new restrictions as a result of these new cases in South Australia.
Jack Paynter 2.30pm: Northern beaches woman fined on NSW south coast
A northern beaches woman has been slapped with a $1000 fine after being found travelling on the NSW south coast.
NSW Police said they started investigating on Wednesday after receiving reports that a woman from the northern beaches had collapsed at a pizza shop in Sanctuary Point, about 200km south of Sydney, on Tuesday evening.
The woman was taken to Shoalhaven Hospital for treatment where police were told she appeared to be experiencing symptoms.
But NSW Police said she declined to be tested and left the hospital.
Police visited a home on Edmund Street, Sanctuary Point on Wednesday and spoke with the 37-year-old woman and three other occupants.
All four were directed to self-isolate.
The Bilgola Plateau woman has since been issued a $1000 fine for failing to comply with requirement of public health order – COVID-19.
— NCA Newswire
READ MORE: Why Berejiklian is streets ahead of fellow premiers
Jess Malcolm 1.55pm: Number of vaccinated Americans passes a million
More than one million Americans have received their first dose of their COVID-19 vaccines as the country battles to contain a mammoth winter surge.
It is a milestone in what will be the biggest immunisation drive in US history, even after officials admitted the pace of rollout was slipping behind schedule.
The virus has already claimed more than 320,000 lives in the US and is on course to be the third leading cause of death in the year.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Robert Redfield said jurisdictions had logged the first million shots with his agency since the colossal immunisation drive kicked off on December 14.
“While we celebrate this historic milestone, we also acknowledge the challenging path ahead,” said Mr Redfield.
“There is currently a limited supply of COVID-19 vaccine in the US, but supply will increase in the weeks and months to come.”
The US vaccine rollout is a combination of both leading vaccines: the Pfizer-BioNTech shot and the Moderna. Some three million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine were shipped last week, and the official goal for this week was two million more Pfizer doses, and six million from Moderna.
The country’s top infectious diseases expert Dr Anthony Fauci thinks it might be possible to achieve widespread population immunity in the US by next summer, if the rollout goes smoothly.
He said he believed priority populations — such as nursing home residents, health care workers, critical workers, the elderly and people at high risk — should receive their shots by March or early April.
- With AFP
READ MORE: How was mystery infected superyacht allowed to dock in Cairns?
Jess Malcolm 12. 39pm: Victorians urged to keep up testing over Christmas
Victoria’s testing chief Jeroen Weimar says there were no positive coronavirus tests in the state today after 19,000 tests done in the last 24 hours.
Despite these good numbers, he is urging anyone from Sydney to still go and get tested reminding people that testing centres are open over the Christmas period.
“We will have at least 60 testing stations open across the state,” Mr Weimar said.
Victoria has also followed the lead of other states instigating all international aircrew to stay in a single aircrew hotel, after completing a COVID-19 test.
“We have seen 2 positive aircrew to date and they will continue their isolation there,” Mr Weimar said.
He also said that the border closures will still remain in place and Sydney will remain as a “red zone”. People from regional NSW are still free to travel.
“I appreciate and sympathise those experiencing traffic delays coming into Victoria.”
“My thanks to the police team and local transport teams...I know it’s a difficult and challenging job.”
Mr Weimar said that the state’s position on international arrivals is “non negotiable” saying arrivals from overseas pose a “significant risk” given Australia’s low COVID-19 numbers.
With around 100 international aircrew currently in a quarantine hotel in Victoria, Mr Weimar said that this policy is critical to the state’s COVID-19 response. He also said that Victoria has no plan to increase the cap on international arrivals, but does expect there to be more pressure on the system next year.
“Over 14,000 tests have been done on staff in a quarantine hotel, and they are tested every shift,” said Mr Weimar.
Mr Weimar said Victoria will be monitoring the situation in NSW on a “day to day” basis and will make announcements early next week.
“It highlights the complexity of these outbreaks. They are not straightforward linear events,” Mr Weimar said.
He also said NSW’s testing numbers were “a really impressive figure” and said Victoria will continue to do anything they can do to help NSW Health.
While Mr Weimar said there will always be COVID-19 lurking in the background, he wants Victorians to enjoy the Christmas celebrations while keeping in mind social distancing measures.
“It’s a huge reward after what has been a difficult year.”
In terms of interstate travellers coming to Victoria, Mr Weimar stressed that there are very few people who are exempt from hotel quarantine but they are monitoring it on a “case by case basis”.
Mr Weimar also announced that the government is not charging people for hotel quarantine over the Christmas period, but encouraged people to not come at all.
“Charging for Christmas in hotel quarantine has not been a priority, this one’s on us but we would encourage people not to come at all,” Mr Weimar said.
Testing will also be ramped up going into the Christmas period, with people encouraged to come forward for testing even with minor symptoms.
READ MORE: Andrews supporters will lose faith when money runs out
Jess Malcolm 12.07pm: Transport worker case still can’t be explained
The transport worker who tested positive and was included in yesterday’s numbers remains a mystery, NSW chief health officer Kerry Chant says.
“The most plausible hypothesis at this time is that they are linked by an unknown source to the Avalon cluster,” Dr Chant said. Investigations are still underway.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said that while mistakes like this can be made, the state has one of “the strongest systems in the planet”.
“We also have to assume with all due respect that when you have thousands and thousands of people working to keep all of us safe, sometimes mistakes will occur, sometimes unintentional decisions will be made lower down,” Ms Berejiklian said.
Dr Chant reassured the community that patients can be transported safely, announcing that there are high levels of cleaning and PPE use in ambulances and patient transport vehicles and reiterated that everyone needs to be vigilant.
“Those processes of lifting our alert system to a higher alert and requiring staff to wear masks in our healthcare facilities is part of that prevention that we inadvertently don’t have community transmission affecting our healthcare workers and they pass it on.”
Jess Malcolm 11.52am: Premier urges crowds to watch fireworks from home
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said Sydney’s iconic New Year’s Eve fireworks display will “definitely go ahead”, but was unwilling to say what the event will look like this year ahead of a crisis cabinet meeting planned for after Christmas.
“The fireworks display themselves will definitely be happening at midnight and we have already said that we encourage everybody to watch that from home,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“But we will also wait until the end of the couple of days now over Christmas before we make an assessment based on the health advice. And we have to appreciate it’s an outdoor thing and things that can be done safely, but there are other things that the experts are concerned about.”
Jess Malcolm 11.37am: Sydneysiders moving less, extra police on patrol
Mobility data suggests that Sydneysiders have been listening to health advice, and already limiting non-essential movement.
“People have been following our advisories and our directions, so I would like to again thank the community for that. We are asking the community to reassess any non-essential travel on Christmas Day,” NSW chief health officer Kerry Chant said.
“Keep your group at least as small as possible, and please choose outdoor venues if you can, because that reduces the risk. Really select the people you need to be there with, and space it out into the new year.”
Testing over the next few days is still highly encouraged, with clinics still open over the holiday period.
Dr Chant said testing turnarounds are “holding up” and thanked “exhausted” scientists who are working hard to sustain good rates of testing.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said there would be extra police presence going into the festive season, especially in relation to the public health orders around the bridges. Despite this she stressed that most people are doing the right thing.
“We are not out of the woods, we know from the number of cases we have had outside of the northern beaches that are connected to the cluster, but they are concerning because we do not want them to start a new chain of transmission or a new cluster elsewhere,” Ms Berejiklian said.
Jess Malcolm 11.04am: NSW records nine new cases after 60,000 tests
Gladys Berejiklian says there were nine new cases of coronavirus recorded in the past 24 hours, after a mammoth 60,000 tests were conducted yesterday.
Seven of today’s nine cases are linked to the Avalon cluster with 104 total active cases but there are still six cases which remain under investigation.
“Overall in the investigation we had six cases that currently remain under investigation. Two of those are the patient transport workers, one of those sequences is linked genetically to the Avalon cluster and we are awaiting sequencing on the second patient transport officer,” NSW chief health officer Kerry Chant said.
Two are geographically linked with two linked to venues which have been listed by NSW Health as covid spots.
One of the new cases overnight is a 20-year-old man from the northern beaches. None of his family have tested positive.
There is also a male in his 40s who worked in the CBD.
“Another of today’s new cases under investigation as an office worker in Hunter and Bligh Street. This is a third case in an office worker in that part of the CBD. Anyone who has been in the north-eastern part of the city including the Australia Square, MLC Centre and Chifley Square should be alert for symptoms and isolate immediately,” Dr Chant said.
Ms Berejiklian urged people to “limit mobility” over the next few days because it could increase the risk of the spread of the virus as NSW is “not out of the woods yet”.
“Please do not move around unless you have to. We appreciate that there are restrictions in place which allow people to have people into their households but please make sure all of us reduce our mobility apart from those close family gatherings, which we have allowed over the Christmas break,” Ms Berejiklian said.
While she is pleased with lower case numbers she stressed that the virus is still circulating so people need to remain vigilant going into the festive season.
“If you are in an indoor setting please make sure you are wearing a mask and make
sure you are wearing hand sanitiser at all times. We need everybody to be extra COVID safe over the next few days, don’t let these celebrations or the Christmas activities reduce the necessary nature in which we have to be on guard.”
Dr Chant also warned anyone who has visited the Paragon Hotel at listed times to present for testing, as it is the second case at the venue which now has three cases associated with it.
“There is one of the new cases reported today which is under investigation attended the sports bar of the Paragon Hotel on Loftus Street near Circular Quay,” Dr Chant said.
“They visited between 12.45pm to 3.30pm on the 16 December. This is the second case at this venue which now has three cases associated with its patrons that were at the sports bar during this time for more than one hour.”
The positive case announced yesterday from the Qantas flight from Darwin to Sydney has led to the whole flight being listed as close contacts. Dr Chant said anyone on this flight needs to get tested and isolate for 14 days. There is a possible case linked to this, but there will be more information later today.
“We are investigating another possible case with our colleagues in another jurisdiction that may be linked... the information is very preliminary, but as a very precautionary step we are calling everyone on that plane close contacts,” said Dr Chant.
“We had identified people, a small group of people, that potentially were exposed on that plane, with the new information that came in literally last night, we are taking precautionary action to notify people on the plane as they are close contacts, while we were through this information.”
Dr Chant issued a warning about the apparent spread of the virus to Sydney CBD.
“We need the community to respond, we need the community to do those public health measures to make sure that we mop up any unrecognised transmission that is occurring,” Dr Chant said.
“That is why I am making a particular point of the CBD. I think it is an area where we have seen these infectious people, and we’re just highlighting this additional risk level to the community so they can respond.”
Mackenzie Scott 10.55am: Queensland records two new cases
Virus concerns are growing in Queensland after two people tested positive for COVID-19 on Christmas Eve as the state passes 100 days of no community transmission.
The two positive cases include a young woman who is a crew member of a superyacht docked at Cairns and a man in his 40s in southeast Queensland who returned from the NSW Northern Beaches a week ago.
Chief health officer Jeanette Young said she believes the virus is in the community and reinforced the need to maintain social distancing.
“I am concerned we do have the virus now in Queensland,” Dr Young said.
“I have seen the positive sewage results and we have seen people return from the Northern Beaches and Sydney.”
NSW Health has identified 53 close contacts in Queensland to southern cases. In the past 48 hours, 25,000 tests have been conducted across the state.
The positive man from southeast Queensland returned from Sydney after visiting the Northern Beaches on December 18, initially testing negative for coronavirus. He became unwell while in self-isolation and tested positive last night.
He has since been transferred to the Princess Alexandra Hospital and his household put into isolation.
Health minister Yvette D’Ath said the case was the “gold standard” and urged any return travellers to get tested again if they become unwell.
The superyacht arrived in Cairns from the Maldives sometime in the past two weeks. The crew has been uncooperative with police on their movements, but Dr Young said none had come off the boat since arriving in Australia. The unwell woman has been moved into quarantine with several other crew members, while six have remained on the yacht for maintenance.
“A superyacht from elsewhere in the world, no matter how long they have been on the sea, is a concern,” Dr Young said
Dr Young could not commit to the January 8 reopening date to Greater Sydney due to an unlinked case.
Staff writers 10.53am: Ill northern beaches woman fined on South Coast
A woman from the northern beaches has been issued a Penalty Infringement Notice over an alleged breach while travelling on the South Coast, NSW Police says.
Officers from South Coast Police District are investigating after receiving reports a woman from the northern beaches had collapsed at a pizza shop at Sanctuary Point on Tuesday evening and was treated at Shoalhaven Hospital.
Police were told the woman appeared to be experiencing symptoms – however declined to be tested – and left the hospital.
Following inquiries, police attended a home on Edmund Street, Sanctuary Point, and spoke with the 37-year-old woman and three other occupants. All parties were directed to self-isolate.
The Bilgola Plateau woman has since been issued a $1000 PIN for fail to comply with requirement of public health order – COVID-19.
It is understood the pizza store has closed for cleaning as a precaution.
READ MORE: Lower paid bore brunt but jobs on rise again
Jess Malcolm 10.07am: Queensland gets an early Christmas gift
Queenslanders have received an early Christmas gift, with the state recording its 100th day without local coronavirus transmissions today.
Annastacia Palaszczuk said it’s an extraordinary achievement due to the hard work of the general public but it is not the time to get complacent.
“Because of that work, we’re going to have a Christmas period that’s as near to normal as we possibly can,” Ms Palaszczuk told the ABC.
Ms Palaszczuk reaffirmed the importance of people vigilantly using QR codes when signing into hospitality venues, saying this is a safeguard for everyone.
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Agencies 9.37am: Trump vetoes defence bill, pandemic relief in limbo
US President Donald Trump vetoed a $740.5 billion defence-policy bill and demanded last-minute changes to coronavirus relief legislation, adding fresh uncertainty to the closing days of 2020 as a government shutdown loomed.
In a Wednesday afternoon (Washington time) statement on the defence measure released by the White House, Mr Trump objected to some of the provisions related to Confederate base names and troop levels abroad, as well as the legislation’s lack of language revoking internet platforms’ broad immunity for the content they publish from users on their sites.
The annual defence bill sets pay rates for troops and authorises funds for military construction projects, aircraft, ships, nuclear weapons and other national-security programs. It also includes items related to anti-money-laundering efforts, cybersecurity, and the US border wall.
This year, the House approved final passage 335-78 and the Senate passed it 84-13.
To make the bill law over the president’s objections requires a two-thirds vote in each chamber. The House is scheduled to hold its override vote on Monday, 28 December, with the Senate to follow on Tuesday.
“The NDAA has become law every year for 59 years straight because it’s absolutely vital to our national security and our troops. This year must not be an exception,” said Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman James Inhofe, a Republican, who lobbied Mr Trump against vetoing the measure. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called the veto an “act of staggering recklessness that harms our troops, endangers our security and undermines the will of the bipartisan Congress.” Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan all vetoed an NDAA, according to the Senate Historical Office. In each of those cases, presidents eventually signed modified versions of the bills.
Mr Trump has issued eight previous vetoes, none of which were overridden. Meanwhile, Washington is grappling with a second crisis related to a massive coronavirus relief package that also funds the government. Mr Trump, in a video posted Tuesday night on Twitter, criticised the legislation and called on lawmakers to increase direct payments to Americans to US$2000 for individuals and US$4000 for couples, from US$600 per adult and per child, the current level in the bill.
His unexpected broadside against the bill unleashed another standoff between the White House and Capitol Hill, where Senate Republicans have angered Mr. Trump by acknowledging Democrat Joe Biden as the president-elect. — Dow Jones Newswires
READ MORE: Trump rejects Covid relief bill
Jess Malcolm 9.26am: Hunt hints at low NSW case numbers today
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has hinted that NSW will see low case numbers today as well as record daily testing levels ahead of Gladys Berejiklian’s coronavirus briefing at 11am this morning.
Mr Hunt commended NSW Health’s response to the latest COVID-19 outbreak on Sydney’s northern beaches, backing the state’s testing and tracing capabilities.
“We have indications that the numbers are likely to be low again today, Mr Hunt told Channel Seven today. “We always have to wait for NSW to get their final figures through and then it is appropriate for them to release them. But it is positive news.
“The level of testing reflects both on the organisation within the Australian and NSW systems, but above all else, partnership with the public in the way they have come out as they did in Shepparton and with the Parafield cluster in South Australia.”
He also expressed consideration for people in lockdown this Christmas but reaffirmed that the NSW Premier has taken a “balanced approach” this festive season.
“Australia is doing very well, but it’s still difficult for families who are in different stages of lockdown.”
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Jess Malcolm 9.02am: Hundreds of thousands apply for Queensland border passes
Nearly 380,000 people have applied for border declaration passes to cross the Queensland-NSW border after Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk slammed shut the border throwing Christmas plans for millions of Australians into shambles.
After a brief moment of free movement, the Queensland Police reactivated the border pass system on Monday wreaking havoc for residents near the border and separating families for the festive season.
Chief Superintendent of Queensland Police Mark Wheeler said people should be prepared for lengthy delays, with anyone from NSW required to have a border pass from 1am on December 11. No one from Sydney can come into Queensland by road.
“If you are in a COVID-19 hotspot of Greater Sydney you cannot enter Queensland by a road, Mr Wheeler told Sunrise. “There are limited circumstances when you can come in, for instance a returning Queensland resident from Sydney.
“The only way in is via air and then you have to go into government mandated quarantine at your own expense for 14 days.
“We ask people to go online and become familiar with the requirements and get a border pass and display on your windscreen if possible.”
READ MORE: Queensland may have locked SCG out of summer
Jess Malcolm 8.56am: Victoria records no new virus cases
Victorians can breathe another sigh of relief as the state records its 55th day free from coronavirus, after nearly 20,000 tests were conducted yesterday.
Yesterday there were 0 new cases & 0 lives lost. 19,229 test results were received. There are currently 10 active cases in quarantine or self-isolation. Testing sites will be open, if you're unwell stay home & get tested.
— VicGovDHHS (@VicGovDHHS) December 23, 2020
Info: https://t.co/lIUrl0ZEco #COVID19Vic #COVID19VicData pic.twitter.com/QasfWSDYzO
There are just 10 active cases remaining in the state including a 15-year-old girl who contracted the virus while travelling with her family in Sydney’s northern beaches.
Victorian health authorities announced yesterday that she remains in isolation at home and her close contacts have all tested negative.
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Jess Malcolm 8.43am: ADF chief ‘quietly confident’ about Avalon cluster
Head of the Australian Defence Force COVD-19 taskforce Lieutenant-General John Frewen says that there are currently 1600 personnel deployed across the country in support of COVID-assist operations, but remains “quietly confident” about the Avalon cluster.
In what has been a mammoth year for the Australian Defence Force, first with last summer’s bushfires followed by the global pandemic, Lieutenant-General Frewen said they have deployed more than 23,000 people this year.
“The situation in Sydney right now compared to other outbreaks we’ve seen both overseas and here is tracking in a positive direction but we need to remain eternally cautious about COVID and at the moment we can be quietly confident,” Lieutenant-General Frewen told ABC News Breakfast.
“It’s been a lot of really hard work and a lot of time away from friends and family but it has been fantastic to be able to help fellow citizens through both the terrible crisis.”
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Jess Malcolm 8.26am: Infected health worker in Sydney aged care breach
There are fears of a major breach in protocol after a person working with sick returned travellers in hotel quarantine also transported a vulnerable retirement village resident before testing positive to COVID-19, The Daily Telegraph reports.
Serious questions have been raised around the safety of staff working in Australia’s international border controls as part of the country’s response to COVID-19, as health authorities were sent scrambling when they discovered that a resident of Anglicare’s Brian King Gardens home was a “close contact” of the person transported sick patients.
NSW Health revealed that the nurse who was working to transport sick returned travellers had tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday. It was a colleague of that nurse who was one of the eighth cases confirmed on Wednesday.
The resident and all other Anglicare staff have so far tested negative but all close contacts can only be considered cleared of the virus 14 days after they were exposed.
NSW originally thought the nurse had contracted the virus after transporting sick patients in hotel quarantine. But Dr Kerry Chant announced yesterday that the cases were linked with the Avalon cluster on Sydney’s northern beaches, confirming the driver “did not acquire their infection through transporting the patients.”
The driver and the nurse cases are both linked to the Avalon cluster and remain a mystery.
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Jack Paynter 8.22am: ‘Glitch’ tells hundreds to isolate by mistake
Victoria’s health department has apologised after hundreds of people were ordered to isolate at Christmas by mistake due to a text message “glitch”.
The mass text message was sent out on Wednesday by the Department of Health and Human Services to hundreds of Victorians and incorrectly told them they were a close contact of a person with coronavirus.
“You have been assessed by the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services as a close contact of a person who has been diagnosed with coronavirus,” the message read, according to 7 News.
“As a close contact, you must immediately quarantine for 14 days until (January 4).”
The message also told people they needed to complete a coronavirus test on day 11 of isolation.
But the DHHS has apologised and said the text was sent to people who did not have to isolate.
The health department told 7 News they were working with the hospital involved with the glitch to work out what went wrong.
The DHHS spent Wednesday trying to contact those affected by the bungle to tell them it was an error and they did not have to isolate.
One of those affected by the “glitch” was radio producer Peter Deppeler, who received a negative test result on Monday after travelling to Melbourne from Sydney.
He said he also tested negative in Sydney on Thursday.
Life update from today’s very stressful mess. @7NewsAustralia #COVID19nsw #COVID19Vic pic.twitter.com/2pCR0yHeZO
— Intern Pete (@Peter_Deppeler) December 23, 2020
But he posted on Instagram that he received mixed messages from the health department throughout Wednesday and they couldn’t tell him if he was a close contact or not.
“I don’t know, and the Victorian Government doesn’t know, so I am going to be safe and I’m just going to stay here and wait for their phone call,” he said.
He later posted that he received an “apology call” from the DHHS just after 5pm.
It comes after the close contacts of a 15-year-old girl from Moonee Valley all tested negative after the teenager contracted the virus after returning from Sydney’s northern beaches.
Health officials said they were no identified exposure sites in Victoria from these case.
Victoria has now gone 54 days without a coronavirus case from community transmission.
The DHHS has been contacted for comment.
— NCA Newswire
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Jess Malcolm 8.06am: Christmas, New Year may ‘act as virus accelerant’
Leading epidemiologist Marylouise McLaws warns that the festive season could be an “accelerant” for the coronavirus outbreak taking place in Sydney’s northern beaches, worried that the relaxing of restrictions ahead of Christmas could trigger ballooning case numbers.
Following Gladys Berejiklian’s decision to “modestly” loosen restrictions for some people on the northern beaches, Ms McLaws said while it is important for families to gather over the festive season this decision could “add fuel to the potential fire”.
“From a purely epidemiological perspective, if Christmas wasn’t on the horizon tomorrow, we would say that all restrictions need to be in place — meaning people can’t have in those red zones in the entire northern beaches area no-one at home, that they should just keep within their family bubble,” Ms McLaws said on ABC News Breakfast.
“If something happens today and tomorrow and Boxing Day, the minimum incubation period is around five or six days for people to start feeling symptoms, but it can be as long as 14 days,” she said. “It really is their minimum amount of time that they would have an inkling about how many people are feeling unwell.”
Ms McLaws also cautioned against any New Year’s Eve events going ahead, expressing concern that officials don’t know exactly how many cases are circulating in the community.
“Had we been in the previous situation before this outbreak from the quarantine and return travellers, we could have potentially had New Year’s Eve with strict mask-wearing on and around the foreshores and certainly in public transport,” said Ms McLaws.
“But the way it is at the moment, we don’t know how many more cases are incubating out there.”
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Jess Malcolm 7.50am: Australia’s vaccine roll-out ‘ahead of schedule’
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt says Australia is “ahead of schedule” for the vaccine rollout planned for early 2021, remaining firm that the program should not start early despite a recent outbreak in Sydney’s northern beaches.
While thousands of Sydneysiders looked down the barrel of lockdown ahead of Christmas Day tomorrow, Mr Hunt said it was important not to compromise the safety of people, backing the testing and tracing capabilities of the states.
“We’re in a position to provide good confidence in March. That’s because what Australians want and what we believe is absolutely necessary is to make sure there is total certainty about the safety and the efficacy and the distribution, and our goal has always been to underpromise and to overdeliver.” Mr Hunt said on Today on Thursday morning.
Australia is set to receive the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccine which are both being produced onshore already, with Mr Hunt calling it one of “the largest logistical exercises in Australian history.”
“Where in the last 24 hours I have spoken with the head of Pfizer Australia, with AstraZeneca senior officials, the head of CSL globally, my confidence is even greater that we’ll be able to deliver the vaccines early in 2021.”
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Jess Malcolm 7.30am: Second new contagious strain emerges in Britain
A new, highly contagious strain of coronavirus has been detected in Britain originating from South Africa, triggering an even harsher lockdown for British people and worsening chaos for truck drivers crossing the channel.
UK Health Minister Matt Hancock announced a harsher lockdown and further travel restrictions ahead of Christmas Day on Friday in a bid to curb this new strain.
“This new variant is highly concerning, because it is yet more transmissible, and it appears to have mutated further than the new variant that has been discovered in the UK,” Mr Hancock said.
“We’re placing immediate restrictions on travel from South Africa,” Mr Hancock said.
The new strain of the virus, whose discovery set off alarm bells worldwide, appears to spread more easily than other types but experts say there is no evidence it is more lethal or resistant to vaccines.
Meanwhile, cross-border chaos has continued to unfold following France’s snap decision to ban all travel from Britain for 48 hours over the spread of the new strain. Over 5,000 lorries are stranded as they await to take cargo across the Channel in an abandoned airfield in southeast England, reporting poor facilities and a lack of virus tests.
“We are here two days and without shower, without water to drink,” said one of the stranded drivers, Patricia Szeweczyk from Poland.
In vaccine news overnight, Canada has approved the Moderna vaccine becoming the second country after the US to approve the vaccine, two weeks after authorising immunisations with the Pfizer/BioNTech shot.
The United States has also purchased an additional 100 million doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, bringing the current US supply to 400 million doses. Switzerland, Dubai and Qatar have also started their roll out, using the Pfizer-BioNTech shot.
READ MORE: Why wearing a mask is super powerful
James Hall 6.10am: List of exposed Sydney venues continues to grow
NSW Health has again updated its COVID-19 hot spot list, with scores more Sydneysiders expected to isolate over Christmas.
The MLC building food court in downtown Sydney is among the latest locations, along with the usual mix of gyms, restaurants and cafes.
Food Court MLC Centre, 19 Martin Place, Sydney NSW, 2000
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) December 23, 2020
If you attended this venue on Tuesday 15 December between 1-2pm:
Get tested immediately and self-isolate until you receive a negative result. pic.twitter.com/L0ZsAwvmg0
If you were at these venues, you need to get tested immediately and isolate for 14 days, even if you get a negative result:
■ Alma Avalon Restaurant, Avalon from 8.30pm on Wednesday December 16;
■ Premier Academy League Under 8s, Macquarie University Soccer Fields from 9.15am-10.45am on Sunday December 13;
■ Mona Vale Fitness First, Mona Vale all day on Thursday.
For this next one, you need to get tested and then isolate until you receive a negative result.
■ MLC building food court, Sydney from 1pm-2pm on Tuesday December 15.
If you were at the next venue, you’re considered a casual contact and should monitor yourself for symptoms of the virus. If they appear, get tested and isolate.
■ De’assis Collaroy Cafe, Collaroy from 9.15am-10.10am on Saturday December 12.
For this one, please get tested and isolate until NSW Health provides further information.
■ Bondi Icebergs Club, Bondi (the pool deck level) from 8am-9.30am on Sunday December 20 and from 7am-8am on Monday December 21.
After your test, continue to monitor for symptoms and if they develop, get tested again.
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) December 23, 2020
To find your nearest clinic visit https://t.co/3q77lQTr7P or contact your GP.
For a full list of case locations visit: https://t.co/EVlm25boYj
Earlier case locations can be viewed here.
Joe Kelly 5.10am: Border closures a $3bn hit to tourism, aviation
Tourism spending over the holiday break will almost halve because of border restrictions states imposed on NSW in response to the northern beaches COVID-19 outbreak, the tourism and aviation industries have warned.
Between Thursday and January 11, Australians are expected to spend $2.98bn less than the annual average of about $5.5bn, as families put off holiday plans and airlines cancel dozens of flights a day in response to travel restrictions.
The modelling was compiled by economic consultants at Stafford Strategy and commissioned by the Tourism and Transport Forum, which represents the country’s major hotel chains, airlines and tourist attractions.
Border closures have prompted a worsening stoush between Gladys Berejiklian and Annastacia Palaszczuk after the NSW Premier on Tuesday accused other state leaders of causing unnecessary “suffering” by slamming borders shut despite the low number of new coronavirus cases linked to the northern beaches cluster.
There were eight new locally acquired cases recorded in NSW in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday. Health authorities eased restrictions in the southern half of the northern beaches, allowing people to leave home to visit the homes of others who lived in the zone.
Despite the lower infection numbers, Queensland and the ACT have indicated there will be no change to their border restrictions until after New Year’s Eve.
Read the full story here.
Yoni Bashan 5am: Sydney New Year’s fireworks are set to proceed
Sydney’s New Year’s Eve festivities are almost certain to proceed as planned but under tightly managed restrictions and extensive crowd control measures, with key ministers supporting the fireworks and other CBD events continuing despite the spectre of COVID-19 transmissions present on the northern beaches.
A final decision is expected to be made next Wednesday in relation to NYE celebrations, when the crisis committee of the cabinet once again meets to discuss the state’s progress against the COVID-19 cluster and whether end-of-year events should continue.
The Australian understands senior members of cabinet are in favour of events proceeding as scheduled as long as they are conducted under tight controls and no significant upticks of COVID-19 cases are detected.
Read the full story here.
Angelica Snowden 4.45am: Lobster is the new ham in Christmas sales splurge
Queen Victoria Market’s George the Fishmonger has not seen a spike in sales of crayfish on the scale of the past few weeks in years, after completely selling out of lobsters on Wednesday.
“(Christmas Eve) is a very big day … but the lead-up was almost an 80 per cent rise on last year,” said George Milonas.
At least half a tonne of lobsters have already sold this week, and after his store sold out of them on Wednesday Mr Milonas said he would try to fly in more stock for Thursday for the Christmas Eve rush.
He said demand had been strong because the cost of lobsters is at a 10-year low, selling for $120 per kilo after “China pulled the pin” on the produce.
Read the full story here.
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