Coronavirus Australia live news: Police to probe Victorians ‘not taking isolation seriously’; Scott Morrison says Andrews government is solely responsible for restrictions
Daniel Andrews reveals 500 Victorians who have tested positive have been referred to police after potentially flouting isolation rules.
- Police to probe Vics ‘not taking iso seriously’
- Andrews solely responsible for restrictions: PM
- Pandemic support tops $300bn
- 11 more deaths in Victoria
- NSW records 11 new cases
- Victoria records 451 cases
Welcome to live coverage of the continuing coronavirus crisis. Around 500 infected Victorians have been referred to police after being found to be not at home when meant to be isolating. Scott Morrison outlines the well-defined path out of the pandemic after a national cabinet meeting, adding that any ‘criticism’ and ‘confusion’ of Victoria’s restrictions should be left with the state government. Victoria has recorded 451 new cases as Josh Frydenberg demands Daniel Andrews explain ‘failures’.
Erin Lyons 7.10pm: ‘Chaos’ at border amid rush to enter
It’s been “chaos” at the New South Wales and Victoria border as returning residents rushed to enter the state before the latest wave of COVID-19 restrictions came into force.
From 12.01am on Friday anyone entering NSW from Victoria will be required to self-isolate in a hotel for two weeks and, unless they live in border towns, will no longer be able to return by road.
Member for Murray Helen Dalton told NCA NewsWire it was “chaotic” at the border on Thursday, and she held grave concerns about the impact new restrictions would have on border residents living in regional NSW but outside the border bubble.
“Most of the medical services are over the other side (in Victoria), and if you live in Moama, say, your closest hospital is over 70km away in Deniliquin,” she explained.
“It’s a huge dilemma for people who have a pre-existing condition and travel into Victoria frequently for medical care.”
READ MORE: Coronavirus vaccine tipped for early next year
Eli Greenblat 6.27pm: Wesfarmers to pay 30,000 in lockdown
Up to 30,000 Wesfarmers workers in Victoria who would have been left with only two weeks’ pay to last through the state’s six-week stage four lockdown have won a major boost from the Perth-based conglomerate, which is now pledging to fully pay staff sent home for the full six weeks.
Wesfarmers, which operates stores including Bunnings, Target, Kmart and Officeworks, is not eligible for JobKeeper, leaving affected staff without government assistance as they sit out the COVID-19 crisis.
But Wesfarmers has decided to pay its affected workers to sustain them through the period. “Wesfarmers is today advising all permanent team members affected by the current stage four restrictions in metropolitan Melbourne that they will remain employed and paid fully for the duration of the current six-week lockdown, in the event that the group’s businesses do not have meaningful work for them,’’ Wesfarmers said in an ASX statement on Friday.
READ MORE: Wesfarmers announces lockdown pay for workers
Remy Varga 5.23pm: 1-in-10 cases in Victoria linked to aged care
More than one in ten active cases of the coronavirus in Victoria are in aged-care settings, with the number of deaths linked to the troubled sector at 109.
There are 1548 active cases linked to aged-care, which is spread across 110 facilities, according to department data.
Of these, 878 are residents, 722 are staff and 332 are contacts.
There have been a total of 1932 cases linked to aged-care facilities.
There are 13,867 active cases of the coronavirus in Victoria.
READ MORE: Confusion deepens Victorian mess
Remy Varga 4.35pm: Andrews declines to comment on Treasurer’s views
Daniel Andrews declined to comment on Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s declaration on Monday that Victoria’s second wave could have been prevented.
But he thanked the commonwealth for their support as the state managed the crisis.
“I haven’t seen his comments and of course I would always want to see his comments before I started being a commentator on them,” he said.
“We’ve all got a job to do and we’re all very focused on doing that job and I’m very grateful to the federal Treasurer, to the PM and to the others in his team who are working very close with us.
“These are not the circumstances we wanted to find ourselves in but none of us have the luxury … of failing to acknowledge the circumstances we’re in.”
Meanwhile Brett Sutton has denied there is a rift between him and the Andrews government following incorrect reports Victoria’s Chief Health Officer had resigned.
“Absolutely not,” he said. “I have absolutely no idea … Look, I think there’s colour and movement in rumours that people get excited about for its own reason, but it was a complete surprise to me.”
READ MORE: REA Group revenue to be hit by Victoria lockdowns
Paul Garvey 4.30pm: New measures for truck drivers entering WA
Western Australia will require truck drivers entering the state to show evidence of a negative coronavirus test as it continues to try to stop the pandemic’s spread.
WA premier Mark McGowan announced the new measures as he pledged to continue his government’s “war” with Clive Palmer over the billionaire’s legal challenge against the state’s hard border closure.
The state has not had a case of community transmission since April but will also delay the further loosening of restrictions until at least August 29 in light of the ongoing outbreak in Victoria.
All truck drivers crossing the WA border will now need to present proof that they have tested negative to coronavirus in the past seven days. Those unable to do so will be required to have a test within 48 hours.
The number of entries into WA had fallen by 99 per cent, Mr McGowan said, but freight from the east remained critical to maintaining supplies of food into the state.
Mr McGowan again repeated his plea to Mr Palmer to drop his legal action, noting that the hard border had worked.
“He is pursuing a case against our interests, against his own interests, against Australia’s interests, because he can,” he said.
The commonwealth government earlier this week formally withdrew its support for Mr Palmer’s court challenge, although it stopped short of supporting WA’s call today for a retrial of the matter.
WA has been pushing for the evidence previously tendered by the commonwealth to be effectively pulled. The Federal Court has reserved its decision.
READ MORE: ‘I wish I was in NZ right now’
Remy Varga 4.20pm: Some positive cases ‘not taking isolation seriously’
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrew says there are people with the coronavirus who are “not taking iso seriously” after he revealed more than 500 cases have been referred to Victoria Police.
Mr Andrews said door knocking teams made up of ADF personnel and state health workers had discovered 150 people on Thursday alone who were not at home.
“No one’s asserting that every single person who can’t be found at their address is doing the wrong thing, that would be wrong to say that,” he said.
“But there is a trend here: there are some people who are not taking their iso seriously.”
He said teams door knocked a total of 1150 homes on Thursday and many of the 150 would have reasonable excuses for not being at home.
READ MORE: The buck stops with Andrews
Remy Varga 3.45pm: Infection among healthcare workers ‘concerning’: Sutton
Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said it was “concerning” 911 healthcare workers were currently battling the coronavirus, with more nurses than doctors contracting the disease.
“I think that relates to the closeness of interaction that nurses are engaging with their care provision,” he said.
“But I think a lot of the numbers in healthcare workers are actually aged care workers and some of the ancillary staff in healthcare.”
Professor Sutton said it was unclear if healthcare workers were contracting the virus at work or in the wider community.
“It’s not always easy to make a final determination, because people don’t necessarily know if they’ve been in contact with a positive case,” he said.
“Either inside work or outside work.”
READ MORE: Faith rules the roost in COVID battle
Ewin Hannan 3.07pm: Fair Work rejects bid to scrap penalty rates
The Fair Work Commission had rejected a bid by construction employers to scrap Saturday penalty rates and cut casual shifts to as few as two hours for the rest of 2020.
A commission full bench did not accept employer group submissions that the award changes were necessary to reduce the prospect of businesses being shut down due to the pandemic.
Master Builders Australia, the Australian Industry Group and the Housing Industry Association wanted the changes applied to employers which were not eligible to claim JobKeeper.
The commission criticised their attempt to reduce their obligations to make redundancy payments to terminated employees, finding employers were seeking to “cherry pick” parts of JobKeeper that benefited employers.
“The elementary equation in the JobKeeper scheme is that employees receive a guarantee of continuing employment and a minimum income, while employers are empowered to direct that employees work less or no hours, perform other duties, or work at different locations,” the full bench said.
“The application seeks to replicate the latter elements but not the former.
“Indeed, far from providing job security for employees, the applicants propose variations to the redundancy provisions of the three awards in order to modify (to the detriment of affected employees) employer obligations upon termination of employment.
“This is fundamentally imbalanced in terms of fairness and contradicts the social compact inherent in the JobKeeper scheme.”
Under JobKeeper, the power to make directions reducing employee hours was balanced by requirements to retain employees in employment, and pay them the minimum prescribed income.
“The applicants’ proposed reduced hours directions power would permit hours to be reduced, including to zero hours, and for the employee to suffer a concomitant loss of income, without there being any requirement for the employee ultimately to be retained in employment,” the full bench said. “This does not represent a fair adjustment to the award safety net.”
With the exception of unpaid pandemic leave and the taking of double annual leave at half pay, the commission rejected the proposed variations.
However, it decided to stand the proceedings over pending further analysis of construction industry restrictions that came into operation in Victoria on Friday.
CFMEU national construction division secretary Dave Noonan said the commission had categorically rejected a cynical attempt by employers to use the pandemic crisis to cut wages, conditions and the award safety net for construction workers.
“Employers wanted to slash penalty rates and make casual work even more casual – despite the role of insecure and casual work in the disastrous health and social outcomes we’ve witnessed during the pandemic,” he said.
Master Builders Australia chief executive Denita Wawn said the decision was disappointing.
“At the moment our focus is on ensuring the viability of our members not only in Victoria but around the country given the devastating impact of the Victorian stage four restrictions.”
READ MORE: VCE students to be ‘individually assessed’
Imogen Reid 1.55pm: Gym giant introduces temperature checks in NSW
Gym giant Fitness First has announced the introduction of temperature checks upon entry across all Fitness First clubs in New South Wales.
In a statement released by the fitness brand, General Manager David Aitchison said while the measure is not compulsory in the state, going beyond the government’s requirements is an important step in ensuring the safety of their patrons and staff.
“A fever is one of the first recognisable symptoms of COVID-19 so if a reading comes back with an elevated temperature, we will ask that person to leave our facilities and seek medical attention,” Mr Aitchison said.
“With community transmission on the rise in NSW, it is extremely important that we do everything we possibly can to protect the health and safety of our members.
“We recognise the importance of exercise for both the body and mind, and want to ensure our members feel confident in continuing to return to the gym, as it remains a safe environment.”
Mr Aitchison said Fitness First staff have also been encouraged to wear masks, which will be available for their members and visitors.
Fitness Australia CEO Barrie Elvish praised the move as an “excellent example of putting health and safety interests first”.
“We applaud Fitness First on the introduction of temperature checks across their NSW clubs as an additional measure to ensure the safety of all members and staff.”
READ MORE: The surprise casualties of COVID-19
Remy Varga 1.48pm: Sutton first heard of quarantine issues through media
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said he first learnt about the problems in hotel quarantine through the media.
Mr Sutton said he was aware there were coronavirus outbreaks at the Stamford Hotel and Rydges Hotel but he did not know the extent of the deficiencies with the state government run program.
“So we were aware of the transmission that occurred, but in terms of other rumours and reporting around deficiencies with the workforce in those settings, the first I heard was when I read it in the newspapers,” he said on Friday.
Infection control breaches at the hotel quarantine program are believed to have unleashed Victoria’s current coronavirus crisis.
When asked if he suspected the breaches were linked to an increase in community transmission, Mr Sutton said: “No I didn’t really, it was information that was only available when that genomics report was through.”
The botched program, which is under the scrutiny of an inquiry headed by a former judge, has been genomically linked to most if not all of Victoria’s current coronavirus cases.
READ MORE: The buck stops with Andrews
Greg Brown 1.40pm: Andrews solely responsible for restrictions: PM
Scott Morrison says the Andrews government is solely responsible for restrictions in Victoria amid criticisms of the state government’s handling of the pandemic.
The Prime Minister said the federal government could attempt to influence the restrictions through diplomacy but “states have complete and total control”.
He acknowledged there had been “criticisms” and “confusion” about how the restrictions had been rolled out by Premier Daniel Andrews.
“The hard task this week following the Victorian government’s announcement of restrictions, which I understand there are many criticisms of and there’s confusion, I understand that, has been how to work drawing together the industry feedback,” Mr Morrison said.
“But ultimately they’ll make the restrictions, they’ll enforce them and they’re their calls.”
Mr Morrison said he did not want to offer public advice to Victoria on how to manage the process, despite his ministers becoming increasingly critical of the Andrews government.
“I don’t see a great advantage of engaging in that process in some sort of public spectacle. I don’t think that would be good for public confidence. I don’t think that would be good for public assurance,” Mr Morrison said.
“Regardless of which way you vote, it doesn’t matter whether you’re a Liberal supporter or the Labor supporter, the virus certainly doesn’t discriminate and is seeking to cause its havoc wherever it can.
“So we need to continue to have a balanced response that looks at the economic and health issues.”
READ MORE: Morrison’s MPs turn their guns on hapless Premier
Greg Brown 1.24pm: Nation positioned to supply, manufacture a vaccine
Scott Morrison says Australia was positioning to supply and manufacture a COVID-19 vaccine.
The Prime Minister declared “whoever finds this vaccine must share it”.
“There’s never been a global effort like this and there are some positive signs there that we can be hopeful about,” Mr Morrison said.
“Australia is positioning itself well to take advantage and be in a position to be able to manufacture and supply vaccines should they be developed.
“There are many projects that are underway around the world and we have a process for identifying those that we … believe we can take an early position on.
“But the other thing Australia has been saying, and it’s supported strongly by the premiers and I made this point earlier in the week, and that is whoever finds this vaccine must share it.
“Any country that were to find this vaccine and not make it available around the world, without restraint, I think would be judged terribly by history.”
READ MORE: Confusion deepens Victorian mess
Greg Brown 1.20pm: New freight code for all states, territories
National cabinet has backed a new freight code that will be enforced by states and territories, Scott Morrison has confirmed.
“It’s a code today and it will now be implemented with enforceability by the states and territories through their channels and it’s important that we get as much consistency for transport operators,” the Prime Minister said.
READ MORE: Panic buying leaves 1 in 3 empty-handed
Greg Brown 1.16pm: Commonwealth’s pandemic support tops $300bn: PM
Scott Morrison says the federal government has committed more than $300 billion of support measures during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Prime Minister said his government “has a very clear and strong” plan to emerge from the crisis after the 25th meeting of national cabinet.
“We spoke today about the importance of continuing to work together to provide the necessary supports to the economy,” Mr Morrison said.
“While we are in these again very dark times, places we’re not unfamiliar with through this pandemic … governments are working together.
“I can assure you the federal government has a very clear and strong plan for the road out to ensure that Australia will emerge strongly from this.
“That is because of the resilience and spirit of the Australian people and the capacity of our economy as it’s been demonstrated on so many occasions.”
READ MORE: Lockdown buries recovery hopes
Remy Varga 12.20pm: VCE students to be individually assessed
Education Minister James Merlino has announced VCE students will be individually assessed with any impact of the coronavirus taken into consideration when determining their ATAR ranking.
He said this included the impact of school closures, an increase in family responsibilities and mental health.
Mr Merlino has announced a $28.5 million mental health support package to support vulnerable students.
READ MORE: Bubble to allow NZ shearers in
Remy Varga 12.15pm: 500 people in isolation ‘not at home’
Daniel Andrews has said around 500 people who were meant to be self-isolating were found not at home by ADF doorknocking teams.
He said they had been referred to Victoria Police, with 150 discovered not at home on Thursday alone.
Mr Andrews said 1150 people had been doorknocked on Thursday by teams made up of 120 ADF personnel as well as Victorian health officials.
There are 911 health workers in Victoria who currently have the coronavirus.
Chief health officer Brett Sutton said there were more nurses than doctors who currently have the disease.
READ MORE: Fears of lung transplant surge
Remy Varga 12.10pm: 11 deaths, 450 cases in Victoria
Victoria has recorded 11 more deaths from the coronavirus, including a woman in her 50s, Premier Daniel Andrews has confirmed.
Seven of the deaths are linked to aged-care.
Mr Andrews said the state had recorded 450 new cases of COVID-19, with a total of 1527 among healthcare workers.
Remy Varga 11.25am: Andrews to give update at 12pm AEST
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews is due to provide an update on the state’s coronavirus crisis at 12pm on Friday.
Also speaking is Deputy Premier James Merlino.
Imogen Reid 11.20am: 11 new cases in NSW, total now 3653
Eleven new cases of coronavirus have been recorded in New South Wales overnight, bringing the total number of infections to 3,653.
Of the new cases, one, a woman in her 60s from south western Sydney is still under investigation, another was infected in Victoria and has been in self-isolation and nine were traced locally and are linked to known cases.
NSW Health said a household contact of a previously reported case attended St Francis Xavier’s College in the Newcastle suburb of Hamilton on Monday 3, Tuesday 4 and Wednesday 5 of August.
“The school has been notified and will be closed for cleaning. Contact tracing is underway,” NSW Health said.
“While most cases in the past week have been associated with local clusters and close contacts with known cases, some have not been linked to cases.”
READ MORE: School stress impacts working parents more
Sarah Elks 11.00am: Queensland can soon ‘relax’ with no new cases
Queensland has recorded zero new COVID-19 cases overnight, and is close to being able to “relax” after three Logan women sneaked back into the state after being in Melbourne.
Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said there had been five cases relating to the trio of Logan women who returned back to Queensland, after allegedly lying about being in the COVID-hotspot of Melbourne.
Two of the women tested positive and three more community transmission cases are related to them.
Dr Young said if there were no further cases over the weekend, south-east Queensland would hopefully be able to “relax” about the possibility of an outbreak linked to the Logan women.
She also urged people not to attend a planned mass protest against the detention of refugees at a hotel in Kangaroo Point.
“Please do not go and protest this weekend, it’s critical,” Dr Young said.
READ MORE: Girl’s change in personality after COVID
Rachel Baxendale 10.45am: Victoria records 450 new cases
Victoria has recorded 450 cases in the last 24 hours, at the start of its sweeping six week lockdown. The number is 21 less than Thursday’s tally of 471.
Premier Daniel Andrews will confirm the numbers at his daily press conference.
Remy Varga 10.25am: Two men arrested over planned ‘freedom march’
Victoria Police have arrested two men over a planned “freedom march” in Melbourne’s CBD on Sunday.
Following an investigation, two search warrants were executed on Thursday evening at homes in Mooroolbark and Chirnside Park in Melbourne’s far northeast.
Detectives seized mobile phones as well as a computer.
A 41-year-old man from Mooroolbark has been charged with incitement and bailed to appear at Melbourne Magistrate’s Court on January 21 while a 41-year-old man from Chirnside Park was released with intent to summons.
He is expected to be charged later today with the same offence.
A planned demonstration of coronavirus sceptics planned a demonstration outside the parliament of Victoria.
In the last 24-hours, Victoria Police have fined 51 people for refusing to wear a mask as well as issuing 43 penalties for curfew breaches.
Among the total 196 fines issued is a man in Maroondah who told police he was out to feed his uncle’s horses at 3.40am and a man buying cigarettes at 9.30pm in an adjacent suburb with a knife in his car.
There have been 11 penalties issued at vehicle checkpoints with 17,682 vehicles checked in total.
READ MORE: Labor postpones national conference
Imogen Reid 9.40am: Frydenberg: It should never have got to this
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has called on Daniel Andrews to explain the Melbourne quarantine hotel fiasco, saying the “significant failures” must not be repeated.
In an emotionally charged interview with Sky News this morning, Mr Frydenberg said he was “devastated” by what was happening in Victoria.
“The premier yesterday faced a number of questions about (hotel quarantine). What happened in quarantine were significant failures that cannot be repeated,” he said
“We are in a state of crisis right now. The emotional toll on Victorian families, on young women trying to home school their kids and hold down a job at the same time; on grandparents; on businesses that have had to close their doors with millions of people uncertain about their job future – they’re the real issues.
“I’ll let Daniel Andrews explain what happened on quarantine, that’s for him to explain, that’s for him to account for. But there’s no doubt there’s been mistakes made.
“My job, the Prime Minister’s job, is to get help to the people who need it most.”
Mr Frydenberg added: “Ultimately, we are all Australian and we are all in this together, and as a Victorian, I am so devastated about what has transpired in my state.
“It should have never gotten to this. But I’m not serving Australians or Victorians by engaging in a slanging match, my support goes to the Victorian people at this difficult time and we need to all think about that.”
Mr Frydenberg said it was up to the government to lead by example and to pass legislation to provide support to Australians.
“It’s about thoses selfless and brave healthcare workers on the frontline. It’s about the thousands of Australians who are right now battling the coronavirus, some of whom are intensive care units. It’s about those people who are locked in their homes in Victoria – 6 million Victorians are feeling the pain of these restrictions, and it’s our job as the government to help them get them through and that’s what we’re doing,” he said.
READ MORE: Mass confusion deepens COVID damage
Imogen Reid 9.20am: Government ‘pulling out all stops': Frydenberg
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has outlined changes to the JobKeeper program this morning, saying the federal government is “pulling out all stops” to aid Australia’s workers and businesses.
The government will throw a further $15bn lifeline to workers and businesses devastated by the Victorian lockdown under a major expansion of JobKeeper payments, as losses to the national economy from the second wave outbreak spiral towards $12bn.
Josh Frydenberg announced an emergency fiscal response to the deteriorating situation that will allow hundreds of thousands more workers to access JobKeeper payments and lower the bar for businesses to prove a significant loss of revenue.
“The Morrison government is pulling out all stops, doing whatever we can to support Australians through the crisis to maintain that formal connection between employers and employees to help businesses and workers get to the other side,” Mr Frydenberg said.
“There certainly will be a much larger number of Victorian businesses and workers who will now benefit.”
The scheme now has a new eligibility program that includes recently hired staff, provided they were on their employees payroll from July 1. Another change to the plan means employers are only required to show a fall in turnover in the quarter to the end of the September, compared to the same period last year.
READ MORE: Morrison’s $15bn worker lifeline
Imogen Reid 8.55am: Cormann refuses to blame quarantine fiasco
Minister for Finance Mathias Cormann has refused to “point the finger” at Victorian’s hotel quarantine fiasco for costing the economy a further $12 billion in response to the state’s intense lockdown.
“It’s not for me to get into the finger pointing at this point,” Mr Cormann said.
“Clearly, there will be a time there will have to be a proper review as to what happened and why but right now we’re focused on the crisis response, we’re focused on making sure we work with Victoria and getting on top of the virus outbreak in Victoria as soon as possible and to provide the necessary support to Australians to get through this period.”
Speaking on Sky this morning, Mr Cormann said while the evolving health situation in Victoria is having a devastating impact on the national economy, the government is making sure they are providing the best possible support to businesses and people who have lost their jobs through their period by expanding the JobKeeper scheme.
“In terms of these stage four restrictions, it still keeps going at $1,500 until the end of September which takes us beyond the current six-week period of stage four restrictions,” Mr Cormann said.
“What I would say … at this stage we believe phasing out this crisis level support is appropriate but we will continue to view and assess.
“As we have demonstrated, we will continue to make judgments based on how this situation continues to evolve and if decisions need to be made down the track they will be made.”
Pressed for his view on Victorian Premier Dan Andrews’ handling of the state’s COVID situation, Mr Cormann refrained from making any critique.
“All through this period I have avoided political commentary,” he said.
“This is a difficult situation for all involved, everybody is trying to do their best to get on top of this. There will be a time to look back and assess and make judgments on what worked and what didn’t work but right now it’s very important for the federal government and state government to work closely together and get on top of this issue as swiftly as possible.”
READ MORE: Reprieve to keep food flowing
Eli Greenblat 8.45am: Meat supplies still an issue: Coles COO
Coles chief operating officer Matthew Swindells has said there has been an elevated level of demand at the supermarkets with issues still around the supply of meat, however higher buying levels by consumers was not at the levels in March that saw shoppers strip toilet paper from the shelves.
And he confirmed a rocketing demand for pantry staples such as flour and spices as more consumers cook at home – especially as going to a restaurant is now almost impossible – and home cooking having a resurgence.
“We have seen panic buying in the past and at this stage the demand is still elevated across the supermarkets, people are coming now only once a day in Victoria, they are coming in well prepared … and it's a higher level of demand,’’ Mr Swindells told ABC Radio.
“The key issue at the moment is meat. So the uncertainty of what was going to happen with abattoirs and meat processors particularly across the weekend led to a spike in buying in the meat category that we are now working through to recover.
“Meat has probably the longest supply chain through processing, distribution … if there was one area that is of concern it is meat, we continue to work with the processors and work across the supply chain to recover that quickly.
“But I wouldn’t say this is toilet paper levels of panic buying we have seen in the past.’’
READ the full story in the Trading Day blog.
Imogen Reid 8.15am: New health warning over Penrith Westfield
A new health warning has been issued for anyone who attended a busy shopping complex in Sydney’s west after a man who tested positive to coronavirus visited the centre.
NSW Health confirmed the infected man went to Westfield at the Penrith Plaza on Saturday August 1 between 10.30am and 12pm and has urged anyone who was there at the same time to be aware of symptoms, self-isolate and to get tested immediately.
The man in his 20s had close contact with a previously confirmed case linked to the Mounties club cluster at Mount Pritchard.
NSW Health said he attended several venues while infectious and people at those venues are considered casual contacts.
These venues include Master Hot Pot in Canley Vale from 1pm to 2pm and BBQ City Buffet in Bankstown from 7pm to 8.30pm on the same day.
READ MORE: Melbourne isn’t Melbourne right now
Imogen Reid 7.55am: Woman spat on in Melbourne shopping centre
A woman has been spat on at a shopping centre in Melbourne’s east.
Police allege the woman was taking out rubbish during her shift at Doncaster Shopping town when she was approached by a man who spat in her face.
The victim has described the man as Caucasian in appearance, aged 40 to 50-years-old with a bald head. He was wearing a black coat, dark-coloured shirt, dark jeans and sunglasses at the time of the attack.
Investigators allege the man entered the shopping complex at about 10:30am on July 22 before leaving the centre and walking towards the Williamsons Road bus station.
Police believe the man could be involved in a similar incident at a Malvern East shopping centre on March 20.
Investigators have released CCTV and images of a man they believe may be able to assist with their inquiries.
READ MORE: Andrews point to peak in two weeks
Imogen Reid 7.35am: Sydney venues cop social distancing fine
A bar in Sydney’s inner city has been hit with a $5000 fine after it was found disregarding social distancing regulations.
Darlo Bar in Darlinghurst was fined on Tuesday after its patrons were found seated at tables that were not 1.5m apart.
A cafe in Maitland was also fined for not having any COVID-safe plan in place. Soul Origin cafe in Green Hills will fork out $5000 after inspectors found no COVID notices in the venue and the tables and chairs too close together.
READ MORE: Funds boost for mental health
Imogen Reid 7.20am: Fears of new Sydney cluster, race to contact trace
NSW Health are scrambling to trace potential contacts after a Sydney man in his 20s visited seven inner-city restaurants, pubs and a Woolworths within 48 hours while infectious.
NSW Health has issued a warning to anyone who attended the Jambo Jambo African restaurant in Glebe on 31 July from 7pm to 8.30pm to immediately self-isolate for 14 days and get tested even if they have no symptoms after the man dined at the venue.
The restaurant said it was going to be disinfected by authorised cleaners and will remain closed until 14 August.
“The health and safety of our customers and staff are our top priority and we apologise for the inconvenience,” the venue said in a post to Facebook.
The state health authority said anyone who attended at this time is considered a close contact of the case and should get re-tested if symptoms persist.
“The man also visited a number of inner-city venues, patrons of which are being classed as casual contacts,” NSW Health said.
These venues include:
The Eveleigh Hotel in Redfern on 31 July from 8.30pm to 10pm;
Warren View Hotel in Enmore on 1 August from 4pm to 4.20pm
Mary’s in Macquarie Place, Sydney on 1 August from 6.45pm to 7.15pm
Cubby’s Kitchen in Sydney on 1 August from 7.35pm to 9.30pm
Burrow Bar in Sydney on 1 August from 9.35pm to 11.15pm
Woolworths Marrickville Metro on 2 August from 7pm to 7.20pm.
Contact tracers have been unable to trace the source of the man’s infection. It comes as NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian urged young people to refrain from socialising while the state remains in a critical stage in it’s COVID-19 response.
READ MORE: Bike dealers find new road in lockdown
Imogen Reid 7.10am: 70 SA pupils quarantined after woman’s positive test
A major tracing operation is underway in South Australia after a woman in her 20s tested positive to COVID-19 on Thursday.
She is now the fifth person linked to Thebarton Senior College in Torrensville, Adelaide. The new infection has led to 70 students considered close contacts to be put into hotel quarantine for 14 days along with 1,100 other students and staff who are self-isolating.
It comes as more restrictions are expected to be enforced in the state which will include aged care facilities and gyms.
READ MORE: The buck stops with Andrews
Imogen Reid 7.00am: US lifts international travel ban
The United States has lifted a global health coronavirus travel advisory enforced in March that directed US citizens to avoid all international travel.
“With health and safety conditions improving in some countries and potentially deteriorating in others, the department is returning to our previous system of country-specific levels of travel advice,” the State Department said.
The State Department’s update included “Level Four: Do Not Travel” advisories for about 30 countries like India, Russia, and Bangladesh. The European Union, the United Kingdom and Australia were included on a new “Level 3” list, urging citizens to reconsider their travel plans.
Meanwhile, France reported 1,604 new coronavirus infections on Thursday, as the total number of daily cases passed 1,600 for the second day in a row.
The Netherlands’ Prime Minister said the country did not need to go into a second lockdown, despite a surge in cases.
“The virus is making a dangerous advance and we’re at risk of losing the gains we’ve made together in the past month,” Mark Rutte said.
Mr Rutte asked people to avoid tourist hotspots in Amsterdam and pleaded with the country’s youth to comply with restrictions.
There were 601 new coronavirus cases reported in the country on Thursday.
Spanish authorities have placed the northern town of Aranda de Duero and its 32,000 residents back into lockdown for two weeks after 230 cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in the area.
From Friday, people will only be allowed to leave their homes for medical appointments, work, or care giving.
Spain has recorded 33,965 new cases of the virus in the past fortnight. Since the start of the pandemic, Spain has reported 305,767 infections and 28,499 deaths.
Vietnam has converted a sports stadium into a 1000-bed field hospital in the country’s new coronavirus epicentre Danang.
Danang’s Tien Son Sports Palace will be used to treat infected patients unable to seek medical assistance from the city’s overwhelmed hospitals.
Danang has reported more than 200 cases since the outbreak on July 25.
Globally, there have been more than 18.9 million people infected with the virus, while the total number of COVID-19 deaths is 710,318.
READ MORE: Fly in offshore workers left high and dry
Imogen Reid 6.35am: Second Newcastle school closed for cleaning
A second school in Newcastle has been forced to close while a cleaning squad blitzes the campus after a student tested positive for coronavirus.
The pupil from St Francis Xavier’s College in Hamilton is reported to be a close relative of the 15-year-old male student from St Pius X Adamstown who returned a positive test earlier in the week.
Hunter New England Health is investigating the source of infection for the cases.
“All close contacts of the teenager are being notified and are required to seek testing and isolate for 14 days, regardless of their result,” HNEH said in a statement.
HNEH has issued a warning to anyone who attended St Francis Xavier’s College on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday to be vigilant and to seek testing should they experience COVID-19 symptoms.
It comes as aged care facilities in the Hunter region have been directed to go into lockdown following the new cases of COVID-19 in the area.
Workers at Newcastle and Lake Macquarie aged care facilities have said they were advised by the NSW Public Health Unit to close their doors to all visitors for the next week.
There are 10 active cases in the area, taking the total number of cases in the Hunter region to 296.
READ MORE: Surprise victims of the pandemic
Staff writers 6.30am: Ohio governor tests positive ahead of Trump meeting
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has tested positive for COVID-19, ahead of a planned meeting with Donald Trump in Cleveland.
Mr DeWine, 73, announced the result of his test on Twitter, adding that he had no symptoms but was heading back to Columbus, the state capital, to get tested again along with his wife Fran. The governor said he would quarantine at his home in Cedarville for 14 days.
As part of the standard protocol to greet President Trump on the tarmac in Cleveland, I took a COVID test. I tested positive. I have no symptoms at this time. I’m following protocol and will quarantine at home for the next 14 days.
— Mike DeWine (@MikeDeWine) August 6, 2020
President Trump was scheduled to visit a Whirlpool plant in Clyde, Ohio, and speak about the economy. Governor DeWine was tested as part of the protocol for officials prior to meeting with the president.
“The president wishes Gov. DeWine a speedy and full recovery and commends the job he’s doing for the great state of Ohio,” White House spokesman Judd Deere said.
Ohio, like other states in the Midwest, has been struggling with a recent surge of coronavirus cases. On Wednesday, the state reported 1,199 new cases, more than double the daily number in early June.
This week’s cases bring the total number of infections in Ohio to more than 96,300, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. More than 3,500 people in the state have died from the disease.
Mr. DeWine, a Republican, had been credited with taking aggressive action to stem the spread of the virus, including shutting businesses before many other states did so.
As cases began to surge, the governor has urged residents to step up efforts, from mask wearing to social distancing.
READ MORE: US offers bounty for poll hackers
Rachel Baxendale 5.10am: Regional ‘mystery’ puzzles virus contact tracers
A concerning proportion of Victoria’s “mystery” coronavirus cases are in parts of regional Victoria where there are otherwise very few cases.
Analysis of the active cases that contact tracers had been unable to link to known cases from Monday, released by the state Department of Health and Human Services on Thursday, shows that while there is a broad correlation between high numbers of community transmissions and high caseloads in the city, many smaller clusters in regional areas appear to have seeded from unknown sources.
Until Wednesday night, regional Victoria was not subject to any stay-at home restrictions, unlike metropolitan Melbourne, which went into a stage-three stay-at-home lockdown along with the Mitchell Shire on July 9, and entered stage four, with a curfew and strict bans on non-essential work, from this week.
There were 760 active “mystery” cases on Monday; as of Thursday, there had been 2388 of these cases, including 2087 since July 1.
These do not include 3272 cases that remained under investigation on Thursday.
Read the full story here.
Simon Benson 5am: PM gives $15bn JobKeeper extension for Victorians
Scott Morrison will throw a further $15bn lifeline to workers and businesses devastated by the Victorian lockdown under a major expansion of JobKeeper payments, as losses to the national economy from the second wave outbreak spiral towards $12bn.
Josh Frydenberg will announce an emergency fiscal response to the deteriorating situation that will allow hundreds of thousands more workers to access JobKeeper payments and lower the bar for businesses to prove a significant loss of revenue.
It will be the second extension to the JobKeeper program after it was expanded last month, bringing the total cost of the scheme to $101.6bn. Treasury advice suggests the changes mean a further 530,000 Victorians will take up the wage subsidy in the September quarter, lifting the total number of recipients in the state to 1.5 million.
Read the full story, by Simon Benson, Patrick Commins and Dennis Shanahan, here.
John Stensholt 4.45am: Big business takes stick to Andrews’ leadership
Victorian big business owners have attacked Premier Daniel Andrews’s handling of stage-four restrictions, labelling his leadership “diabolical” and criticising his government for a lack of consultation on measures they believe will lead to thousands of businesses shutting their doors for good and huge amounts of jobs lost.
Amid confusion, back-pedalling and questioning over logistics regarding the impact and implementation of the latest restrictions, the business leaders say Victoria’s vital construction sector could “go backwards” because of the “catastrophic” new policies and the economy was “not an abstract thing that will bounce back” as job losses mount.
Sam Tarascio, the billionaire owner of Salta Properties group that owns and builds dozens of shopping centres, warehouses and office blocks in Melbourne, said business was “confused” about the measures. He also critical of Mr Andrews’s approach.
“I think the state’s leadership has been diabolical,” he said. “The government is saying this is a health crisis and we can’t consider everything else.
“But that is like sticking your head in the sand. We can be healthy but we are going to stuff the whole state’s economy in the meantime.”
Read the full story, by John Stensholt and Damon Kitney, here.
More Coverage
Cover star Qualley a woman of substance and love
After her biggest year yet, the actor is setting her sights on even bolder projects.
Tragedy amid the triumph as LawConnect takes line honours
Celebrations by Christian Beck’s victorious LawConnect crew were muted out of respect for two lives lost to the pursuit of the blue water classic, as well as the skipper’s suspected food poisoning.