Coronavirus Australia live news: Security guards to face hotel quarantine probe
Security guards will give evidence this week at the inquiry into the hotel quarantine program believed responsible for Victoria’s virus second wave.
- Security guards to front hotel quarantine probe
- Unlikely we will ever extinguish virus: Andrews
- 279 new cases, 16 deaths in Victoria
- Feds step in at Melbourne aged care facility
- Federal government ‘close to inking vaccine deal’
- Melbourne relaxes as sun heats up
Welcome to Sunday’s live coverage of the continuing coronavirus crisis.
Security guards will give evidence this week at the inquiry into the disastrous hotel quarantine program that is believed responsible for Victoria’s second wave of the coronavirus. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said the notion that the coronavirus will ever be “completely extinguished” is unlikely as the state records 279 new cases and 16 deaths. Yesterday, Melburnians left home in droves to take advantage of sunny weather despite stage-four coronavirus restrictions across the city.
Richard Gluyas, Rosie Lewis, Ewin Hannan 11pm: Overhaul tax mix to create jobs, business urges
One of the nation’s biggest employers has urged national cabinet to prioritise reform of the antiquated tax system, saying it has been one of the key reasons for Australia’s slow jobs growth and falling investment.
Olivia Caisley, Remy Varga 10.30pm: Hospitals ordered to treat elderly coronavirus sufferers
Health Minister Greg Hunt is insisting the nation’s hospitals must admit infected COVID-19 patients who require clinical care regardless of age in the midst of ongoing concerns that elderly Australians are being heavily sedated and left to languish in nursing homes.
Caroline Overington 10pm: Innocent Aussies on flight ban list
The federal government is forwarding the names of all Australians who have applied for permission to leave the country during the coronavirus pandemic to Border Force, the agency normally responsible for dealing with deadbeat parents trying to flee the country owing child support or in defiance of custody orders.
Adeshola Ore 9.30pm: TV chef’s restaurant case raises rural concerns
British TV chef Rick Stein’s coastal NSW restaurant was forced to close briefly because of a coronavirus case, sparking concerns about the virus reaching rural areas.
Yoni Bashan 9pm: Harder for cruise ships to waive the rules
Every passenger and crew member aboard an incoming cruise ship will be required to declare they do not have symptoms for COVID-19 under a set of enhanced protocols being considered by federal officials in the aftermath of the Ruby Princess catastrophe.
Ewin Hannan 8.30pm: ACTU calls on state to back paid virus leave
Unions are pressuring the NSW government to learn from Victoria’s second outbreak and provide paid pandemic leave to workers to be tested or isolate.
Remy Varga 8pm: Hotel guards to give evidence over frontline failings
Security guards will give evidence this week at the inquiry into the hotel quarantine program believed responsible for Victoria’s second wave of the coronavirus.
AFP 7.30pm: First major cruise line to sail in Mediterranean
The first major cruise ship to set sail in the Mediterranean wais s poised to depart from Genoa, as Italy’s struggling travel industry hopes to regain ground after a bruising coronavirus hiatus.
The departure of the MSC Grandiosa from the northwestern port city at 3.30am on Monday (AEST) represents a high-stakes test for the global sector in the key Mediterranean market and beyond.
The international cruise industry has been battered not only by the health crisis, but accusations of a botched handling of the epidemic in its early stages.
Cruise lines are hoping that new, tighter protocols will allow them to control the still-lingering threat of coronavirus aboard its ships while still offering travellers a cruise experience that does not disappoint.
The Grandiosa is part of the fleet of privately owned MSC Cruises, founded in Naples but now based in Geneva. The ship will travel to the ports of Civitavecchia near Rome, Naples, Palermo and Valletta, Malta during the seven-day cruise.
Competitor Costa Cruises, owned by Carnival, has opted to delay the restart of its Mediterranean cruises until September, with departures from Trieste and Genoa for Italian-only clients. The company said the measure was designed to “guarantee the maximum security for guests, crew and local communities.”
Much is riding on the decision to restart cruises. Italy represents the bulk of Europe’s cruise industry, reaping €14.5bn ($24bn) of revenue per year and supporting nearly 53,000 jobs, according to the Cruise Lines International Association.
The group estimated a potential economic loss from suspended cruises throughout Europe could amount to about €25.5bn.
MSC said that for now, its ships would sail at about 70 per cent of normal passenger capacity.
All eyes in the industry will be on the Grandiosa after a smaller cruise operator, Norway’s Hurtigruten, was forced to suspend its newly restarted service this month after dozens of passengers and crew tested positive for COVID-19.
Global health authorities criticised the industry’s slow response to the spread of the virus at the onset of the crisis earlier this year before ships were grounded in March, from lax monitoring of crew, to continued operation of self-service buffets and gyms, to lack of personal protective equipment.
Peter Gunradi 7pm: Gunboat diplomacy leaves alliance at sea
Paris-London relations have sunk to a new low — fuelled by a war of words over migrants trying to reach Britain in small boats.
Miho Inada 6.30pm: Kyoto doesn’t want tourists back
Woman wearing japanese traditional kimono walking at Historic Higashiyama district in spring, Kyoto in Japan.
The bustle of tourists has disappeared from this ancient capital — only to be replaced by dissension over whether they should ever be welcomed back.
AFP 6pm: Russia rolls out vaccine
British travellers returning home began quarantine, while Russia said it had produced the first batch of its coronavirus vaccine.
Ben Packham 5.30pm: Morrison plans Japan trip
Senior Australian and Japanese officials have discussed a visit as the region’s democracies boost co-operation to counter China.
Caroline Overington 4.46pm: Flight cap doesn’t fit our civil rights, Mr Morrison
You have perhaps heard about international flight caps, which basically put a limit on the number of planes allowed into Australia.
Here is what that looks like in practice: 30 people per plane, most of them in business class, where tickets cost $10,000 or more.
Seventy people a day disembarking in Brisbane, 75 in Perth and another 70 in Adelaide. Sydney has slightly more capacity: 350 passenger arrivals a day, but that’s basically it. Melbourne is taking no international arrivals, nor is Hobart. Darwin is dealing with each plane on a case-by-case basis, as is Canberra, but essentially nobody is getting in.
Thus you have desperate people abroad, madly booking and rebooking economy-class tickets, and getting bumped for those who can afford more expensive seats.
You think we don’t live in a class-based society? Just try getting home right now.
Remy Varga 3.55pm: Security guards to front hotel quarantine inquiry
Security guards will give evidence this week at the inquiry into the disastrous hotel quarantine program that is believed responsible for Victoria’s second wave of the coronavirus.
Public hearings begin on Monday with evidence first up to be given by infectious disease experts at the board of inquiry, which is being overseen by former judge Jennifer Coate.
From Thursday, returning international travellers who were detained in the program as well as staffers, including security guards, will give evidence.
READ MORE: Editorial — Come clean on virus fiasco
Cameron Stewart 3.43pm: South still stands with Donald Trump
Driving through the US south right now is a journey through a landscape scarred by the ravages of the murderous coronavirus, a broken economy and social unrest. The silent remains of shuttered-up small businesses litter the backroads in the countryside. In towns, the remnants of race riots can be seen in the Black Lives Matter graffiti scrawled on the bases of statues where Confederate heroes once stood.
On the streets most people wear masks and veer warily away from others, but a large minority don’t use masks and all but ignore social distancing.
At each turn, there are reminders of how much the US has been changed by the pandemic. You can almost feel the simmering political tensions with less than three months until the presidential election.
Jade Gailberger 2.53pm: Will Melbourne reopen after six-week lockdown?
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has revealed he has a “cautious optimism” that stage four lockdown measures in Melbourne will be eased from mid-September.
The state recorded 279 new COVID-19 cases and 16 deaths on Sunday.
Speaking at the coronavirus update, Mr Andrews was asked if he was confident restrictions would be eased at the end of the six-week period.
“I am always very cautious but there is, on my part at least, a cautious optimism and a sense of real hope that this strategy is working and that we are seeing numbers fall now,” he said.
Mr Andrews said the state was no longer seeing case numbers as high as 700 or more but warned no one could become “complacent”.
Remy Varga 2.00pm: Doutta Galla virus outbreak began 16 days ago
Doutta Galla Aged Services chief executive officer Vanda Iaconese said the coronavirus outbreak at the facility began 16 days ago, with there being no new cases on Sunday.
It follows comments by Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews on Sunday that federal and state health authorities had sent significant numbers of staff into the facility.
Ms Iaconese said the 23 residents confirmed to have the coronavirus were being treated at the facility, with the remainder transferred to hospital early last week to protect them from the coronavirus.
She said there were 16 staff members at the Yarraville facility in Melbourne’s inner west on Sunday.
“Staffing levels at Yarraville, including over the weekends, are now more than able to manage the needs of our remaining residents,” she said.
“There were 13 staff on duty at Yarraville on Saturday night, including three Registered Nurses, as well as catering staff.
Ms Iaconese said seven Doutta Galla residents, most of whom were receiving palliative care for other conditions, had passed away over the last two-weeks.
“COVID-19 has brought unprecedented disruption and difficulty for our residents, families and staff,” she said.
“We are grateful to the various authorities for their support as we moved as quickly as we could to protect our residents.”
READ MORE: Is this the workplace of the future?
Christine Kellett 1.30pm: New Zealand outbreak continues to worsen
New Zealand has recorded 13 new cases of coronavirus, as it battles to control the first outbreak in the country in more than 100 days.
New Zealand Health authorities said 12 of the cases had been linked to an Auckland cluster at the centre of the outbreak, the New Zealand Herald reports.
They are also concerned about a rise in abuse and rumours swirling on social media, with an number of infected Kiwis being targeted online.
“At a time we are fighting a pandemic, this sort of behaviour is designed to create panic ... and is completely unacceptable,” Health Minister Chris Hipkins said.
READ MORE: NZ extends lockdown as cases spiral
Remy Varga 12.48pm: Surfer travelled 140km out of town due to ‘no waves’
A surfer living in one of Victoria’s best known surf towns who travelled more than 140kms because there were “no waves” is among the latest to be fined for public health breaches.
Victoria Police have issued a total of 243 fines in the last 24-hours, including 28 for failing to wear a face covering and 84 for curfew breaches.
As well, 30 penalties were issued at vehicle checkpoints.
Among the fines is man who lived in Torquay, near Geelong, who said he travelled to Castle Cove because there were “no waves”.
READ MORE: 15 of Australia’s best rural holiday destinations
Remy Varga 12.46pm: Hotel quarantine inquiry to hear from workers
The inquiry into the hotel quarantine thought responsible for most if not all coronavirus cases in Victoria’s second wave will hear from people who worked in the bungled program.
Public hearings for the board of inquiry overseen by former judge Jennifer Coate will begin on Monday with evidence from infectious disease experts.
From Thursday, hearings will focus on being detained and working in the hotel quarantine program but witness lists are not available.
READ MORE: Private guards decision made early, says Daniel Andrews
Christine Kellett 12.24pm: Police catch 43 people on board Sydney party bus
NSW Police have issued a $5000 fine after 43 people were caught on board a party bus in Sydney’s CBD on Saturday night.
The bus was stopped over concerns about the way it was being driven along Wheat Road about 11.15pm, police said in a statement.
As well as several underage people being found drunk on board, a drug sniffer dog was also brought to the scene and a 17-year-old girl arrested over alleged cocaine possession.
The bus operator, a 25 year-old Colyton man was issued with a $5000 fine for breaching COVID-19 restrictions.
READ MORE: Van Onselen - State blame game borders on futile
Remy Varga 12.16pm: ‘No evidence linking NZ outbreak to Melbourne’
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said the state government was in contact with New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern following reports Kiwi authorities were investigating if the coronavirus had returned via Melbourne.
“I’ve had a couple of conversations with Prime Minister Ardern and the New Zealand High Commissioner,” he said.
“We’re remaining any and all support around some of that data.”
Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said there was no evidence linking the New Zealand outbreak to Melbourne.
“I’ve heard the operator of Americold has said definitely that no freight has gone to New Zealand.
New Zealand health authorities are investigating if COVID-19 was brought back into the country via cold freight.
READ MORE: Lives ruined in misplaced coronavirus response
Remy Varga 12.08pm: Virus to go on for ‘some generations’: Sutton
Professor Brett Sutton said he was concerned there were some Melburnians struggling with stage-four restrictions.
“We need to be really careful about how we move back and how to reinforce the requirements to live in a COVID normal world,” he said.
He said in order to combat the coronavirus long term, there would need to be “base level behaviour change for everyone across the board”.
Professor Sutton said he expected there to be “some generations of ongoing infections within families.”
Professor Sutton said he thought it unlikely that a coronavirus vaccine would be available within six months.
“I hope that it’s not 12 to 18 months but we have to prepare ourselves for the long haul,” he said.
READ MORE: Australia on cusp of vaccine deal: Health Minister
Adeshola Ore 11.51am: NSW man in his 80s dies from virus
A NSW man in his 80s has died from coronavirus, bringing the state’s number of COVID-19 deaths to 54.
5 new cases of #COVID19 have been diagnosed in NSW between 8pm on 14 August and 8pm on 15 August.
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) August 16, 2020
For the latest list of COVID-19 locations, visit: https://t.co/pqkRdfh3cR pic.twitter.com/UMaSR6mEIo
NSW Health confirmed there were five new cases of coronavirus reported overnight, including three linked to Tangara School for Girls.
The three new infections linked to the Tangara school cluster are all close contacts of previous cases, with 25 cases now linked to the school in total.
The number of cases linked to the outbreak at Our Lady of Mercy School Parramatta remains at four.
NSW Health is currently treating 119 COVID-19 cases, including seven in intensive care and five requiring ventilation.
One infection in a Western Sydney man in his 40s is under investigation. The fifth case is a close contact of this man.
NSW Health has added more venues to its list of locations associated with known cases of coronavirus.
People who attended these venues during the following dates and times are considered ‘casual contacts’ and should monitor symptoms and get tested and isolate if they occur:
Crust Pizza, Concord on Thursday 6 August between 4pm and 8pm or Friday 7 August between 5pm and 9pm
Den Sushi Rose Bay on Saturday 8 August between 7:15pm and 8:45pm
Café Perons Double Bay on Saturday 8 August between 1pm and 2pm.
Horderns Restaurant at Milton Park Country House Hotel and Spa, Bowral on Sunday 2 August between 7:45pm and 9:15pm.
The state has now reported 3,761 confirmed cases of COVID-19.
READ MORE: Finding silver linings in lockdown
Remy Varga 11.39am: Premier casts doubt on ridding state of virus
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said the notion that the coronavirus will ever be “completely extinguished” is unlikely.
“Even when this second wave is over, we will still see cases,” he said.
“The notion of completely extinguishing it and never seeing it again, I think that would be an unlikely outcome.”
“I’m not here today to run a commentary on aged care because it might be seen as an argument between different governments,” he added.
Mr Andrews said the Victorian government was working with the Commonwealth as well as private aged care providers to limit the movement of staff across multiple facilities.
“It is critically important that we have across this industry and every industry - if you have symptoms then you just can’t come to work,” he said.
Staff movement has been identified as a possible driver of coronavirus cases in aged care facilities.
Mr Andrews said he was grateful for Commonwealth and interstate support in Victoria’s crisis, with some facilities in “absolute crisis”.
“They’re doing a great job in really tough circumstances but that puts some strain on them because some of these places are in absolute crisis,” he said.
“That’s a really challenging thing for even the most experienced nurses to have to deal with.”
READ MORE: Paying for an epidemic of stupidity
Remy Varga 11.34am: Authorities take over two Melbourne aged care homes
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews says federal health authorities with assistance from Victoria’s Western Health service had taken over two aged-care facilities, Japara Goonawarra Aged Care Home in Sunbury and Doutta Galla Aged Care in Yarraville.
“It’s not just about moving entire nursing homes, out of a familiar environment into an unfamiliar environment,” he said.
“It’s also about sending very significant members of staff – nurses and hospital nurses and personal care workers- into aged care facilities.”
He said there were 72 coronavirus cases at Goonawarra with 58 at Doutta Galla.
Of the latter facility, Mr Andrews said there were 33 among residents and 25 among staff members.
On Wednesday, DHHS said there was a single case of a staff member at Doutta Galla.
Mr Andrews said the State of Emergency declaration had been extended until September 13.
READ MORE: ‘My life’s finished. I’m just stuck here now’
Remy Varga 11.20am: 11 of 16 more deaths in Victoria linked to aged care
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said 11 of the 16 deaths recorded are linked to aged-care facilities.
He said there are 40 Victorians battling COVID-19 in intensive care with 29 of those relying on a ventilator.
Mr Andrews said the number of “mystery cases” had increased by 95, bringing the total to 3478.
As well, the Victorian Premier said the number of COVID-19 cases among healthcare workers was 1164.
Mr Andrews said there were around 2075 coronavirus cases linked to the aged-care sector in Victoria.
READ MORE: Ruby Princess Covid fiasco ‘inexcusable’
Adeshola Ore 11.13am: No new virus cases in Queensland overnight
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has confirmed the state has recorded no new coronavirus cases overnight.
There are nine active cases and 1091 confirmed infectious in total.
Queensland health authorities conducted more than 3,000 tests in the past twenty four hours.
Sunday, 16 August – coronavirus cases in Queensland:
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) August 16, 2020
• 0 new confirmed cases
• 9 active cases
• 1,091 total confirmed cases
• 725,394 tests conducted
Sadly, six Queenslanders with COVID-19 have died. 1,079 patients have recovered.#COVID19Aus pic.twitter.com/sF0LG3Iac2
READ MORE: City takes an outdoor break
Olivia Caisley 10.44am: Need to extend Jobkeeper ‘pretty bloody obvious’: Shorten
Opposition NDIS spokesman Bill Shorten has declared “it’s pretty bloody obvious” the rate of JobSeeker and JobKeeper should not be reduced at the end of next month, before Labor’s caucus finalises its position on the government-funded payments.
Mr Shorten told ABC Insiders on Sunday “I live in Victoria. It’s pretty bloody obvious that we should be extending JobSeeker and JobKeeper into the next year.”
Asked if the party’s leader Anthony Albanese had been too slow off the mark to reach a policy position on JobSeeker and JobKeeper arrangements, Mr Shorten said: “Not at all. I think that Labor has been ahead of the government on a range of issues.”
.@billshortenmp says the rate of JobSeeker and JobKeeper should "absolutely not" come down at the end of September.
— Insiders ABC (@InsidersABC) August 15, 2020
"I live in Victoria. It's pretty bloody obvious that we should be extending JobSeeker and JobKeeper into the next year." #insiders #auspol pic.twitter.com/v1r6bPqFGo
Mr Shorten also levelled blame at the Morrison government for its handling of coronavirus outbreaks in aged care facilities and backed his colleague, opposition aged care spokeswoman Julie Collins’ calls for a National Aged Care co-ordinating Authority.
“The Government set up a response unit in Victoria, which is good as far as it goes, but it doesn’t go far enough.”
He praised the sector’s workers, declaring aged care workers “do the work of angels” but are being “treated like fruit pickers” amid the pandemic.
Mr Shorten also questioned the privatisation of the sector and whether it had impacted the level of care being provided to the elderly.
“I’m saying if you can make a profit, that’s good,” Mr Shorten said. “But the problem is here, that we’re seeing profit being made, but people not getting looked after.”
Labor frontbencher Bill Shorten also accused Scott Morrison of being a “simp” and “soft” over his failure to pressure US President Donald Trump into continuing to detain ex-Afghan soldier Hekmatullah after he killed three Australians in 2012.
Mr Shorten said it wasn’t good enough that Hekmatullah is set to be released in a prisoner swap and Australia shouldn’t let him be allowed to re-enter the community “scott-free”.
“Mr Morrison needs to make sure he doesn’t look he’s just a simp to Donald Trump on this very important issue.”
READ MORE: Salt — The legacy of coronavirus will be a gift
Remy Varga 10.40am: 279 new cases, 16 new deaths in Victoria
Victoria has recorded 16 new deaths from the coronavirus, bringing the state’s total death toll to 309.
As well, Victoria has seen 279 new cases of COVID-19 in the latest 24-hours.
#Covid19VicData for 16 August 2020.
— VicGovDHHS (@VicGovDHHS) August 16, 2020
279 new cases of #coronavirus (#COVID19) detected in Victoria in the last 24 hours. We are sad to report there have been 16 deaths.
More detail will be provided this afternoon. pic.twitter.com/a3AAzEdxhl
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and Health Minister Jenny Mikakos are due to provide an update on the state’s coronavirus crisis at 11am AEST.
Remy Varga 10.26am: Authorities take over Melbourne aged care facility
Federal health authorities have taken over an aged-care facility in inner west Melbourne due to “deficiencies” in the handling of a coronavirus outbreak.
Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck said Doutta Galla Aged Care in the suburb of Yarraville was being treated as a “top priority” with aged care responders “very aware of the challenges being faced at this site”.
“AUSMAT specialist teams and a clinical first nurse responder have been deployed,” he said.
“The workforce is being supplemented to help stabilise the situation, but we are aware there may still be some deficiencies and that is being actively managed.”
Mr Colbeck said all Doutta Galla residents who tested negative had been moved from the facility in a bid to stop the spread of the virus.
As well, the Older Persons Advocacy Network has been engaged to support residents and their family.
The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission has been alerted situation.
On Wednesday, Victoria’s DHHS said a single staff member was confirmed to have the coronavirus.
READ MORE: Covid-fuelled grog violence hits remote kids
Emma Dunkley 10am: UK giant tells staff they can WFH forever
Looking after other people’s money is about to become a lot more comfortable for employees of Schroders, one of Britain’s best-known asset management companies. The wealth manager has told its 5,000 staff worldwide that they no longer need to come to the office to work for a certain number of days each week.
In a revolutionary move for a prominent City of London institution, Schroders has declared “a new approach to flexible working”, allowing staff to work from anywhere they choose as long as they work the days and hours set out in their contract. Before the coronavirus pandemic struck, employees were expected to come to the office at least four days of the week.
An internal memo informed staff there would be “no mandated requirements to be in the office a certain number of days”. Staff will be expected to co-ordinate with their teams and continue to support customers, but are free to arrange their working lives to suit their personal needs.
READ MORE: Is this the workplace of the future?
Olivia Caisley 8.45am: Health Minister ‘optimistic’ over 2021 vaccine
Health Minister Greg Hunt says he is “genuinely optimistic” a COVID-19 vaccine will be internationally available by next year, declaring the nation is close to reaching a deal to produce it in Australia.
Mr Hunt said he had been cautious in the past to say that a vaccine would become available but the latest medical advice had been a “genuine ray of hope”, suggesting there had been great progress across multiple vaccine candidates.
“We are in advanced negotiations with a range of different companies with regards to a vaccine,” he told Sky News on Sunday. “I have been very cautious in the past about the prospect of a vaccine. I am now on the basis of our best health advice, genuinely more optimistic.
“I think the world is moving closer to a vaccine, and it’s unlikely that it will be just one, it’s likely that it will be many.”
A total of 168 candidate vaccines are being worked on around the world, according to a WHO overview published last week, with the leading candidate for an Australian deal developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University.
Mr Hunt said Australia was making very significant progress in negotiating access to multiple potential vaccines and would ideally manufacture any potential candidate onshore through domestic vaccine manufacturer CSL.
“We are very fortunately placed due to years and years of preparation, with regards to having the national reserves facility which CSL operates,” Mr Hunt said. “That means it has a capacity through its vaccine secures based in Melbourne to produce vaccines, under contract from around the world.”
Mr Hunt called this resource an “exceptionally important national asset” as it would mean every Australian has access to a vaccine if one becomes available.
“We are well placed in our negotiations and for the first time, I feel cautiously but genuinely optimistic about the prospect of a vaccine.”
Mr Hunt said he couldn’t reveal the names of the companies the Morrison government had entered agreements because of two non-disclosure agreements but assured Australians they were in an “advanced position” in their negotiations.
“...This is a genuine ray of hope, and we’re advanced, we’re prepared, and we’re in a position to produce.”
READ MORE: For $19, vaccine guinea pig ‘a hero’
Christine Kellett 8.15am: Barbecue ban ‘most un-Australian thing ever’
As if Victoria’s stage four lockdowns were not bad enough, one local Melbourne council has moved to ban backyard barbecues, fire pits and pizza ovens over “offensive emissions.”
The proposal before Bayside City Council would ban the burning of soild fuels such as charcoal and wood for backyard cooking.
Cue outrage.
“How could you possibly take that away from people, especially now when we’re not allowed to be out and about? We only have our backyards,” Brighton East man Gianluca Bocci told Nine Newspapers.
“Why not ask people to be respectful, rather than continuously taking things away from us?”
Brighton’s Andrea Swain called it “the most un-Australian thing ever”.
The council receives about three complaints on average a year over smoke.
“Surely if the smoke was that harmful, the people eating the meat would be ones to get sick,” she told the Sunday Herald Sun.
It is now seeking feedback to the proposed amendment via its website.
READ MORE: What happens if stage four lockdowns don’t work?
Simon Kuestenmacher 7.55am: We must prepare for a slower-growing Australia
Since the start of the millennium, Australia added 200,000 new migrants each year — at the peak of 2008 we even added more than 300,000 new residents from overseas. In many respects we planned our economy around the constant intake of new migrants.
Our education system is underwritten by international students, our residential construction sector depends on a steady stream of new residents needing homes and, most important, all the highly skilled jobs that our economy created couldn’t possibly have been filled by the locally available workforce.
Well, that was before Covid. Australia won’t see pre-Covid growth for years. In May, Alan Tudge in his role as the Minister for Population, Cities and Urban Infrastructure said net overseas migration for this year essentially will be zero.
Without strong population growth, Australia will be a different place. How can we recover from COVID in the context of Small Australia, and is it even appropriate to talk of Australia being small?
Read the full story here.
Shae McDonald 7.30am: Protesters defy court order banning march
Six people have been arrested after protesters took to one of Brisbane’s busiest thoroughfares in defiance of a Brisbane Supreme Court order that banned the march.
Justice Jean Dalton on Thursday ruled the pro-refugee rally could not go ahead as planned over the Story Bridge or on Main Street at Kangaroo Point.
She said the planned action could spread COVID-19 and block major arterial roads.
But despite the court order, hundreds of people marched in wet conditions along Main Street from 2pm on Saturday.
The protesters had started at Raymond Park, a short distance from the Kangaroo Point Central Hotel and Apartments where refugees and asylum seekers are being detained.
They then marched to the hotel, chanting “no hate, no fear, refugees are welcome here” and other war cries in unison.
Read the full story here.
Christine Kellett 7am: Federal government ‘close to inking vaccine deal’
Australia is reportedly close to inking a deal to locally manufacture a coronavirus vaccine if the final phase of trials are effective.
The federal government is in the final stages of negotiations with a vaccine manufacturer, believed to be AstraZeneca, the Sunday Herald Sun reports.
The vaccine has been developed in conjunction with Oxford University.
The federal government’s expenditure review committee is expected to examine a final proposal within days. It is believed the federal government wants to produce the vaccine locally.
READ MORE: Not so fast on Covid vaccine, WHO tells Russia
Agencies 6.30am: Denmark makes masks compulsory on public transport
Denmark will make the wearing of face masks mandatory on public transport across the country from August 22 to try to contain the coronavirus, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Saturday.
She called on Danes not to let down their guard and to respect social distancing and hygiene rules.
Danish authorities currently recommend masks on public transport during peak times, while they are obligatory in six areas including the country’s second city of Aarhus, where the outbreak of the virus is greater.
“We have witnessed a rise in the number of people infected in Denmark, with several local clusters,” said Tyra Grove Krause, an official from the infectious diseases control authority.
“Some (outbreaks) are under control and others are about to be.” Denmark has registered a total of 15,859 cases of COVID-19 with 621 deaths.
– AFP
READ MORE: ‘Dangerous’ to think virus will stop virus
Agencies 6am: Cardinal’s message of ‘hope’ as pilgrims stay away
The Roman Catholic church’s annual Assumption celebrations took place in Lourdes on Saturday with fewer pilgrims than usual making the trip to the southwest of France because of the global health crisis.
For the first time, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State and right-hand man of Pope Francis, presided over the mass at the grotto, delivering a message of “hope” for a “world that knows darkness, fear”, referring in particular to the coronavirus pandemic.
Nearly 5,000 pilgrims took their place in the Basilica of Saint Pius X, a gigantic underground church, as large as two football fields, which can hold five times as many.
The organisers then closed access to the underground basilica, inviting pilgrims to follow on screens outside.
“It’s weird. There aren’t many people this year,” said Michel Clavel, a retired 66-year-old truck driver, who comes every year for the Assumption pilgrimage.
– AFP
READ MORE: Old religious quarrels return as lockdowns ease
Staff reporters 3.30am: City takes a break as third lockdown week nears
Melburnians left home in droves on Saturday to take advantage of sunny weather despite stage-four coronavirus restrictions across the city after almost two weeks of a scheduled six weeks of lockdown.
The Premier, meanwhile, wondered aloud if rain better suited the situation. “It’s not over,’’ Dan Andrews said. “The signs are encouraging, but it’s not over.”
Cyclists, runners and walkers were a common sight on footpaths and bike tracks across Melbourne. While most wore mandatory masks, some runners and riders were spotted with uncovered faces, despite the inability to social distance.
Many exercised shoulder-to-shoulder, mixing with other pairs on the footpath in the process.
In the eastern suburb of Brighton, sunbathers could be seen sitting on the sand at the beach, despite strict rules on exercise.
Victorians also flocked to local shopping strips and supermarkets, taking time to socialise in the warm weather — being a Melbourne winter, in the mid-teens — before forecast showers return for the next week.
Victoria had recorded 303 new cases of coronavirus in the past 24 hours, according to new figures on Saturday. Another four people have died from the virus, the state Department of Health and Human Services said on Saturday morning.
Two of the latest deaths are connected to aged-care outbreaks. A coronavirus outbreak has been reported at a supported residential service in suburban Albert Park.
FULL STORY: Beleaguered city’s citizens venture outdoors
Rebecca Urban 3.15am: Covid-fuelled grog violence hits remote kids
School attendance in the remote Northern Territory community of Wadeye has plummeted amid an outbreak of alcohol-fuelled violence that has stemmed from an increase to welfare payments designed to offset the impacts of the coronavirus.
John Young, principal of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Thamarrurr Catholic College, has told The Weekend Australian that a significant number of the school’s 600 students have been absent for several months, with the attendance rate dropping to about 30 per cent.
Teachers and school staff were also struggling to turn up to work regularly, he said, as they battled fatigue as a result of being kept up throughout the night as alcohol wreaked havoc on the community where the consumption of liquor is restricted.
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