Coronavirus Australia live updates: Treasurer faces call to widen JobKeeper as $60bn error revealed
Australian Industry Group boss says government’s $60bn JobKeeper mistake has a silver lining, as Clive Palmer is denied entry into WA.
- Cost of JobKeeper slashed by $60bn
- Treasurer faces calls to widen support
- ‘NSW, it’s time to wine and dine’
- Cormann calls for borders to reopen
- Death toll rises to 101
- 39 million Americans unemployed
Hello and welcome to The Australian’s live coverage of the coronavirus crisis. The cost of JobKeeper has been slashed by $60bn after a ‘reporting error’ was found. NSW will relax restrictions on hospitality venues to allow up to 50 patrons from June 1. Mathias Cormann has called for state borders to reopen, while Peter Dutton is supporting Pauline Hanson’s push on border closures. In the UK, at least 17 per cent of Londoners have been infected by the virus.
Agencies 8.50pm: NSW police virus powers ‘well-measured’
NSW’s police commissioner says the public is happy with the way officers have enforced COVID-19 public health orders with some 17,000 residents dobbing in potential wrongdoers.
Commissioner Mick Fuller on Thursday told a parliamentary inquiry into the state government’s handling of the crisis that he believed the force had policed social distancing measures well.
“There (are) always degrees of improvement (possible) but I really think we did the best we could in a difficult situation,” Mr Fuller told the inquiry. “While it may be vexed in terms or people’s passion for or against the health orders, I’ve never received more positive feedback about the leadership of the police force.” Mr Fuller told the inquiry about 1300 public health order infringement notices had been issued since the rules were enacted on March 31.
The number has been slowly tapering off since the Easter long weekend as restrictions are eased, but the commissioner is still personally checking each notice.
READ MORE: 80 join Pauline Hanson’s court battle
David Penberthy 8pm: ‘Dear Gladys, back off’
When it comes to the proper management of pandemics, NSW telling SA and WA what to do is like the class dunce lecturing the head prefects.
The state that brought you the Ruby Princess, the Newmarch House aged care home and zero tolerance policing for the heinous crime of sunbathing wins special marks for audacity with its sermonising about the western states’ reluctance to re-open their borders.
The people of SA know that the lockdown can’t go on forever — and they don’t want it to, with many businesses and workers who have lost hours or lost their jobs entirely now urging the state government to lift restrictions.
Read David Penberthy’s full commentary piece here.
Angelica Snowden 6.45pm: Clive Palmer denied entry to Western Australia
Clive Palmer is threatening legal action after he was denied entry to Western Australia as the state government remains adamant interstate borders will remain closed for months.
Mr Palmer said he wanted to visit WA for meetings with businesspeople, Senator Mathias Cormann and potential 2021 state election candidates for his United Australia Party.
A spokesman told AAP he had commenced a High Court challenge to the border closure and would cite a section of the constitution that stipulates trade between states must be free.
Mr Palmer accused Premier Mark McGowan of “denying Western Australians jobs and prosperity” by refusing to open borders.
“He risks economic shutdown with his Gestapo tactics,” the Queensland-based billionaire said in a statement.
Mr McGowan said he endorsed the police commissioner’s decision not to deem Mr Palmer exempt from the ban.
“He’s made it on proper grounds and with the correct purpose behind it, which is to protect the health of West Australians,” the premier told reporters.
“If Mr Palmer doesn’t like it, he’s subject to the law just like everyone else.” Mr McGowan reiterated WA’s interstate borders would likely remain closed for months.
READ MORE: Why socialising outside should be safe
Geoff Chambers 6.25pm: JobKeeper error ‘on the right side of the ledger’
Australian Industry Group chief executive Innes Willox said the JobKeeper accounting error was on “the right side of the ledger”.
“It’s unfortunate that the mistake has been made. But it’s on the right side of the ledger rather than the wrong side of the ledger so there’s more money that the government potentially has to spend or less debt that it has to pay off,” Mr Willox said.
“They’re pretty good options to have. The program has done a terrific job thus far on behalf of business and on behalf of employees and we shouldn’t walk away from that.
“It’s an accounting error and an error made as a result of some extra complexity in a form … I don’t think we should over-egg the omelette here.”
READ MORE: Brookfield not out of Virgin race
Sarah Elks 6.10pm: Queensland Olympic bid put on hold
Queensland’s bid to host the 2032 Olympics has been put on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In a letter from Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk tabled in parliament on Friday, the Premier said the “candidature leadership group” had made the decision.
The group includes the state government, the federal government, the south-east Queensland mayors and the Australian Olympic Committee.
“As Queensland’s and Australia’s focus has been placed on responding to coronavirus...(the group) agreed that the 2032 Games candidature discussions be put on hold until further notice,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
The Premier announced late last year that the state would bid to host the Games.
READ MORE: Pandemic history ignored by Premiers
Geoff Chambers 5.50pm: Put JobKeeper funds into ‘holes in system’: ASU
The Australian Services Union said the JobKeeper cost overestimation should be put towards “holes in the system that have left thousands of workers without any income”.
ASU national secretary Linda White said aviation workers locked out of JobKeeper should now receive wage support.
Ms White said workers with companies, including dnata and Air Niugini, should not be excluded due to the ownership structure of their employer.
“They should have access to the same financial support as other Australians,” Ms White said.
“Dnata employees have been stood down without pay since March and are struggling to put food on the table for their families. It doesn’t need to be this way.”
“Clearly there are now unspent resources that the Government can use to make sure every Australian, regardless of the ownership structure of their employer, is supported through unprecedented economic turmoil.”
Dnata has operated in Australia since 2007 and employs about 5500 staff at nine local airports.
READ MORE: Check in and stay safe: hotels after coronavirus
Adeshola Ore 4.55pm: NSW gyms could reopen in July
NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro says gyms and other exercise studios could be open by July amid news the state will allow up to 50 people to sit at cafes, restaurants and pubs from early June.
Mr Barilaro said the government is considering plans to reopen the exercise facilities including yoga and dance studios.
“We are working on that plan as we speak now,” he said. “We are not talking September, no way in the world. We are looking at all these restrictions coming off in the next month or so.”
The Deputy Premier said the fitness industry would have to put forward a ‘COVID safe’ plan and address areas of concern like how surfaces will be kept clean.
He also confirmed that patrons could just have a drink at a pub or other venue and not be forced need to have a meal as well.
“You won’t be able to linger around the bar,” he said. “You’ll just have to get your beer and sit down.”
After a public rift between the Deputy Premier and Andrew Constance over the Eden-Monaro by-election made headlines Mr Barilaro said “it’s all good” and the pair plan to enjoy the easing of restrictions and meet for a drink.
“I was going to catch up with Andrew Constance in Cobargo next week but we had to change some plans,” he said.
“We will be catching up. We caught up this week at cabinet so it’s all good with us.”
READ MORE: Beyond the pandemic: $32 smashed avo
Sarah Elks 4.45pm: Qld Premier resists calls to fast-track reopening
Queensland will not rush to reopen pubs, clubs and restaurants to more people as a result of NSW’s decision, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk says.
“What NSW does is a matter for them,” Ms Palaszczuk said in response to NSW’s plan for a staged reopening of venues for up to 50 people at a time, from June 1.
“Queensland will continue to be guided by our Chief Health Officer’s advice.”
Queensland’s coronavirus restrictions are being gradually eased based on a three-stage “roadmap” released earlier this month.
Currently, in stage one, cafes, restaurants and pubs can reopen to 10 people at a time - as long as they are eating food and not just drinking alcohol.
From stage two - which is scheduled to kick in on June 12 - that will expand to 20 people, with cinemas, tourism experiences, concert venues and stadiums also able to reopen.
In fine print, the roadmap explains that if certain venues - including restaurants, cafes, pubs, registered clubs, hotels, casinos, amusement parks, concert venues and theatres - submit a “COVID Safe” plan to health authorities, they could be permitted to have more than 20 people at one time.
From July 10, stage three is set to kick in - subject to review - which would increase venue loads to 100 people at a time.
Geoff Chambers 4.40pm: Albanese says ‘you could have seen this from space’
Anthony Albanese said the JobKeeper reporting error “blows any previous mistake when it comes to economic figures in Australian history right out of the water”.
“This is a mistake you could’ve seen from space,” Mr Albanese said. “This is a government that couldn’t run a bath let alone be good economic managers. The fact is that if you can’t get this right, how can this government get the economic recovery right?”
The Opposition leader said the government had said “its program was fully subscribed and that the $130bn had all been allocated”.
“We know now that isn’t the case. There are 1m casual workers who have not received support. Local government workers who have not received support,” he said.
“Entire sectors such as the arts and entertainment sector that have not received support. At the same time this smug government has time after time repeated figures that are wrong to the tune of $60bn and wrong to the tune of 3m workers.”
READ MORE: 80 people join Hanson’s border battle
Richard Ferguson 4.25pm: Treasurer: This is not a green light to spend
Josh Frydenberg says the Treasury’s $60bn JobKeeper accounting error is not an “invitation to go and spend more money” and expand the wage subsidy program.
After it was revealed the scheme covers 3 million people less than originally thought, the Treasurer on Friday said there would be no wholesale reviews to the program.
“It’s not an invitation to go and spend more money,” he told ABC News. “No doubt the Labor Party will say, “Go and spend it more here or there.” The Labor Party have never seen a spending proposal they haven’t supported, and a tax that they haven’t increased.
“All the money that the government is spending during the coronavirus period is borrowed money. There is no money tree.”
The Treasury and the Australian Taxation Office said the cost of the Morrison government’s COVID-19 economic rescue package centrepiece had been revised down to around $70 billion, down from $130bn.
In a joint statement released on Friday afternoon, Treasury and the ATO said they now expected the number of employees likely to be covered under the JobKeeper program to be around 3.5m, down from 6.5m.
READ MORE: Why socialising should be safe
Geoff Chambers 4.10pm: Millions of workers left out, ACTU says
ACTU secretary Sally McManus told The Australian the Morrison government must extend the JobKeeper scheme to support temporary visa, higher education and casual workers.
“The government committed $130bn to help protect the jobs of six million workers. Now we learn it will only help three and a half million,” Ms McManus said.
“The government has opposed extending the package to casual workers, those on temporary work visas, workers in higher education, Australian workers whose company is owned by a foreign government and those in our arts, culture and entertainment communities.
“Covering these workers would account for almost three million working people in Australia. Workers need this support extended and today’s revelations mean there are no more excuses. The government must act now to extend the program to workers in real need of financial support.”
Geoff Chambers 4pm: Universities call for rethink on support
Universities Australia chief executive Catriona Jackson told The Australian the government should reconsider its decision to exclude universities from JobKeeper.
“As we have said in recent weeks, without greater support universities face the loss of 21,000 jobs in the next six months and a significant reduction in the essential research undertaken on our campuses,” Ms Jackson said.
“We were disappointed that the government changed the regulations on a number of occasions to effectively exclude universities.”
“We call on them to reconsider. Australia will need even more new ideas, new skills and new jobs to power economic and community recovery. Universities are the engine rooms of that renewal.”
READ MORE: Comrade Dan follows silk road
Geoff Chambers 3.45pm: Call for casuals to now get JobKeeper subsidy
GetUp national director Paul Oosting said the government must expand Jobkeeper to include “all the casuals and people on temporary visas”.
“The funds are literally all there,” Mr Oosting said. “This has been one of the government’s biggest policy failures in this pandemic, now they have the opportunity to step up and do the right thing.
“If Scott Morrison doesn’t use this opportunity to extend JobKeeper to casual workers and people on temporary visas then he cannot say it’s because of the cost.”
READ MORE: Pandemic history ignored by Premiers
Geoff Chambers 3.30pm: Unions say millions left short on 'false premise’
The ACTU said millions of workers had been “left out of JobKeeper on the premise that there wasn’t enough money”.
There is now no excuse for leaving the 5500 workers at #dnata, and others out of #JobKeeper https://t.co/eBspWrNTPb
— Senator Tony Sheldon (@senator_sheldon) May 22, 2020
“Now we know that it’s been underspent by $60 billion. There is no excuse – Josh Frydenberg can fix this with a stroke of his pen. Expand JobKeeper now,” the ACTU tweeted.
“If they’ve underspent JobKeeper that means it must be expanded so that more casuals, arts workers and visa workers are eligible. We can’t leave anyone behind.”
The NETU, which represents higher education employees, said a “fraction” of the $60bn should be used to “save 30,000 jobs”.
READ MORE: Government sticks with covid app
Geoff Chambers 2.55pm: Treasurer says error won’t affect legitimate payments
Josh Frydenberg said the reporting error would have no consequences for JobKeeper payments already made to eligible businesses.
The Treasurer said it was “welcome news that the impact on the public purse from the program will not be as great as initially estimated”.
“The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and the Treasury have informed the Government of a reporting error inadvertently made by some businesses in their enrolment forms for the program,” Mr Frydenberg said.
“As a result of the reporting error, Treasury has also provided the government with a revised estimate of the cost of the JobKeeper program. Treasury now expects the cost of the JobKeeper program to be around $70 billion.
“The JobKeeper program is now expected to support around 3.5m Australians and remains a demand driven program and available for businesses to enrol in at any time until its conclusion.
“As the ATO and Treasury statement outlines, the revised cost is due to ‘some improvement to the outlook for the economy since the original estimate’ and the ‘level and impact of health restrictions not having been as severe as expected’.”
Geoff Chambers 2.45pm: Labor condemns ‘serious budget error’
Opposition treasury spokesman Jim Chalmers told The Australian: “There has not been in recent memory a more serious error made in the budget than Treasurer (Josh) Frydenberg has made here”.
Geoff Chambers 2.40pm: Cost of JobKeeper scheme cut in half
The cost of the JobKeeper wage subsidy scheme has been slashed in half and covers three million people less than forecast by Treasury following a “reporting error in estimates of employees likely to access” the $1500 fortnightly payment.
Treasury and the Australian Taxation Office said the cost of the Morrison government’s COVID-19 economic rescue package centrepiece had been revised down to around $70 billion, down from $130bn.
In a joint statement released on Friday afternoon, Treasury and the ATO said they now expected the number of employees likely to be covered under the JobKeeper program to be around 3.5m, down from 6.5m.
“Late yesterday, the ATO and Treasury advised the Government of a reporting error in estimates of the number of employees likely to access the JobKeeper program. The enrolment forms completed by 910,055 businesses who have self‑assessed as eligible under the scheme had indicated that this program would cover around 6.5 million eligible employees,” the statement said.
“The ATO’s review of these forms has found that around 1,000 of those businesses appear to have made significant errors when reporting the estimate of eligible employees on their enrolment form.
“The most common error was that instead of reporting the number of employees they expected to be eligible, they reported the amount of assistance they expected to receive. For example, over 500 businesses with ‘1’ eligible employee reported a figure of ‘1,500’ (which is the amount of JobKeeper payment they would expect to receive for each fortnight for that employee).”
The joint statement said the reporting error came to light following analysis by Treasury and the ATO assessing the amounts being paid out under the scheme “reconciling these with the estimates provided by enrolled businesses of the likely number of eligible employees”.
“It was not picked up by the ATO earlier as their primary focus in the first fortnight of JobKeeper payments was on ensuring that JobKeeper payments were paid promptly to those eligible for them, and not paid to those who were ineligible.
“These initial estimates from businesses of employees covered are not linked to payments, and so were not as carefully analysed.”
“Importantly this reporting error has no consequences for JobKeeper payments that have already been made to eligible businesses, as payments under the scheme depend on the subsequent declaration that an eligible business makes in relation to each and every eligible employee.”
Lachlan Moffet Gray 2.25pm: Pubs move ‘a welcome kick-start to the economy’
Australian Hotels Association NSW CEO John Whelan has lauded the government’s new 50-patron limit as an “important and positive step forward” for NSW pubs.
“The entire hospitality sector has been hard hit by the COVID-19 crisis with hotels shut down across NSW and 94% of our workforce of 75,000 stood down or terminated,” he said.
“From June 1 we can start re-employing our staff and open up our hotels once again as a great place for our communities to meet, relax and socialise.
“Today’s announcement is a common sense move – it will be particularly welcomed by our NSW country hoteliers as regional NSW opens again for travellers.
“Hoteliers have rightly put the health and safety of staff, patrons and the community first as we battle together to contain the spread of COVID-19, but the virus has devastated hotels and our workforce.
“Today is a significant step forward on the road to recovery for our industry and a welcome kick-start to the NSW economy.
“We look forward to the day when we can safely fully re-open, re-employ our staff and pour a cold draught beer for our loyal patrons.”
READ MORE: Washing less, but is it healthy?
Amos Aikman 1.55pm: NT reveals group to lead post-covid recovery
The Northern Territory has unveiled a new high-powered “reconstruction commission” to guide the post-coronavirus economic recovery.
Membership will include former top federal public servant Martin Parkinson, Infrastructure Australia chief executive Romilly Madew and former Westpac bank head Gail Kelly.
It will also feature NT treaty commissioner Mick Dodson, renewable energy entrepreneur Eytan Lenko and former or outgoing senior local politicians Paul Henderson and Gary Higgins.
Chief Minister Michael Gunner, who is moving into election mode ahead of a poll due in August, released a green paper on the recovery, dubbed “operation rebound”.
Leadership of the commission will be finalised next week, with an initial report due by late-July and a final report in November.
Lachlan Moffet Gray 1.45pm: ACT continues its no-case streak
The ACT has recorded no further coronavirus cases for the 18th consecutive day and remains coronavirus free alongside South Australia and the Northern Territory.
There have been 107 confirmed cases in the territory, three of which have died and 104 of which have recovered.
ACT Chief Health Officer Dr Kerryn Coleman thanked Canberrans for continuing to come forward for testing despite the absence of new cases.
“We have now tested over 15,000 Canberrans for COVID-19 which is a fantastic achievement,” Dr Coleman said.
“As I mentioned earlier this week, we are now averaging around 270 tests per day which more than double the around 100 tests before we expanded testing criteria a month ago.
“Testing remains the best way for us to know if COVID-19 is active in the community. If you’re feeling unwell, please get tested. Either call your general practitioner or present at one of the designated testing sites.”
READ MORE: Will Victoria rise from its slumber?
Agencies 1.15pm: Nats deputy wants Wesfarmers boycott amid Target move
Nationals deputy leader David Littleproud has called for a consumer boycott after Wesfarmers announced the closure or conversion of up to 167 Target outlets, AAP reports.
Target Country has been hardest hit by the decision, with 50 to be axed and 52 to become small-format Kmart shops.
Wesfarmers will also convert 10 to 40 Targets to Kmarts and close between 10 and 25 of its large format outlets.
In a withering spray at the corporate sector, Mr Littleproud accused major companies of turning their backs on regional Australia.
“It just goes to show they don’t give a rat’s about us,” he told reporters in Toowoomba. “Australians should vote with their wallets and not go near them.” He said corporations should be showing social conscience during the coronavirus crisis.
“They make a lot of money. They make billions out of Australians,” Mr Littleproud said. “If they want to turn their back on the most vulnerable, it just goes to show that corporate Australia has lost its way morally.”
Labor leader Anthony Albanese said shunning businesses could hurt workers. “I’m not sure what a boycott of Wesfarmers means except people not going into stores and further job losses,” he told reporters in Sydney. “I am not sure what Mr Littleproud’s comments would result in and how that would be constructive.” Mr Littleproud signalled he would escalate his boycott calls if shops closed in his electorate.
“I’ll be saying to everyone don’t shop at these stores,” he said. “Go and shop at those outlets that are prepared to support not just metropolitan Australians but regional Australians.” The agriculture minister also pointed the finger at supermarkets and telcos for hurting regional communities.
READ MORE: Jobs to go as struggling Target shrinks
Lachlan Moffet Gray 12.45pm: Enjoy yourself, with caution: Hazzard
NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard has told people “it’s time to get out, it’s time to enjoy yourself,” although limits of 10 on outdoor gatherings, as well as existing limits on weddings and funerals still apply.
“The Chief Health Officer and I are taking a very cautious approach,” Mr Hazzard said.
“We’re working on a range of other issues at the moment, but it’s not appropriate at this point to go leaping too far ahead.”
Mr Hazzard said that diners still had to be cautious when heading to dinner.
“Just maintain the social distance of 1.5m, and also hygiene — washing your hands like you’ve never done before. If you arrive at the restaurant, the first thing you should do is use hand hygienic cleaner, or go and wash your hands,” Mr Hazzard said.
“Then sit down, enjoy your dinner, do what NSW residents have always done, have a great night out with your friends, but be cautious, be careful, and this will work to the advantage of the entire community.”
Mr Hazzard said the four square metre per person rule means that a venue will only be permitted to have as many patrons as can be accommodated within that limit - meaning a venue with 40 square metres of space can seat ten patrons.
NSW treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the decision to jump from a 10 patron limit to 50 patron limit was done because it would put “thousands more” back into work before the federal government’s wage subsidy scheme expires.
“We can’t wait until September. We need to have as much of the economy going right now so that when the JobKeeper program runs out at that period of time we can transition safely into paid wages,” Mr Perrottet said.
“So, it’s a race against the clock.”
READ MORE: Why socialising outdoors should be safe
Lachlan Moffet Gray 12.35pm: 50 allowed in NSW hospitality venues from June 1
NSW will relax restrictions on cafes, restaurants and pubs to allow up to 50 patrons to be seated at one time from June 1.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said “strict guidelines” would still be in place to enforce social distancing, with the four square metre per person rule still applying, standing in venues banned and a maximum group number of 10 people.
“You have to be seated at a table, even if it’s a pub. You have to be seated at the table, you have to be served at the table,” Ms Berejiklian told reporters on Friday.
“There is no mingling, no standing around. There are strict guidelines in place, which will ensure that we can do this safely.”
NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro said the easing of restrictions means it “is time to wine and dine,” especially in regional areas, where Mr Barilaro says rural hospitality businesses will now be able to “fill their registers” over the June long weekend.
“We know this industry is so important, right across the state,” Mr Barilaro told reporters on Friday.
“More than a quarter of a million people are employed in the hospitality sector, and we know, with the losses that we’ve seen in employment, this is a sector that could quickly put jobs back into the economy, and that is why the New South Wales Government … we are taking a mighty big step to make sure that our venues can open to embrace the visitors to come to regional and rural New South Wales.”
Detailed rules and guidelines are to be released next week, with NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian saying some much-loved common staples of dining out will not return.
“Even something as simple as having joint cutlery on a table won’t be able to exist anymore,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“A simple buffet won’t exist anymore. There will be strict guidelines to ensure this happens safely.
“Because the last thing we want to do is have to shut businesses down because they haven’t complied. And the last thing we want to do is go backwards.”
Lachlan Moffet Gray 12.10pm: Albanese hasn’t spoken with Fitzgibbon over China
Anthony Albanese says he hasn’t spoken to opposition spokesman for resources and agriculture Joel Fitzgibbon about his comments made on Thursday that accused the federal government of “demonising” China’s system of government and mishandling the all-important relationship.
Amid accusations from Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack that Mr Fitzgibbon’s comments amounted to a failure of a “team Australia moment,” Mr Albanese said “the government needs to do its own job.”
“I speak on behalf of the Labor Party and when it comes to the government and people in the media parroting the government lines, that’s up to them,” Mr Albanese told reporters on Friday.
“This is a government that doesn’t have a plan on so many areas, doesn’t have an economic plan.
“You have Peter Dutton, who has become the Queensland state Coalition spokesperson out there doing press conferences about Annastacia Palaszczuk ... when he was the minister in charge of Australia’s borders, but allowed in the Ruby Princess.
“I would say the government should worry about doing its job and having a plan for the country.”
READ MORE: China demand for Oz resources on track
Will Glasgow 12.02pm: China scraps GDP target for 2020
China has abandoned an economic growth target for 2020, as the country’s leaders concede they face “challenges like never before”.
Premier Li Keqiang revealed the news — a remarkable development in its highly centralised political system – while delivering China’s “Work Report”, a state of the nation document, in front of the elite of the Chinese Community Party in Beijing.
“We have not set a specific target for economic growth this year. This is because our country will face factors that are difficult to predict,” Premier Li said in the Great Hall of the People.
READ FULL STORY here.
Lachlan Moffet Gray 11.50am: Gladys Berejiklian to address media at 12.30pm
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian will address the media at 12.30pm alongside her Deputy Premier John Barilaro.
The Premier is expected to announce modifications to public gatherings, an announcement she said would be made “imminent” earlier on Friday.
The press conference can be viewed live in the video at the top of this article.
Lachlan Moffet Gray 11.40am: Wuhan bans wildlife consumption, trade
The Chinese city of Wuhan — the epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic — has banned the consumption of wild animals as global pressure grows for China to control the wildlife trade that is said to have contributed to the “jump” of COVID-19 from animals to humans.
As well as banning the consumption of wild animals, the city declared most hunting within city limits, with the exception of hunting for “scientific research, population regulation, monitoring of epidemic diseases and other special circumstances.”
Controls were also placed on the breeding of wild animals so they are not reared for consumption, with city officials saying they will compensate professional breeders.
Lion, tiger, peacock are off the menu, as are pangolin and bats – the two species thought most likely to have carried the COVID-19 strain — effectively ending the more exotic trade available in livestock “wet markets” in the region.
The Wuhan ban is set to last five years.
READ MORE: City lines up to keep second surge at bay
Lachlan Moffet Gray 11.20am: Vic students to get uni offers same time as others
Victorian education minister James Merlino has said VCE exams will start just over one week later than usual, putting to rest fears that the university entrance exam would spill into next year.
The exams will run from November 9 to December 2, with all results available by the end of the year meaning Victorian students will get university offers the same time as other students across the country.
“This provides much-needed certainty for our year 12 students who have done it tough this year and their families,” Mr Merlino told reporters on Friday.
“They can celebrate finalising their year 12 before the end of the year, enjoy the summer break and then plan for their futures.
“It will mean no disadvantage for Victorian students in terms of university and other pathways.”
The revised dates are about two weeks later than the original, pre-pandemic completion date.
“When you think about the disruption to the world and to all our students this year as a result of COVID-19 that’s an outstanding outcome,” Mr Merlino said.
From May 26: Prep, grade one, grade two, specialist, VCE and VOCAL students will return to on-site learning in Victoria, with all remaining students to return from June 9. — with AAP.
READ MORE: Andrews in state of delusion
Lachlan Moffet Gray 11.20am: Cruise ships ban extended until mid-September
The Federal government has restricted the ban on cruise ships entering Australian waters until September 17.
It means any cruise ship capable of carrying more than 100 passengers is prohibited from operating cruises in Australia for another three months.
In a statement, the Australian Border Force said the Governor-General extended the human biosecurity emergency period for an additional three months on May 15, from 17 June to 17 September 2020.
This allowed the Minister for Health Greg Hunt to continue to exercise the emergency powers under the Commonwealth Biosecurity Act to “prevent or control the spread of COVID-19,” which he did in relation to cruise ships on May 20.
The ban was first enacted on March 27 when there were 28 international cruise ships in Australian waters.
Over the next month the ships progressively left Australian waters – including the ill-fated Ruby Princess, which left for Manila on April 23.
The ABF said the cruise industry has been cooperative.
“The Australian Border Force has been in constant contact with the cruise industry which has been cooperative and understands the Government’s overwhelming priority to ensure the health and safety of the broader Australian community,” it said in a statement.
READ MORE: Ruby director denies it was ‘business as usual’
Lachlan Moffet Gray 11.05am: Fitzgibbon fails ‘Team Australia’ moment: McCormack
Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack has hit out at opposition spokesman for resources and agriculture Joel Fitzgibbon for on Thursday saying the government has a track record of “demonising” China, saying he has failed a “Team Australia” moment as reports emerge that China is instructing energy firms not to buy Australian coal.
“This is a team Australia moment, and Joel Fitzgibbon has once again failed the test,” Mr McCormack told reporters on Friday.
Mr McCormack said he was confident that trade minister Simon Birmingham and resources minister Keith Pitt would be able gain assurance from China that they will continue to buy Australian coal, even as Mr Birmingham admitted he cannot get his Chinese counterpart to answer his phone calls.
“We will work through that in a measured, considered way as we always do, as people would expect the government to do,” Mr McCormack said.
“I know that Keith Pitt, Simon Birmingham, working with our Chinese diplomats, working through DFAT, working for the proper processes.
“China knows that we produce the best resources in the world, and we will keep on doing that. They will continue to need the product that we export, they will need them into the future. Yes, we will have a few hiccups along the way.”
Reports that China will stop importing Australian coal follows the levy of an 80 per cent tax on Australian barley export and the revocation of import licences for four Australian abattoirs.
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Lachlan Moffet Gray 10.55am: $1.8 billion pandemic boost for local governments
The federal government will provide $1.8 billion in financial assistance to all 537 local governments across Australia to assist them plan their infrastructure spending amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Deputy Prime Minister and minister for roads Michael McCormack said that $1.3 billion will be sourced from bringing forward financial assistance grants while the remaining $500 million will be new spending to support local road construction and the funding of community infrastructure.
Mr McCormack said the funding formula for the distribution of $500 million was transparent and would not be a repeat of the sports rort fiasco, where it was found federal grants for local sports and community centres was distributed to marginal electorates ahead of the 2019 federal election.
“It will be based on what their roads to recovery funding is, and so it is based on their road network and the length of the road network, as well as, of course, the number of people that they have in their local government areas,” Mr McCormack said.
“So it is a formula worked out a long time ago by the department, very accountable, very transparent.
“Each and every one of the local government areas right across the nation will benefit from this. Regional, Metropolitan, remote, the whole lot.”
READ MORE: Men ‘need more emotional support’
Lachlan Moffet Gray 10.45am: Trump causes alarm with positive test comment
US President Trump has caused some minor alarm by making comments that indicate he returned a positive test for coronavirus.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Mr Trump gave an update on his daily coronavirus test in a rather roundabout manner.
Here is a quote from Trump:
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) May 21, 2020
"I tested very positively in another sense so— this morning. Yeah. I tested positively toward negative, right. So. I tested perfectly this morning. Meaning I tested negative." pic.twitter.com/xA0DBUcfr9
“I tested very positively in another sense so — this morning. Yeah,” he said.
“I tested positively toward negative, right? So. I tested perfectly this morning.
“Meaning I tested negative. But that’s a way of saying it. Positively towards the negative.”
Mr Trump has been tested daily for coronavirus since May 7 when a cluster of coronavirus cases emerged in staff at the White House, including in one of Mr Trump’s personal valets.
READ MORE: Trump may call face-to-face G7 meeting
Lachlan Moffet Gray 10.30am: Italian deaths out by 19,000: social security agency
Italy’s death toll for March and April could be up to 19,000 deaths higher than the officially reported figures, according to the Italian National Social Security Agency.
It means the nation’s actual death toll could be above 50,000 as compared to the current official death toll of 32,468.
In a new study the Italian Social Security Agency said that in March and April of 2020 156,429 total deaths were recorded, which is more than 46,000 deaths higher than the four-year death average for those two months from 2015 to 2019.
But in that same time only 27,938 coronavirus deaths were recorded — meaning more than 18,000 deaths occurred than usual, with most of them recorded in the coronavirus-ravaged north of the country.
“Given the fact that the number of deaths is quite stable in these times, we can — with necessary caution — attribute a large portion of these deaths during these past two months to the epidemic,” the Social Security Agency said.
The agency said that some of the deaths could also be attributed to people with pre-existing health conditions who were unable to receive medical treatment due to overcrowding hospitals.
It comes as recent antibody tests in the UK indicate that up to 17 per cent of London’s population have been infected with coronavirus.
READ MORE: Italy’s most devastated city reopens
Lachlan Moffet Gray 10.20am: SA restrictions ease; last case discharged to fanfare
Restaurants and cafes will be allowed to serve a total of 20 patrons from today — 10 inside and 10 outside — with pubs permitted to do the same from June 5.
South Australian Premier Steven Marshall said although the sector-by-sector approach was “confusing,” it was safer than allowing all businesses to reopen at the risk of having to shut again if there is a subsequent coronavirus breakout.
“As I’ve said from day one, it is a lot easier to put these restrictions in place than it is to believe these restrictions,” Mr Marshall said.
“As it turns out, we have varied licences in South Australia and some patrons who have quite rightly asked the question is this a restaurant, I don’t know their licensing arrangement.
“So it is confusing and we acknowledge that. We apologise for that confusion. What we are trying to do is lift the restrictions in an orderly way, which is going to allow us to keep the coronavirus at bay.”
SA has recorded just one case of coronavirus in the past 29 days and has no active cases of coronavirus.
SA’s last coronavirus case in hospital Paul Faraguna, 68, was on Thursday discharged from Royal Adelaide Hospital to a standing ovation from hospital staff.
Emotional scenes at the RAH as the last #COVID19 patient is discharged. Paul Faraguna was clapped on by nursing staff and doctors as he left hospital. He was the first South Australian ICU patient and fought a brave battle to overcome the disease. pic.twitter.com/sMxmWDxSYH
— Steven Marshall, MP (@marshall_steven) May 21, 2020
Mr Faraguna contracted the disease as a passenger on board the Ruby Princess and spent more than a month in an induced coma.
Doctors were unsure if Mr Faraguna would survive without significant brain damage, but emerged from the coma without any side effects two weeks ago.
“I remember, after awakening from my coma, virtually every doctor and nurse consistently telling me that my recovery was a miracle,” Mr Faraguna said in a statement published in the Adelaide Advertiser.
“I thought they were saying it just to give me encouragement.
“Since I came out of the coma I have a more complete understanding of my miraculous journey and realise the medical staff literally consider me to be a miracle survivor.”
READ MORE: Chinese landlord to resort: reopen
Lachlan Moffet Gray 9.55am: ABF intercepts ice in hand sanitiser
The Australian Border Force has stopped almost two kilos of ice hidden in boxes supposedly containing face masks and hand sanitiser from being smuggled into the country.
On 6 May 2020, ABF officers at the Sydney Gateway Facility inspected a package sent from Canada which was described as containing medicine and clothing. Officers opened the package and found boxes of face masks and bottles of hand sanitiser.
A further inspection revealed the package had a false bottom which contained a black vacuum-sealed bag. The crystal-like substance inside the bag tested positive to methamphetamine. The package contained one kilogram of the drug.
Two days later a second package from Canada was examined by ABF officers at the same Sydney facility.
Also in the second package were boxes of face masks and two bottles of hand sanitiser.
A crystal-like substance was found inside the second set of hand sanitiser bottles.
It was tested and returned a positive result for methamphetamine. A total of 800 grams of the drug was found inside the two bottles.
ABF Superintendent for International Mail, Cargo Clearance and Systems Support John Fleming said ABF officers are on the look-out for anyone trying to take advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to smuggle drugs into Australia.
“We know criminals will go to any length to smuggle drugs into the country, so it’s no surprise they’re trying to use in-demand items such as masks and hand sanitiser to hide them in,” Superintendent Fleming said.
“Criminals should know our efforts to secure our border have not stopped because of COVID-19. Sea containers are still being examined and items being sent through the mail centre or air cargo are still being screened. We are continuing to detect and stop illicit substances.”
READ MORE: China puts our ore in the fast lane
Richard Ferguson 9.45am: Cormann calls for borders to reopen
Finance Minister Mathias Cormann has called for state borders to be opened as soon as possible, saying there is no medical case for the smaller states to stay closed off.
Senator Cormann — the most senior Western Australian in the federal cabinet – told Sky News on Friday that jobs in his state and all around Australia depend on borders opening up.
“We are on an easing trajectory now when it comes to the restrictions on the economy,” he said.
“The Chief Medical Officer and the deputy chief medical officer have both indicated very clearly there is no medical case in favour of these state border closures maintaining.
“We’ve got to be careful we don’t make political decisions here. We make decisions that are genuinely based on the health and well-being of people in Western Australia, in Queensland, in South Australia and indeed all around Australia.”
READ MORE: Leaders’ spat ‘risks national unity’
Lachlan Moffet Gray 9.35am: Border easing ‘will help aviation’
Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack has said an easing of internal border controls will help Australia’s struggling domestic aviation industry.
Amid fears that Virgin Australia will fail to be rescued from voluntary administration, causing a spike in the cost of domestic airline fares as Qantas snaps up market share, Mr McCormack said states could help ensure the health of the industry by easing restrictions.
“If we do want a domestic airline to continue and to resume very quickly, then one way of doing it is to ease those border restrictions,” Mr McCormack told ABC Breakfast on Friday.
The federal government’s health advice is that it is safe for states to open their borders for domestic travel.
Deputy Chief Health Officer Dr Michael Kidd said he feels it is at this point safe to travel by air.
“Well, I looked yesterday at the advice that has come forward from Qantas and what Qantas has done is they have gone through a risk mitigation exercise which is what is being required of every business in Australia to look at minimising risk,” Dr Kidd told ABC Breakfast on Friday.
“If I had an essential reason to get on a plane and travel and it wasn’t feasible to be moving by road and if I was allowed to move between jurisdictions to do so, yes, I would feel comfortable about getting on board a plane.”
Lachlan Moffet Gray 9.25am: NT moves to lift internal travel restrictions
The Northern Territory may be refusing to shift on lifting a ban on non-essential travel into the region – but it is seeking to have the federal government lift travel restrictions on vulnerable remote Indigenous communities known as “biosecurity zones.”
Travel in and out of these nine regions, covering some 60,000 people in the NT, has been regulated by the federal government since March to prevent coronavirus spreading to regions where the residents are especially vulnerable to coronavirus due to a lack of healthcare infrastructure.
The restrictions were due to remain in place until a June 18 review but if the NT government can provide the government with a plan on how it will safely reopen these areas, they could open as soon as June 5, the NT News reports.
The pressure to bring forward the easing of the internal border controls has come from local Indigenous leaders and will see the removal of the partial removal of the 100 or so Australian Federal Police Officers deployed to monitor checkpoints around the perimeter of the zones.
READ MORE:
Lachlan Moffet Gray 9.15am: US flags to fly at half mast
US flags will be lowered to half mast over the next three days in tribute to the 94,591 Americans who have died of coronavirus, Donald Trump has tweeted.
“I will be lowering the flags on all Federal Buildings and National Monuments to half-staff over the next three days in memory of the Americans we have lost to the coronavirus,” Mr Trump said.
“On Monday, the flags will be at half-staff in honour of the men and women in our Military who have made the Ultimate Sacrifice for our Nation.”
I will be lowering the flags on all Federal Buildings and National Monuments to half-staff over the next three days in memory of the Americans we have lost to the CoronaVirus....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 21, 2020
Monday marks Memorial Day, a federal holiday in the US that marks all those in the US military who have died fighting.
Despite the upcoming show of respect, Mr Trump again appeared in public without a face mask.
During a tour of Ford factory in Ypsilanti, Michigan, that has been repurposed to produce ventilators the president did not publicly wear a face covering despite a warning from the state’s top law enforcement officer that a refusal to do so might lead to a ban on his return.
All of the Ford executives giving Trump the tour were wearing masks, the president standing alone without one. At one point, he did take a White House-branded mask from his pocket and claim to reporters he had worn it elsewhere on the tour, out of public view.
“I did not want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it,” Mr Trump said. For a moment, he also teasingly held up a clear shield in front of his face.
A statement from Ford said that Bill Ford, the company’s executive chairman, “encouraged President Trump to wear a mask when he arrived” and said the president wore it during “a private viewing of three Ford GTs from over the years” before removing it.
READ MORE: Freeze frames: blockbusters in jeopardy
Sarah Elks 9.05am: Another zero case day for Queensland
Queensland has again recorded zero new cases of COVID-19 overnight, with the state having just 12 active cases of the virus.
Friday, 22 May – coronavirus cases in Queensland:
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) May 21, 2020
• 0 new confirmed cases
• 12 active cases
• 1,058 total confirmed cases
• 169,863 tests conducted
Sadly, six Queenslanders have died from coronavirus. 1,040 patients have recovered.#Covid_19 pic.twitter.com/XmNNIslZDh
More than 1000 people have recovered; 1058 total cases have been confirmed since the outbreak started more than 100 days ago.
Queensland alone has conducted nearly 170,000 tests, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said in a tweet.
READ MORE: Closures may aid tourism
Lachlan Moffet Gray 9.00am: Deputy CMO breaks with colleagues over closures
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Michael Kidd has broken with his colleagues on the issue of state border closures, saying it is a “sovereign issue” for each state based on “epidemiology occurring in each jurisdiction.”
Earlier this week Deputy CMOs Paul Kelly and Nick Coatsworth said states should not continue to keep their borders closed for health reasons as advice provided by the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee to the National Cabinet never endorsed the idea of banning interstate travel.
But Dr Kidd said valid health advice differs from state to state.
“This is a sovereign issue for each of our states and each of the Premiers consulting with their chief health officer and receiving the advice they get,” Dr Kidd told ABC News Breakfast on Friday.
“And of course the decisions being made in each state and territory are based on the epidemiology occurring in each jurisdiction, so we are leaving that decision to the Premiers.
Dr Kidd did not directly comment on the feasibility of Queensland Chief health Officer Dr Jeannette Young’s insistence that NSW and Victoria go for up to a month without a new case, but said it was their prerogative to make their decision.
That is an issue, of course, for Queensland,” Dr Kidd said.
“What we have seen in some of the other states, particularly in South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory is that we have gone for quite a number of days since we have had any new cases which have been diagnosed, and this is despite still very high levels of testing occurring right across the country.”
READ MORE: Closed states face $10bn hit
Rachel Baxendale 8.50am: New abattoir cases among 12 Vic infections
Victoria has confirmed 12 new cases of coronavirus on Friday, including five cases linked to Melbourne abattoir Cedar Meats.
The number of cases linked to Cedar Meats has now reached 111.
Education Minister James Merlino said another four cases had been linked to “hotel detention”, but meant to say that they had been linked to four recently returned overseas travellers in compulsory hotel quarantine.
Another two of Friday’s new cases have not been linked to overseas travel or other known cases and have therefore been declared community transmissions, while the 12th new case remains under investigation.
There have been no recent deaths leaving the death toll steady at 18.
There are 10 Victorians in hospital, five of whom are in intensive care.
Victoria’s total number of cases now stands at 1593, with 1479 recovered and 93 active.
There have been 171 COVID-19 cases not linked to overseas travel or other known cases, indicating community transmission – an increase of three since Thursday.
More than 393,000 tests have been completed, including 10,000 in school staff ahead of some students returning to the classroom next week.
Mr Merlino said none of those 10,000 staff had tested positive.
READ MORE: Andrews in state of delusion
Lachlan Moffet Gray 8.45am: SA-ACT travel bubble possible
South Australian Premier Steven Marshall has said a lifting of his state’s border restrictions is not “that far down the track” and is actively considering a Canberra-SA travel bubble – but broader restrictions are contingent on the number of cases continuing to fall in NSW and Victoria.
However, Mr Marshall could not commit to reopening the borders before the July school holidays to take advantage of a tourism boom.
“I don’t know about you, but I don’t have a crystal ball,” Mr Marshall told ABC News breakfast on Friday.
“We need to wait and see what happens in those other states, where they arrive at. We won’t do anything that is going to let us have a second wave in South Australia.
“When we look around the world, and we see cities and countries who have been in the same position in South Australia with low or no cases, more often, as they have lifted
restrictions, they have had to put them back in place.”
Mr Marshall said he had received a request from Canberra Airport regarding the establishment of an ACT-SA travel bubble because neither jurisdictions have any active cases of COVID.
“I think that is a good suggestion. We are considering that at the moment,” Mr Marshall said.
READ MORE: Pubs hit hardest by ‘police state’ policy
Lachlan Moffet Gray 8.35am: Berejiklian considers freezing MPs’ pay
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has said that further announcements about which restrictions will be eased in NSW are “imminent” and will likely take place alongside Deputy Premier John Barilaro and Treasurer Dominic Perrottet.
She also told reporters that the government is examining the issue of freezing state MPs’ pay as so many people in the broader economy are going without a full income.
“Given that’s what is going on at the moment I think it’s only apt for us as elected officials to reflect and empathise,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“The government is considering those issues and we will have something to say when we have a decision.”
Ms Berejiklian also said that she is not “disappointed” in former arts minister Don Harwin’s attempt to appeal a fine he received for violating public health orders by visiting a holiday home, saying it is a personal decision.
However, she would not be drawn on whether he would be reinstated as arts minister if the appeal was successful.
The Premier also advised parents that school buses will not be subject to a maximum passenger load of 12 like regular commuter buses are, and advised parents to avoid sending their kids to school on public transport if possible.
Today’s 8am briefing will be the last one for some time, Ms Berejiklian said, with further coronavirus updates to occur by different means from next Monday.
READ MORE: City centre can hold, with changes
Lachlan Moffet Gray 8.14am: Woman dies after catching virus in outpatient clinic
Australia has recorded another coronavirus death, with an 80-year-old NSW woman dying of the virus in Concord Hospital in Sydney’s west overnight.
NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said the woman contracted the virus in an “outpatient clinical setting.”
#BREAKING: An 80-year-old woman has died from COVID-19 in NSW, bringing the national death toll to 101. #9News pic.twitter.com/m4ALgrhgk9
— Nine News Australia (@9NewsAUS) May 21, 2020
Dr Chant said the woman had been hospitalised “for a period of time” and while NSW Health didn’t know the “exact” nature of the transmission, “we believed the contact occurred in that setting” at Concord Hospital.
However, Dr Chant said NSW Health had been aware of the case for some time and it posed no threat to the hospital or broader public.
It brings NSW’s death toll to 49 and the nation’s to 101.
The state also confirmed three further coronavirus cases out of 8611 tests conducted on Thursday, bringing the total number of cases in the state to 3084.
Dr Chant said the three cases were being treated as locally transmitted cases as there was no obvious source of infection. All three individuals are from different suburbs.
None of the cases were related to St Ignatius’ College Riverview where a student tested positive.
“In relation to St Ignatius’ at Riverview, there have been no additional cases as of the reporting period,” Dr Chant said.
“The school remains closed for cleaning but plans to reopen Monday 25th of May.”
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian praised the number of tests conducted as it was above her 8000 daily test minimum threshold and urged residents to come forward and get tested as the state moves into winter.
“Can I please stress, as the days get colder, as we ease restrictions, it’s so important for people to come forward and get tested, even with the mildest symptoms,” she told reporters on Friday.
“Please make sure you do. And please make sure that if there’s somebody in your workplace or somebody in your family who’s feeling ill, that you put pressure on them to get tested, to come forward and get tested.”
Ms Berejiklian also asked parents to exercise “extreme caution” as children in the state resume school full time on Monday.
“We know it is contagious. It should be as simple as sharing the same surface with someone who had the virus,” she said.
“Touching something someone else has touched. You could have a deadly virus. Because it is contagious is why we have to be careful.”
READ MORE: Reasons behind spread unlocked
Agencies 8.00am: NSW ‘seeks freeze on MPs pay’
The NSW government is reportedly seeking a freeze on pay rises for MPs amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which has battered the state’s economy.
Government whip Adam Crouch has written to the Parliamentary Remuneration Tribunal asking for the freeze and noting coronavirus has “touched every aspect” of society, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.
But should the tribunal recommend the increase, MPs will be told “by the premier, deputy premier and treasurer” to reject it, his letter says.
Meanwhile, ex-NSW arts minister Don Harwin is reportedly seeking legal advice to appeal a fine he received for breaching COVID-19 health orders.
The fine was imposed for travelling back and forth between his Elizabeth Bay flat in Sydney’s east and his Pearly Beach holiday home.
Mr Harwin in April resigned as minister after being docked $1000 by NSW Police for acting “in contravention of a current ministerial direction under the Public Health Act”.
At the time, the Liberal MP argued he had relocated in mid-March before the health orders were made.
READ MORE: Commercial property faces big hit
Lachlan Moffet Gray 7.50am: Dutton endorses Hanson over borders
Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has welcomed a push to test the constitutional validity of Queensland’s border closures from One Nation’s Pauline Hanson as he continues to lobby his home state to open for economic reasons.
“I don’t know (if it is constitutional),” Mr Dutton told Today on Friday.
“People are right to test that if they think it’s not.”
Mr Dutton, who represents the south-east electorate of Dickson, denied he is doing the bidding of southern states who want to reopen borders for economic reasons.
“I’m a proud Queenslander, I’m not taking advice from people south of the border at
all, but I believe it’s in Queensland’s best interests, given that we are a mining state, we’re a tourism state, and we want to get people back to work,” he said.
“I wouldn’t be advocating this position if the Chief Medical Officer wasn’t happy with us to reopen the borders. The Chief Medical Officers are happy for the borders to reopen.
“The borders were never closed at the direction of the National Cabinet. It was a decision taken by the state premiers.
“Premier Palaszczuk had this July date in mind and as I say for some reason she’s plucked out of the air in a press conference (the date of) September and dug herself a hole.”
READ MORE: ‘Ignore virus and reopen resort’
Lachlan Moffet Gray 7.45am: Swan lashes ‘reprehensible’ NSW over borders
ALP National President and former Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan has called NSW’s conduct in the borders debate “reprehensible” and has defended Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk’s decision to keep her state’s borders closed, saying she is following medical advice.
"The behaviour of New South Wales in this is reprehensible." Former treasurer Wayne Swan on Annastacia Palaszczuk's comments that she won't be lectured to reopen Queensland's borders. #9Today pic.twitter.com/4dI6Qxekyu
— The Today Show (@TheTodayShow) May 21, 2020
In recent days NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has lobbied South Australia, WA, Tasmanian, the NT and in particularly, Queensland, to lift coronavirus-inspired border closures, claiming they are harming the national economy.
Mr Swan said “the behaviour of NSW in this is reprehensible” and that “Annastacia has all the calls right.”
“The truth is we haven’t won the war against COVID-19 yet and we have got to do a lot more to protect our community,” he told Today on Friday.
“So I think the premier of Queensland’s done the right thing and she will adjust when the evidence is there, but not before.
“The premier has done that, done it with schools and she will continue to do it. She is flexible, but she is not going to act without the appropriate medical advice in a timely way.”
Deputy Chief Medical Officers Professor Paul Kelly and Dr Nick Coatsworth have both said it was never federal-level advice to close state borders.
READ MORE: Pubs hit hard by ‘police state’ policy
Lachlan Moffet Gray 7.30am: McCormack: China needs Australia too
Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack has said the government will manage the Australia-China relationship in a “careful and considered way” amid reports that the Chinese government is instructing domestic energy firms to purchase domestic coal over Australian thermal coal exports.
It comes as the relationship between Australia and China has hit new lows after Australia began a global push for an independent investigation into the origins of coronavirus in China, and China hit Australian barley exports with an 80 per cent tariff and four Australian abattoirs with an export ban.
“Well, of course we’re concerned. Of course we’re very concerned by it,” Mr McCormack told ABC News breakfast on Friday.
“But we have a two-way relationship with China. China needs Australia as much as Australia needs China, and we want to make sure that whatever we do is in a careful and considered way.
“That’s why I know Simon Birmingham and our Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade officials are working very closely with our Chinese friends and diplomats in making sure that we work through this in the way that you would expect the Australian Government to operate.
“We want to make sure that our coal exports have a destination. China has long been a customer of ours. They know the quality of our coal, of our iron ore and other resources. For their steel mills, for their energy needs, they’re going to require Australian coal.”
READ MORE: China on war footing for National Congress
Lachlan Moffet Gray 7.20am: Hanson: ‘Flood of support’ for border lawsuit
One Nation Senator Pauline Hanson says she has had a flood of support for her planned legal action against the Queensland government for their border closures, with three legal firms having contacted her office and 45 people registering interest to be the plaintiff in the case.
Senator Hanson claims that the Queensland government’s decision to keep the borders closed because of COVID-19 concerns is unconstitutional as Section 92 of the Constitution declares that “trade, commerce, and intercourse among the States, whether by means of internal carriage or ocean navigation, shall be absolutely free.”
However, the High Court has previously ruled that border closures for public health reasons is a valid exercise, on the basis that the closure is proportional.
Senator Hanson says it is on this basis that she has a case.
“The argument here is that she has got to justify closing the borders, so the less acute the public health situation is in that state then it becomes harder to justify the closure of the borders,” she told Today on Friday.
“And now in Queensland, as of yesterday, we had four people in hospital with coronavirus. NSW was 20. I think it’s less today for NSW.”
Senator Hanson acknowledged that Queensland’s borders may reopen before the High Court even hears the case, but said she also hopes to put “pressure” on Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.
“Does the premier really want to go to the High Court with this? I don’t believe so. I’m hoping to put pressure on her,” she said.
“I’m tending to go ahead with this, it needs to set a precedent with it. This is not leadership, this is dictatorship. There is no clear reason to keep the borders shut.”
READ MORE: Leaders’ spat ‘risks national unity’
Lachlan Moffet Gray 7.00am: Gunner silent on NT reopening
Northern Territory Chief Minister Michael Gunner is yet to provide an indication as to when the Territory’s borders may open but has denied it is an election stunt, as the vitriolic debate about inter-state travel rolls on.
Tasmania, WA, South Australia, Queensland and the NT have banned all non-essential travel into their jurisdictions in a bid to control coronavirus case growth.
But as the number of new cases flatlines and the pandemic is brought under control, the federal and NSW governments have made the case for reopening the country for economic reasons.
On Thursday Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein said a decision could be made by July, while Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has indicated her state’s borders could be closed until September.
Mr Gunner has refused to put a date on lifting restrictions on the NT’s borders, calling accusations he is trying to appear like a powerful leader in the lead up to the August territorial election “bull****,” the NT News reports.
“I know that keeping the borders secure is making a lot of people angry, but I’m doing what is right, not what is easy or popular,” Mr Gunner said.
“The only grounds on which I’m making these decisions is the safety of Territorians. I’m not going to nominate a date right now.
“If people want to sack me in August because of my position on the borders, that is their right. But I’m not backing down because I know that it is saving lives.”
The NT on Thursday became the third jurisdiction on mainland Australia to have no active cases of coronavirus – joining South Australia and the ACT.
But Mr Gunner said it is not even safe to open the border with South Australia, despite the lack of active cases in both jurisdictions.
“If South Australia can’t guarantee their border with Victoria, then I can’t guarantee their border with us,” he said.
READ MORE: Golden opportunity for native title reform
Lachlan Moffet Gray 6.55am: At least 39 million Americans unemployed
Coronavirus restrictions have begun easing across the US but the economy is yet to restart, with government data showing a further 2.4 million Americans filed for unemployment payments in the last week, bringing the total number of Americans who lost their job amid the pandemic to 39 million, a rate not seen since the Great Depression.
The number of people filing for benefits represents about 23 per cent of the US’s labour force and corresponds with comments made by Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell, who earlier this week said unemployment could peak at 25 per cent before an economic recovery takes place.
White House Press Secretary @KayleighMcEnany: President @realDonaldTrump’s public-private partnership is DELIVERING!
— Team Trump (Text TRUMP to 88022) (@TeamTrump) May 20, 2020
✅Over 130 million N95 masks
✅Half a billion surgical masks
✅Nearly 18 million face shields
✅12 billion gloves pic.twitter.com/bkKDriGVew
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate is currently 17.2 per cent.
President Donald Trump has continued to claim economic victory in his quest to open the country, but his ability to legislate is compromised by his bad relationship with US House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi, who he has not spoken to directly for seven months.
On Wednesday Ms Pelosi referred to Mr Trump as someone with “doggy door on his shoes”.
“It’s like a child who comes in with mud on their pants,” Ms Pelosi told a news conference on Wednesday when asked about provocative comments Trump has made about MSNBC television host Joe Scarborough, including references to him as “psycho.”
“He comes in with doggy door on his shoes and everybody who works with him has that on their shoes, too, for a very long time to come,” Ms Pelosi said.
At least 1.56 million Americans have contracted coronavirus and 93,863 have died.
READ MORE: Biden: Rule of law under attack
Lachlan Moffet Gray 6.30am: Half Facebook staff to work from home
Half of Facebook’s employees could be working from home permanently by 2030, Chief Executive and chairman Mark Zuckerberg has told employees, pre-empting a predicted shift in the nature of work after coronavirus by commentators and social scientists.
Most of Facebook’s workforce will be working remotely until the end of the year, but Mr Zuckerberg said internal surveys showed that 40 per cent of employees were interested in working from home full-time after the pandemic ends.
Mr Zuckerberg said the initiative could lead to “more broad-based economic prosperity” as it would allow the company to hire outside of major economic centres.
When you limit hiring to people who live in a small number of big cities, or who are willing to move there, that cuts out a lot of people who live in different communities, have different backgrounds, have different perspectives,” Mr Zuckerberg said during the livestream. However, Mr Zuckerberg did acknowledge that employees who choose to work remote and then move out of Silicon Valley or other major centres would have their salary adjusted.
Facebook has around 45,000 employees worldwide.
READ MORE: Men need more emotional support
Lachlan Moffet Gray 6.20am: At least 17 pc of Londoners infected
As the number of worldwide coronavirus approaches 330,0000 and the amount of confirmed cases more than five million, it has been revealed that as many as one in six people in London and one in 20 elsewhere in England have already contracted the coronavirus, British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said, citing a recent study.
An antibody surveillance study by the UK’s Office for National Statistics suggests that 17 per cent of people in London and about five per cent in England have tested positive to antibodies that appear in the bloodstream after having coronavirus.
It means the real number of cases in the UK could be more than two million, almost ten times the current count of 252,234.
Mr Hancock said certificates are being considered for people who test positive for coronavirus antibodies.
“It’s not just about the clinical advances that these tests can bring. It’s that knowing that you have these antibodies will help us to understand more in the future if you are at lower risk of catching coronavirus, of dying from coronavirus and of transmitting coronavirus.”
The UK’s death toll from confirmed cases of COVID-19 rose by 338 to 36,042, the health ministry said on Thursday, a relatively low rate for the embattled country.
Nearby France also received some good news, with only 318 new cases being discovered in the past 24 hours, an increase of just 0.2 per cent, compared to an average of 0.8 per cent in recent weeks.
The rate of increases in reported deaths also slowed a little on Thursday, with 83 COVID-19 fatalities in the past day, bringing the total to 28,215. That represented a rise of 0.3 per cent.
Genevieve Chene, head of health authority Sante Publique France (SPF), this week said there were no signs the pandemic was picking up, despite some new infection clusters, after France began emerging cautiously from lockdown on May 11.
But she said another week would be needed for a more complete picture of the impact of easing restrictions.
The number of COVID-19 patients being treated in intensive care units fell to 1745 from 1794 a day earlier, Thursday’s numbers showed.
In total, 17,583 people were hospitalised with COVID-19, a decrease of 358 over the past 24 hours.
The daily death toll in Spain was just 48, making it the first time the death toll has dropped below 50 since March 16.
It brings the total death toll to 27,940, while the number of confirmed cases increased by 482 to 233,037.
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Imogen Reid, Natasha Robinson 6.00am: Reasons behind spread unlocked
Health researchers in Victoria have used genomic sequencing to trace the origin of almost 1,000 cases of coronavirus in the state, with cruise ships, healthcare facilities and social venues the site of most transmission.
The genomic sequencing, conducted by the Doherty Institute using virus samples held by the Victorian health department from more than 900 COVID-19 patients, identified 76 clusters of infection.
The Doherty Institute’s director Benjamin Howden said the genomic sequencing helped identify unrecognised clusters of community transmission by resolving unknown cases and potentially linking separate clusters together.
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