Coronavirus Australia live updates: New cases likely as schools reopen, nursing chief says
Nursing chief concedes there’s a likelihood of an increase in virus cases; Daniel Andrews says an announcement on easing limits is imminent.
- Trans-Tasman ‘bubble’ on cards
- App downloads top 4.5 million
- Vaccine on the horizon
- Blueprint for eating out
- Cluster abattoir an ALP donor
Welcome to live coverage of the continuing coronavirus crisis. New cases are likely as schools reopen, nursing chief says. Jacinda Ardern will discuss a trans-Tasman ‘bubble’ when she joins Tuesday’s National Cabinet meeting.
Matthew Denholm 9.30pm Tasmania achieves four days without a new case
Tasmania has recorded its fourth consecutive day without a new case of coronavirus beings confirmed. This leaves its total number of cases at 221.
READ MORE: COVID cost: 44bn a week
Angelica Snowden 7.51pm Dubai postpones Expo 2020 for a year
Dubai’s Expo 2020 world fair will be postponed to October next year amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Bureau International des Expositions confirmed on Monday.
Dubai, a sheikhdom in the United Arab Emirates, bet billions of dollars on Expo 2020 to rejuvenate its troubled economy.
Since the pandemic grounded flights by its long-haul carrier Emirates and disrupted its real estate market, Dubai has been seeking to delay the event until next year.
Countries belonging to the bureau had been voting on the requested delay for days, with a final tally expected by the end of the month.
On Monday two-thirds of the required countries who are part of the bureau voted to approve the delay. The event will now run from October 1 next year to March 31, 2022.
The event aims to “find solutions to fundamental problems facing humanity” through “immersive activities” according to the BIE.
Brisbane hosted Expo in 1988 and Melbourne in 1880.
Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the chairman and CEO of Emirates, who also serves on Dubai’s Expo committee, welcomed the announcement.
“We are thankful to member states for their continued commitment to contributing to a World Expo in Dubai that will play a pivotal role in shaping our post-pandemic world at a time when it will be most needed,” he said.
READ MORE: Communities the pandemic missed
AFP 7.21pm Japan extends state of emergency
Japan’s Prime Minister has prolonged a state of emergency over the coronavirus until the end of the month, as the government warned it was too soon to lift restrictions.
“I will extend the period of the state of emergency I declared on April 7 until May 31. The area covered is all prefectures in the nation,” Shinzo Abe said on Monday after a meeting to discuss the measures.
Mr Abe declared a month-long state of emergency that initially covered Tokyo and six other regions on April 7, later expanding it to cover the entire country.
It had been due to expire on Wednesday, but the country’s minister for the virus response, Yasutoshi Nishimura, said earlier that new infections were still growing.
“The number of new cases has declined, but unfortunately the decrease has not reached the targeted level,” he said during a meeting with an expert panel advising the government on the pandemic.
“As the healthcare sector remains under pressure, we need continued co-operation from people.”
Japan’s virus outbreak remains comparatively small compared to those seen in parts of Europe and the US, with over 15,000 infections recorded and 510 deaths.
READ MORE: Smart or lucky? How Florida dodged COVID-19 worst
James Kirby 6pm: Early release super strategy may pay off
The government’s early release super scheme is being examined by all age groups as a potential “superannuation strategy” where funds from the scheme can be used for a range of tax advantages along with funding home buying. Read more here
Rachel Baxendale 4.45pm: Abbatoir issues statement after cluster revealed
The Melbourne abattoir linked to 34 cases of COVID-19 has released a statement, saying it first became aware that one of its employees had contracted COVID-19 on April 27.
Cedar Meats and the Department of Health and Human Services have confirmed the worker had been admitted to hospital following an unrelated workplace accident at the facility in the western Melbourne suburb of Brooklyn.
“Since that time we have followed the advice of the DHHS and been thankful for all its advice and support,” Cedar Meats General Manager Tony Kairouz said.
“On Wednesday 29 April, 2020 we were informed that four of our staff had contracted COVID-19. All staff worked in one area of the plant.
Cedar Meats in Brooklyn has issued this media statement clarifying the timeline of the #COVID19 outbreak. Says it was notified by @VicGovDHHS on 29 April that 4 staff working in the same area had contracted the virus. 34 staff are now infected. @10NewsFirstMelb #springst pic.twitter.com/7kArGnKS5v
— Simon Love (@SimoLove) May 4, 2020
“DHHS worked diligently to endeavour to arrange onsite testing for our 350 staff, however, it wasn’t possible and in the interests of time it was more efficient for staff to access nearby testing facilities.
“From the time we became aware that one of our staff had contracted the virus we kept our staff closely informed.
“By Thursday 30 April we mandated to all staff that they had to get tested for COVID-19”
Mr Kairouz said all staff had been sent for testing by May 1.
“Cedar Meats is a proud multi-generational family-owned business that employs up to 400 people,” he said. “We have built the business from one butcher shop in Melbourne’s north more than 35 years ago.
“We have done this by treating our staff like family and everyone in our business - our suppliers, our customers, our community, with respect.
“For the past few days our focus has been 100 per cent inward - on closing down the processing side of our business, taking care of staff and animal welfare.”
Following a decision by DHHS and the Andrews government not to name Cedar Meats as the abattoir linked to the COVID-19 cases, Mr Kairouz said his business had “in no way sought not to be transparent with the community”.
“We are deeply saddened that there is speculation that we have sought to hide from something that is not of our making - it is an outbreak of a worldwide pandemic at our plant,” he said.”We look forward to continuing to work with DHHS and will fully cooperate with any requirements as they eventuate.”
Cedar Meats sells mutton, lamb, goat and veal, exporting to the European Union, North and South America, South East Asia, China, Middle East and Africa.
Rural publication Sheep Central last month reported mutton shipment from Cedar Meats had been exported to COVID-19 epicentre Wuhan in China as the backload on a flight that arrived in Australia with coronavirus-related medical supplies.
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Rosie Lewis 4.15pm: Increase in cases ‘likely’ as schools reopen
Ms McMillian said there was a likelihood of “some increase in cases” as schools reopened but encouraged anyone who might have even the mildest cold and flu symptoms to get tested.
She also urged Australians to download the COVIDSafe app so cases and contact tracing could be quickly followed up.
There have been 650,000 coronavirus tests in Australia to date.
20,000 nurses have also begun online training in intensive care but Ms McMillan said because Australia had flattened the curve they were thankfully not needed at this time.
“Those skills won’t be lost and they’ll be a benefit to the community,” Ms McMillan said, adding the skill would be applicable to general wards and intensive care.
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Rachel Baxendale 4pm: Andrews flags easing of Victoria limits
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has indicated he will make announcements about lifting social distancing restrictions this week.
Victoria remains the only jurisdiction in Australia to have neither relaxed restrictions nor detailed what a relaxation of restrictions will look like.
Mr Andrews said his government had a “clear plan”, to complete 100,000 COVID-19 tests between Monday, April 27 and Sunday, May 10.
“We’ll make further announcements throughout the week,” he said.
Mr Andrews said he was “very pleased” with national cabinet’s decision last week to bring forward a decision on relaxing physical distancing rules from May 11 to this Friday.
“This will be a discussion that occurs throughout the week and we’ll have more to say at the appropriate time, but the message today is very simple: thank you so much, that everyone is doing the right thing.
“Thank you so much to everybody who’s coming forward and getting tested, 13,000 yesterday, the biggest single day testing activity in the country, throughout this entire pandemic.
Mr Andrews has repeatedly refused to detail which restrictions may be relaxed.
Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said there was “potential” for next week’s relaxation to allow AFL football training to resume as early as next week.
Asked whether Victoria was pursuing a strategy of suppression or elimination of COVID-19, Professor Sutton said that was “a decision for national cabinet”.
“My understanding is we’re on a suppression strategy nationally, but elimination is still in scope, and if we happen to have a happy accident of elimination, then we’ll be able to have that as an ongoing strategy,” Professor Sutton said.
“There are differences. Suppression means that there’ll be some low-level transmission across the country. Elimination means that you need an absolute assurance of no transmission whatsoever, and it also requires that you don’t have any importation of any single case ongoing.
“That’s a really significant constraint, and it means that you have to have a different approach to borders, but it’s not my call, it’s the national cabinet.”
Professor Sutton said his team would do an analysis of the number of community transmissions of COVID-19 detected through the 100,000 test blitz at the end of the week.
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Rosie Lewis 3.40pm: Tracing app downloads top more than 4.5 million
There have been 6825 coronavirus cases in Australia and 95 deaths, chief nursing and midwifery officer Alison McMillan says, with 28 people in intensive care.
Ms McMillan said there had been reports of a possible 96th death, in NSW, but that had not been confirmed.
More than 4.5 million people have downloaded the government’s COVIDSafe tracking app.
Staff Reporters 3.20pm: Returning NRL hit by COVID-19 scare
Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson has been tested for the coronavirus after reporting symptoms of a sore throat, AAP reports.
The Roosters reported back to NRL club headquarters on Monday for the first time since the season was suspended by COVID-19.
However, Robinson opted to self-isolate at home and will now await the test result before hoping to returning to work on Tuesday.
Our first biosecurity education session has begun.#YourStorm pic.twitter.com/NCUc2Gt8Rc
— Melbourne Storm (@ðŸ ) (@storm) May 4, 2020
“It’s not serious, but I had to do the right thing and get it checked out,” Robinson told News Corp Australia on Monday. “I went to the doctor this morning to have a test. I’m fine. I should get the result this evening.
“You can’t expect everyone else at the club to take all the precautions unless I do it myself.” Players on Monday were to be educated on strict biosecurity guidelines designed to ensure the resumption of the season on May 28.
Robinson suggested he wasn’t the only figure involved in the game that failed to check in with their respective club on Monday.
“You’ve just got to do the right thing and stay away if you’ve got any symptoms, even a runny nose,” Robinson said. “I’ve heard a few players around the game are in the same boat and couldn’t turn up today.
“You’ve just got to be super careful.”
READ MORE: Virus cops go on patrol
Paul Garvey 3.05pm: WA stays at zero new virus cases
Western Australian has recorded a fifth straight day of zero new cases of coronavirus.
The state’s health minister Roger Cook said on Monday that another four people had recovered from the virus, meaning there are now only 15 active cases left in the state.
It has also now been 22 days since the state recorded a coronavirus case that it was unable to trace back to a known source.
He said he expected to see “modest changes” in easing restrictions later this week, but pointed to recent outbreaks in Victoria as a reason to proceed with caution.
The state government is waiting on medical advice before committing to further easing of restrictions, such as lifting bans on public playgrounds and sport and prohibiting movement between the state’s regions.
The latest Mr Cook said the government had been in contact with the state’s meat processing industry, following another outbreak linked to an abattoir in Victoria. He said the industry had done pre-emptive work to ensure it avoided a repeat of the Victorian outbreak.
READ MORE: How one US state dodged a virus bullet
Sarah Elks 2.55pm: Union warns Premier Palaszczuk on schools
The Queensland Teachers’ Union warned the Palaszczuk government a decision to rush children back into classrooms by next Monday would put “huge pressure” on schools and cause angst among teachers and parents.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk today announced kindy, Prep, Year 1, 11 and 12 students would return to school next Monday, May 11. Provided everything goes well, the remaining students will be back in classrooms by Monday May 25.
QTU president Kevin Bates said the timeline to return four grades to school by next Monday was tight and would be a “real pinch”.
“Not only will teachers have to prepare to return to face-to-face lessons, they’ll have to continue to teach remotely those year levels over the next four days, and teach (face-to-face) the children of essential workers,” Mr Bates said.
“You’re asking people to do three jobs at once.”
“I’m not saying it’s impossible, but the expectation is very significant and it’s certainly caused some great deal of angst from teachers and principals…we’ll do our best and we’ll see what next Monday brings.”
Ms Palaszczuk had previously said she would only make a decision about the reopening of schools on May 15.
Mr Bates said the union had warned the government that such a speedy timeline would be difficult. He said the union had been talking to the government about different models of returning to school for some time, but had only been briefed by Education Minister Grace Grace on Sunday about the decision to return on May 11.
“I can’t say it was a complete surprise, but we’ve been flagging the sorts of concerns we’ve raised with you, (and have told the government) please understand this will put huge pressure on schools to get four year levels back in just a few days,” Mr Bates said. “As late as Friday, (the Premier said) we’ll make a decision on 15th of May.”
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Lachlan Moffet Gray 2.35pm: Details of NSW coronavirus cluster revealed
A coronavirus strain related to a cluster outbreak at the Anglicare Newmarch House aged care centre is responsible for at least ten per cent of NSW’s new coronavirus cases over the last month.
On Monday morning NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said that the strain brought into the Caddens-based care home in early April is “basically the strain that was in sort of the broader Penrith area”.
The outbreak in the home has subsequently infected 63 people, some of whom are staff who do not live in the area, and killed 15 residents.
An analysis of coronavirus case growth in postcodes 2750 and 2747, which encompass the Penrith-Caddens area shows that since April 3, 49 of the 481 new cases that were detected in that month are residents of the area.
On April 3 the two areas had a combined 23 cases. On Monday May 3, that number had grown to 72 - an increase of 49 cases.
Dr Chant said that a NSW Health investigation is examining whether the virus entered the facility earlier than April 11, when a healthcare worker at the facility was discovered to be COVID-19 positive.
“There was obviously the one worker that worked over that period unknowingly with very minimal symptoms for a period of time,” she said.
“What we’re trying to look at is - was there any other introductions into that aged care facility at or about that time?”
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Lachlan Moffet Gray 2.20pm: Ardern set to join ‘trans-Tasman bubble’
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has confirmed she will discuss the implementation of a “trans-tasman bubble” with Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Australia’s state premiers at Tuesday’s National Cabinet meeting, which she will join via videolink.
The “trans-tasman” bubble would allow international travel bans in Australia and New Zealand to be lifted for the purposes of travel between the two countries.
Ms Ardern said that Australia and New Zealand were in the “enviable” position of being able to partially lift their international travel bans to one another because of “both our countries strong record on fighting the virus.”
However, Ms Ardern said that residents of both countries should expect to be able to travel in the “very, very near short term,” although both herself and Mr Morrison have “a very similar specific perspective of the timeline that both countries will want to run to.”
“Don’t expect this to happen in a couple of weeks time,” she said.
Ms Ardern also said she would examine rearranging travel restrictions between New Zealand and neighbouring Pacific Island nations.
READ MORE: How to eat out under new rules
Lachlan Moffet Gray 2.05pm: Another death at Sydney aged care home
Another resident of the Anglicare Newmarch House Aged Care Centre in the western Sydney suburb of Caddens has died, bringing the ill-fated facility’s toll to 15.
In a statement, Anglicare Sydney said the man, who’s age was not given, had no immediate family.
“On behalf of our resident, we grieve for his death and we value that he was part of our Anglicare family while we cared for them,” Anglicare Sydney said in a statement.
His passing highlights how terrible this virus is and how devastating it is for the elderly in our community.
The impact of COVID-19 on older people is increasingly evident in Australia and internationally and this is extremely distressing for other residents, their families and members of the wider community.
Anglicare appreciates the support of the Commonwealth Government in assisting us to source an infection control specialist who is currently on site this week, monitoring and reviewing all current contamination and infection control procedures.”
Since a health worker with coronavirus at the facility was detected on April 11, 63 people have been infected and 15 residents have died.
In a bid to curve the growth of the virus in the facility, the NSW Health on Monday began subjecting staff to daily coronavirus tests.
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Lachlan Moffet Gray 1.30pm: ACT records first new case in nine days
The ACT has recorded its first new coronavirus case in nine days, bringing its total number of cases to 107.
The new case was a woman in her 20s who acquired the infection overseas. ACT Health said she quarantined after her return and does not believe she poses a public health risk, identifying a small number of close contacts.
She is the only active coronavirus case in the territory. 103 previous cases fully recovered while three died of the virus.
ACT Deputy Chief Health Officer Dr Vanessa Johnston said this most recent case developed COVID-19 while overseas some time ago.
“We are confident there has been no risk to the broader ACT community,” Dr Johnston said.
“This individual was symptomatic while overseas and then spent 14-days in self-quarantine after returning home. They were not tested during their self-quarantine period because their symptoms had resolved prior to their return to Australia.
“Recently this individual presented for testing after developing new cold-like symptoms and returned a low positive result. Further testing has also confirmed the presence of a common respiratory virus.
“Our investigation identified that this person has not been infectious since before finishing their self-quarantine.”
Dr Johnson reminded Canberrans to continue practising physical distancing and excellent hygiene, and to get tested if they have any symptoms.
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Rosie Lewis 1.20pm: Life won’t return to normal without vaccine: Andrews
The CSIRO could have a coronavirus vaccine ready to be rolled out within 10-15 months, Industry and Science Minister Karen Andrews has revealed.
Australia’s leading scientific research agency is testing two vaccines from the United States and United Kingdom respectively.
“It’s possible that we will have a vaccine in the next 10-15 months,” Ms Andrews said.
“It’s entirely possible that by the end of this year or early next year we will have a vaccine for COVID-19. That’s particularly important because, quite frankly, until such time as we have a vaccine, life is not going to return to normal.”
Ms Andrews said she was working to ensure any vaccine could be manufactured “right here in Australia” as she urged the public to take “baby steps” and be patient while shut down restrictions are slowly eased.
There are about 100 vaccines being tested globally.
READ MORE: Hopes up for an Australian vaccine by September
Rachel Baxendale 1.12pm: Andrews ‘not particularly worried about’ Tehan
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews says he has not spoken with the Morrison government since Education Minister Dan Tehan on Sunday accused him of a “failure of leadership” and “taking a sledgehammer” to Victoria’s school system before issuing a mea culpa hours later, withdrawing his comment and saying his “personal frustration” had led him to “overstep the mark”.
Asked whether he had spoken with Prime Minister Scott Morrison or any members of the federal government yesterday, Mr Andrews said: “No”.
“Look, comments were made yesterday morning, a statement was issued after that, that’s the end of the matter as far as I’m concerned,” Mr Andrews said.
“(The Morrison government) were doing that. I’ll tell you what I was doing: we were out there getting 13,000 people tested (for COVID-19), and that’s what’s most important.
“I’m not particularly worried about Mr Tehan.”
Mr Andrews said he would speak with Mr Morrison at Tuesday’s national cabinet meeting.
He said he had been watching the ABC’s Insiders program when Mr Tehan made the comments.
“I make a habit of being up - I’ll be as agnostic as I can - for that particular program. It’s a very good program,” Mr Andrews said of Insiders.
“I saw the comments, and then read a statement later on in the day, but that was not my focus.
“Ultimately, we need to be really clear about this: fighting amongst ourselves is not what’s needed. Fighting this virus is what’s most important.
“Yesterday wasn’t about that stuff. Yesterday was about the really impressive fact that 13,000 people got tested.
“No state’s done that in a single day, and I think that should be a point of pride for every single Victorian.”
Asked whether Mr Tehan’s mea culpa had come as a surprise, Mr Andrews said: “I didn’t give it a lot of thought, frankly.”
READ MORE: ‘Frustrated’ Dan Tehan withdraws Daniel Andrews criticism
Rosie Lewis 12.53pm: Blueprint for cafes, restaurants to reopen
Australians could be asked to give their name and phone number to front of house staff at restaurants and cafes if they do not have the COVIDSafe tracking app, as the industry unveils a blueprint for reopening in early June with about half as many diners.
Restaurant and Catering Australia CEO Wes Lambert has submitted reopening guidelines to national cabinet, which was reviewed last week, and is working with the Queensland government this week to reopen the industry by June.
The suite of “practical, low-cost measures” advocated by Mr Lambert include a 1.5m distancing rule between tables – more relaxed than national cabinet’s one person per 4 sqm rule – disposable menus, no condiments on tables, hand sanitisers throughout the restaurant or cafe and social distancing in waiting areas.
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Lachlan Moffet Gray 12.38pm: When will schools reopen in your state?
NSW and Queensland have today changed tack on their approach to schools, announcing plans to phase back in face-to-face learning by the end of term, leaving the ACT, Tasmania and Victoria as the only jurisdictions who will encourage students to learn at home until the end of term, with exceptions for the children of essential workers or vulnerable children.
NSW will continue to phase in face-to-face classes by requiring students to attend one day a week from May 11, but on Monday NSW Gladys Berejiklian said she has encouraged public schools to “expedite” the return of classes for Year 12 students.
Ms Berejiklian also said that full-time classes could resume “by the end of May” if things “go well” over the next two weeks as classes are phased back in.
Similarly, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on Monday announced plans to phase classes back in on May 11 by resuming classes for years 11, 12, 1, kindergarten and preparatory school.
If the coronavirus growth curve continues to stay flat, all students will return to school by May 25.
“If there is an outbreak, or there is community transmission, then our plans may change, Ms Palaszczuk said.
Schools in Northern Territory, South Australia and Western Australia remain open, although attendance is slightly down with parents permitted to keep children at home if they see fit.
READ MORE: School closures ‘not based on advice’
Yoni Bashan 12.05pm: Calls for NSW tenants’ hardship fund
The NSW Government is being urged to set up a hardship fund for tenants and provide direct payments of up to $2500 to help them manage their monthly costs as a result of economic losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The state opposition says a package of this kind would cost about $140 million and mirror existing schemes already operating in other jurisdictions, namely Victoria, where an $80 million rental assistance fund is providing similar payments of up to $2000.
The median weekly rent for a two-bedroom unit in Sydney is approximately $525, according to the Tenants’ Union of NSW; across the rest of NSW it is $310.
The NSW government has already provided some relief to tenants through a $440 million package of land tax breaks for landlords, with the savings supposed to be passed on to tenants. The tax waiver – worth up to 25 per cent – is provided if landlords temporarily reduce their rent; the money is then supposed to be repaid by the tenants at a later date.
The opposition has been critical of the scheme because they say it only applies to 16 per cent of landlords. Labor’s Julia Finn, the shadow minister for consumer protection, said this estimate was based on Australian Tax Office data.
In NSW, land tax is paid by those who own a property or properties valued above $734,000, not including their own home. Anything below that amount does not incur a land tax and therefore does not benefit from the relief package.
Ms Finn said the tax exemption tended to assist wealthier landlords rather than “mum and dad” investors, to whom the majority of tenants paid their rent.
“We should have an equitable system that applies equally, regardless of the land tax status of the landlord,” she said. “Many NSW tenants are struggling to keep their heads above water in this crisis and the Government’s lacklustre package will do nothing to help them in the long term.”
The NSW Government has also introduced a six-month moratorium on applications to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal to stop forced evictions resulting from rental arrears; this applies to renters who have lost 25 per cent of their household income due to the COVID-19 crisis.
Shadow finance minister Daniel Mookhey said Labor’s hardship package made economic sense because it would go some way to keeping tenants in place, thereby avoiding a slump in the rental market if these tenants were forced to seek out cheaper housing.
“NSW is well and truly alone in supporting tenants,” Mr Mookhey said. “The word we’re hearing from tenants is we need support, and we need it now. A hardship package needs to be in place in NSW, and the compassionate support is also the economically sensible thing to do for the market.”
READ MORE: Crisis hits rental property market
Matthew Denholm 12.00pm: Aged care ban lifted in Tas, road map imminent
Tasmania will lift its ban on visits to aged care homes from early next week – after Mother’s Day – and release a “road map” for removal of other restrictions on Friday.
Premier Peter Gutwein said he “owned” the decision not to relax a ban on aged care home visits until midnight on Monday next week, saying it was based on public health advice.
“I will own this decision on Mother’s Day; it is unfortunate that the restrictions will be in place for another week, based on public health advice,” he said.
“I think the best Mother’s Day present that anybody could provide their mother is to keep them safe … The restrictions are designed to keep our older and more vulnerable population safe.”
Mr Gutwein said he would release a staged “road map” for the gradual easing of COVID-19 restrictions in Tasmania on Friday, after a meeting of national cabinet.
However, he warned Tasmania’s “older and more vulnerable” population, compared to other states, meant the state would “march to the beat of its own drum” in lifting restrictions.
Despite the state enjoying three days without any new confirmed cases, he warned there would be more cases detected as testing was doubled to 2000 a day.
The state has 44 active cases of the virus and 150 people in quarantine, including 34 in isolation due to a cluster of cases in the Circular Head area of the state’s northwest.
Statewide, restrictions on non-essential movements continue while schools remain closed except for children whose parents are unable to supervise them at home.
The number of students attending school has almost tripled, from 7-8 per cent at the end of last term, to 19-20 per cent so far this term.
Catholic Education in the state on Monday issued a statement saying it would not turn away any child, despite one school principal complaining too many parents were sending their children to school.
READ MORE: Adapt or ‘it will be the end of you’
Geoff Chambers 11.38am: Ardern to join Australia’s national cabinet meeting
Jacinda Ardern will join Australia’s national cabinet meeting on Tuesday to update federal, state and territory leaders on New Zealand’s strategies to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
During a conversation with the New Zealand Prime Minister last Thursday, Scott Morrison asked Ms Ardern to join a national cabinet meeting to discuss the respective countries’ approaches to the health and economic crisis and swap notes on tactics to battle COVID-19, including Australia’s tracing app.
New Zealand – which on Monday recorded no new cases of the virus – is currently in the midst of easing what were some of the harshest restrictions in the southern hemisphere.
Last week the nation moved from ‘level four’ to ‘level three’ restrictions, which allowed for the partial reopening of schools and businesses.
The New Zealand government on Monday said that the decision on whether to ease restrictions further will be made on May 11.
Another possible point of discussion at the national cabinet meeting on Tuesday could be the establishment of a “trans-Tasman” travel bubble, which would lift international travel restrictions between Australia and New Zealand.
New Zealand Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield on Monday said that both governments could potentially “move in tandem” towards such an arrangement.
New Zealand has 1487 confirmed cases of coronavirus, 85 per cent of which have recovered, according to Dr Bloomfield.
“Clearly these are encouraging figures today but it is just one moment in time,” he said.
Twenty New Zealanders have died of the coronavirus.
The Prime Minister also spoke with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Sunday night about approaches to easing restrictions and opening up their economies.
The pair also discussed an independent review as part of a process to prepare nations for future pandemics.
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Sarah Elks 11.31am: ‘Queensland schools should be open now’
Queensland Opposition leader Deb Frecklington has attacked Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk over her decision to start sending students back to school from next Monday, saying all schools should be fully open now.
Ms Frecklington said the decision not to return most students to school until May 25, would be devastating to the state’s economy.
“Queensland schools should be open now and to keep them shut until near the end of May is a major setback to Queensland parents, kids and teachers,” Ms Frecklington said.
“This health crisis is fast becoming a jobs crisis under Labor. Holding kids back from going to school is hurting them and hurting the economy. Getting kids back into school is the first step on our road to recovery.”
Ms Frecklington has again called for the government to release the health advice on which its schools decisions are based.
The Queensland Catholic Education Commission welcomed the government’s decision, and said it would give the state’s 307 Catholic schools time to prepare for the return to classroom teaching.
“We’re very pleased to see our Seniors and our youngest learners returning first to face-to-face learning from next Monday,” commission executive director Lee-Ann Perry said.
“Our Year 11 and 12 students are on tight timelines to meet the various assessment requirements of the senior years and they will benefit from being among the first back in the school environment. At the other end of schooling, our youngest learners in kindy, Prep and Year 1 learn in a variety of ways that are difficult to maintain in isolation and they are also missing out on learning to socialise with one another.”
READ MORE: School closures ‘not based on advice’
Lachlan Moffet Gray 11.20am: States to access app data ‘in matter of days’
The government’s COVIDSafe app will begin sharing data with state health agencies “in a matter of days” as the final legislative touches to the data-sharing component of the app are finalised, Government Services Minister Stuart Robert said.
The COVIDSafe app – which has been downloaded by more than four million Australians – assists health departments tracking the spread of coronavirus by exchanging a Bluetooth ‘handshake’ between two users who are in close contact for roughly 15 minutes.
State agencies can then access that data if a user tests positive for coronavirus and automatically contact people they have been in contact with for testing.
Mr Robert told 2GB in Sydney on Monday that the delay in data sharing is due to the “triple privacy lock” being constructed to ensure only state health agencies can access the data.
“There is a higher security advice that’s gone in by the health minister as the second lock, and the third lock is the states doing an MOU (memorandum of understanding) with the Commonwealth which outlines Ts and Cs by how they’ll use the data,” Mr Robert told broadcaster Ray Hadley.
“So the state health officials are all just finalising that third triple lock.”
Mr Robert said that this process should be completed “by the end of the week.”
“If you think about how long it takes for MOUs to be signed between levels of government, this is on steroids – so it’s going as fast as humanly possible,” he said.
Mr Robert implored Australians who have not downloaded the app to do so, saying it was a “team Australia moment”.
“We just want Australians to join up for the team Australia moment. It’s collecting less information than normally you’d give away in the White Pages and a hell of a lot less than what you’d provide to the big Facebooks and the Googles,” he said.
“At the very end of course you delete your app and we delete the data for it.”
As of Monday morning, 4.4 million Australians have downloaded the app.
READ MORE: COVIDSafe is good for us
Lachlan Moffet Gray 11.10am: ‘Ultimate punishment’: Trump flags China tariffs
US President Donald Trump has hinted at the possibility of imposing additional tariffs on China as punishment for a perceived mishandling of the coronavirus crisis during a live town hall from the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC.
The town hall, which is being broadcast across the US on the Fox News Network, is underway now as the number of global coronavirus cases tops 3.5 million, according to Johns Hopkins University.
When asked by a viewer about his relationship with China, Mr Trump launched into a tirade, saying: “China never gave 10 cents to our country.”
“I’ve told this to President Xi,” he said.
Another viewer asked about the possibility of retaliatory tariffs, which Trump called “the ultimate punishment”.
“We are all playing a complicated game of chess or poker … Tariffs at a minimum are the greatest negotiating tool,” he said, before telling the audience that China tried to blame the coronavirus “on some of our soldiers”, referring to the comments of a Chinese official who in March said the virus could have been transported to China in infected US military personnel.
“This should never have happened – they should have put it out. They should have let us and other countries in to put it out,” he said.
READ MORE: The truth treatens China, so it’s the big lie
Rachel Baxendale 11.00am: Vic health official details why abattoir wasn’t named
Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton defended the decision not to name Cedar Meats in Braybrook as the abattoir linked to 34 COVID-19 cases.
“It’s always been the case that if we need people in the community to understand where they might have been exposed to a cluster or an outbreak in cases, then we identify those sites,” Professor Sutton said.
“If we are following up everyone, if we have the names and contact details of everyone in the site and we’re not concerned about the general community being exposed, then there’s no specific public health reason to name those places.”
Asked whether naming Cedar Meats could have helped clear up rumours about other meat processing facilities, Professor Sutton said it was for the abattoir to name itself.
“I think it’s for that specific meatworks to say, ‘it’s us’. It’s not for us to declare that it’s a particular setting,” he said.
“If the meatworks wants to name itself to be clear that it doesn’t involve other places, then they’re free to do so.
“My team’s just in the role of doing the public health follow-up of these places.
“Naming it is not part of what’s required for us to do our work, so we follow up, and if community members need to be told, because they’re part of the public health follow-up, we’ll do so.”
Asked whether there was a double standard on display given the Department of Health and Human Services on Sunday revealed a music teacher at Meadowglen Primary School had tested positive to COVID-19, but refused to name the Cedar Meats despite it being linked to 34 cases, Professor Sutton said schools were places “where a lot of community members might go where we can identify those individuals for the purposes of contact tracing”.
“So they’re named for that very reason, which is the difference that I’ve just specified,” Professor Sutton said.
READ MORE: COVIDSafe app is good to use
Lachlan Moffet Gray 10.55am: Local lockdowns where clusters emerge: Deputy CMO
Restrictions eased as new coronavirus cases dropped could be re-established locally if another outbreak occurs, Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Nick Coatsworth has said.
National cabinet will meet on Tuesday and Friday this week to discuss which restrictions to ease – but Dr Coatsworth told Sunrise the government will not hesitate to reimpose restrictions on travel and business activity in regions where cluster outbreaks resurface.
“If there was an increase in COVID-19 it’s likely to be in a very confined geographic area – a region of Australia, so you would expect a sort of regional response or quarantine,” Dr Coatsworth said.
"The more Australians with the app on their phone, the easier the job will be for our disease detectives"
— Sunrise (@sunriseon7) May 3, 2020
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Nick Coatsworth says more Australians need to download COVIDSafe for states to ease restrictions.
Latest updates: https://t.co/NkVFH2ldL2 pic.twitter.com/dZ42lbizbB
“A bit like you saw in northwest Tasmania, which was really a good model of how a jurisdiction should respond to COVID-19.”
Dr Coatsworth said that what restrictions are relaxed are contingent on coronavirus case growth over the next four weeks and urged Australians to keep their “habits the same as mobility increases”.
“If you’re sick … stay at home, stay out of the workplace and keep kids home from school,” he said.
READ MORE: Health workers copping it sweet
Sarah Elks 10.45am: Queensland bars, restaurants could reopen in June
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk says she will consider allowing cafes, restaurants and bars to reopen in June.
“I think June is a good, ambitious target … I can’t say whether it’s early June or late June,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
Ms Palaszczuk said that was the next step after a staged reopening of schools, with health authorities recommending the restrictions be eased progressively, with at least two weeks in between policy changes.
But there were no plans to relax the closure of the Queensland border, with that decision to be revisited at the end of every month, the Premier said.
“We are still seeing cases that have come into Queensland from those hot spots. Once we see those hot spots clear of community transmission … there will be reason to look at that,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
Queensland has recorded three new cases of coronavirus overnight, with the virus contracted in London, Los Angeles and on a cruise ship.
Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said the state now had 1038 cases total, with most recovered.
In the past 24 hours, 950 Queenslanders were tested for COVID-19, a relatively small number compared to the usual thousands.
Dr Young said that was likely because there wasn’t very much respiratory disease in the community.
READ MORE: SA, WA show there’s life after lockdown
Lachlan Moffet Gray 10.40am: Vaccine ‘by the end of the year’: Trump
US President Donald Trump is hosting a virtual town hall outside the Lincoln Memorial to answer American’s questions about the coronavirus crisis, fielding questions from the public on the nation’s response to the pandemic.
Broadcast on TV by Fox News, the location is where Dr Martin Luther King gave his “I have a dream” speech in 1963.
I’m sorry, what? pic.twitter.com/dKvjfG8SMq
— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) May 3, 2020
Answering questions about the number of Americans likely to die of coronavirus, Mr Trump provided figures in the range of 75,000-100,000, and said that figure represented a success.
“I’ll tell you one thing. We did the right thing and I really believe we saved a million and a half lives,” he said.
More than 68,000 Americans have died of coronavirus to date.
A vaccine will also be available by the end of the year, Mr Trump claimed.
“We’re going to have a vaccine by the end of the year. I firmly believe it.”
Mr Trump continued to press for states to lift restrictions on the economy, saying “We have to get it back open safely but as quickly as possible.”
Singling out the Democrat-controlled state of Virginia, Mr Trump said some states “aren’t going fast enough”, and pushed for the nation’s schools and universities to resume face-to-face classes by autumn in September.
Mr Trump fielded questions as to why the government didn’t act sooner on the crisis and asserted that even White House Infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci said the virus “would pass” early on in the pandemic.
He also indicated that the intelligence community will release a report on coronavirus on Monday.
Earlier today news agency AP acquired a four-page intelligence document that stated China obscured the true extent of their outbreak, as well as the contagiousness of the disease in January and February.
The report also said that China restricted the export of medical supplies and increased their import to prepare themselves for the ensuing pandemic.
READ MORE: Congress foes unite against Trump
Sarah Elks 10.30am: Palaszczuk: Get normality back for parents, kids
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk says she knows parents have been finding it “incredibly difficult” to juggle schooling and working from home, as she announced a staged reopening of the state’s schools.
A sensible and gradual return is only possible because of Queensland’s success in slowing the spread of COVID-19. Compare our efforts to what has happened in other parts of the world and Queenslanders should feel very proud. Keep up the good work! #covid19australia
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) May 4, 2020
Ms Palaszczuk said the decision – made earlier than the May 15 date she had initially announced – was responsible and measured.
“If there is an outbreak, or there is community transmission, then our plans may change, I have to be (clear) about that,” she said.
“If there was an outbreak in a school, we would have to close that school down, and do the deep cleaning.”
“That May 15 is that crucial date, to get an analysis of how we’ve been going over the previous two weeks, to make a decision for May 25 … everyone back at school.”
Ms Palaszczuk said she wanted to get normality back for parents and children, and to kickstart the state’s economy again.
Queensland Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said the trickiest part of progressively returning students to school was the crowded pick-up and drop-offs of students, but she said there would be a lot of work underway this week to sort out arrangements.
Representatives from the Catholic school system in Queensland, and the state P&C body welcomed the planned staged return of students.
READ MORE: Regional easing ‘too confusing’
Lachlan Moffet Gray 10.15am: Brazil passes 100,000 confirmed cases
Brazil has passed 100,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus, representing half of the total number of cases in South America as President Jair Bolsonaro continues to downplay the virus’s seriousness while addressing an anti-lockdown rally.
The Brazilian health ministry diagnosed 4588 new cases of coronavirus in the last 24 hours and 275 deaths, bringing the country’s total number of cases to 101,147, with 7025 deaths – an almost five per cent jump in both factors.
Earlier on Monday Mr Bolsonaro headlined an anti-lockdown rally in front of a tightly-packed crowd in the capital of Brasilia, where he slammed lockdown efforts made by some Brazilian state governors to control the outbreak.
“The destruction of jobs by some governors is irresponsible and unacceptable. We will pay a high price in the future,” Mr Bolsonaro told the crowd.
At least three newspaper photographers were attacked by the crowd, with Reuters reporting that a photographer from a major Sao Paulo paper was pulled off a ladder and kicked in the ribs by Bolsanora supporters, who often decry the media as peddlers of “fake news.”
“We have the armed forces at the people’s side: the side of order, democracy, liberty, Mr Bolsonaro said.
The rally comes as an open letter to Mr Bolsonaro signed by celebrities like Oprah Winfrey implored the government take action to protect Brazil’s remote indigenous communities from the virus as they live in areas with poor access to healthcare.
READ MORE: Adapt or it will be the end of you
Sarah Elks 10.08am: Queenslanders back to school next Monday
Queensland’s schools will reopen to young students and senior students from next Monday, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has announced.
“Our numbers are still low, and that is the reason why we can now put in place these dates … they are subject to change if we do get increases at all, with any community transmission, or any outbreaks,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
Ms Palaszczuk said from May 11, kindergarten, Prep, Year 1 and Years 11 and 12 students will be going back to school.
From May 25, the remaining students will return.
Three new cases of coronavirus were confirmed overnight.
READ MORE: Health workers copping it
Lachlan Moffet Gray 9.52am: Teen charged over spitting on train guard
A 16-year-old NSW boy will appear in court on Monday after being charged with assault for allegedly spitting on a train guard in Sydney’s west.
He is the third teenager in less than a week to be charged with assaulting rail staff in such a fashion after a 17-year-old girl and a 16-year-old boy were charged on Friday for a fracas where the boy allegedly punched and spat on NSW transport staff at Blackdown station on April 24.
NSW Police say that on Sunday night a Sydney Trains guard was working on a southbound train when it stopped at Canley Vale Railway station in Sydney’s west.
Before the train departed, it is alleged that a young man standing on the platform spat in the face of the 49-year-old train guard before running from the scene over the train tracks and towards Canley Vale Road.
Officers attached to Fairfield City Police Area Command attended and commenced an investigation into the incident.
Shortly after, police stopped and spoke to a teenage boy on Canley Vale road, near the intersection of Sackville Street.
The 16-year-old boy was arrested and taken to Fairfield Police Station where he was charged with common assault.
He was refused bail and is due to appear in a children’s court on Monday.
Although the boy allegedly spit on the train guard, he was not issued with a penalty infringement notice for ignoring public health directives relating to spitting.
NSW Police Commissioner earlier on Monday said that just 22 people were issued with PINs over the weekend, down from over one hundred on the weekend prior.
“The people of NSW are still working hard, obviously taking this seriously, and I thank you for that,” he told reporters.
READ MORE: Gottliebsen – Woolies embraces new jobs driver
Rachel Baxendale 9.45am: Cluster abattoir had donated to Vic ALP
The owners of the Victorian abattoir where 34 workers have been diagnosed with COVID-19 have previously made a donation to the state Labor Party.
The Andrews government has refused to name Cedar Meats Australia, in Braybrook in Melbourne’s west, as the meatworks at the centre of the cluster.
In 2014, the abattoir made a $15,000 donation to the Victorian branch of the ALP.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews on Monday said the Kairouz family, who own the meatworks, were not related to Consumer Affairs Minister Marlene Kairouz, who holds the western suburban seat of Kororoit.
Asked whether he was aware Cedar Meats had previously donated to the ALP, Mr Andrews said: “I’ve got no idea about those matters.”
“You’d need to have a conversation with the State Secretary of the Labor Party (Clare Burns) about who is or isn’t a donor,” Mr Andrews said.
“Donations to political parties are a matter for those political parties.”
“The State Secretary I’m sure will be happy to follow that up, or the Australian Electoral Commission website or the Victorian Electoral Commission website where donations, at least to the Labor Party, are all properly declared.”
Mr Andrews said the naming of businesses affected by COVID-19 was a decision for the Department of Health and Human Services.
“Some businesses are being named, some businesses are not. That’s not a judgment that’s made by any minister, that is a judgment that’s made by the public health team, and it’s made on one basis and one basis only: is naming the business critical to tracing all the people that might have the virus as a result of an outbreak in a business,” he said.
“That’s what guides this, that and nothing else, and I know that will mean that there is some seeming inconsistency, but that’s called a case by case basis, where the public health team make a judgment about the proportional risks, and there’s really not much more I can say beyond that, having dealt with a bit of rumour and that around the place.”
Asked whether Consumer Affairs Minister Marlene Kairouz – who shares a surname with the owners of Cedar Meats – had been involved in discussions about how the outbreak was being handled, Mr Andrews said Ms Kairouz “is not involved in matters of public health”.
“Secondly, it is my understanding that there is no connection, other than by family name, which is a very popular family name in the community that the Minister for Consumer affairs is particularly proud to be a member of,” Mr Andrews said of Ms Kairouz, whose parents are Maronite Catholics from Lebanon.
“She’s very proud of her heritage, I’m very proud of her. She has a name that is very common within the community that she and her parents are from, and that is the end of it.”
READ MORE: Minister silent on meat plant cluster
Rachel Baxendale 9.05am: 19 new cases in Vic abattoir cluster
Victoria has recorded 22 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, including 19 in workers at an abattoir the Andrews government is refusing to name.
The 22 new cases bring the state’s total number of cases to 1406.
Two of the 22 cases were in overseas return travellers in hotel quarantine.
Premier Daniel Andrews said 13,000 Victorians had been tested on Sunday.
There have been almost 56,000 tests conducted since the government announced its testing blitz last week, meaning Victoria is on track to meet its goal of 100,000 tests by May 11.
About 150,000 tests have been conducted in Victoria during the course of the pandemic.
Health Minister Jenny Mikakos on Sunday refused to name the meatworks where there have now been 34 cases of COVID-19.
This was despite the Andrews government revealing on Sunday a music teacher at Meadowglen Primary School in Melbourne’s north had tested positive to the virus – the only known case linked to that school so far.
READ MORE: Minister silent on abattoir cluster
Lachlan Moffet Gray 9.00am: Nursing home probe close to completion
NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said a NSW Health investigation into the outbreak at Newmarch House is close to “being finalised,” with the results to examine how the virus spread and whether the carer diagnosed with coronavirus on April 12 was the first case at the home.
The outbreak at the Anglicare operated aged care centre is linked to 63 cases of the virus and 14 deaths.
“We’re just waiting on some critical serology results, we’re tracking down one lead which may turn out to be not at all relevant,” Dr Chant said on Monday morning.
“We know that the genomic sequencing is showing that the virus that spread into the nursing home is a virus that was circulating in the community.”
“What we’re trying to do is identify what you call the index case, or at the earliest possible point where it is introduced.”
READ MORE: Homework is done, now the big test
Lachlan Moffet Gray 8.40am: Joyce holds out on COVIDSafe tracking app
Member for New England Barnaby Joyce is not one of the four million Australians who have downloaded the government’s COVIDsafe coronavirus tracking app, maintaining that the government should not make the rollback of restrictions contingent on the number of Australians who download the software.
Scott Morrison on Friday said the National Cabinet’s meeting on restriction rollbacks this week would be informed by the number of Australians using the app and health minister Greg Hunt has said that he wants as many as 10 million Australians to take part.
But Mr Joyce told Sunrise on Monday his “freedom to say no” needs to be respected.
“I’m on the side of the other 20 million Australians,” Mr Joyce said.
“Compulsion is not the way to get anybody to do anything.”
Mr Joyce said he was socially isolating on his rural property and would not be attending parliament in the near future.
“They are wanting as few people there as possible, they are looking for volunteers not to go,” he said.
“I’m not the PM of Australia, or the Pope of Australia.
I am an individual who is allowed their rights. I’m not in cabinet, I don’t have to follow the cabinet line.”
READ MORE: Tracking app is good for us
Lachlan Moffet Gray 8.35am: Seven year old boy tests positive in NSW
NSW has diagnosed just one additional case of coronavirus in the past 24 hours after a 5,500 testing blitz on Sunday unearthed a seven-year-old-boy in Sydney’s west who had contracted the disease.
The boy had recently attended Warragamba Public school, necessitating the school’s closure for cleaning.
“The school is being closed today and the usual public health contract tracing will occur,” NSW Chief Health Minister Dr Kerry Chant told reporters on Monday.
There are now 3036 confirmed cases of coronavirus in NSW. 107 cases are being treated by NSW health, 14 of whom are in ICU, with 10 needing ventilators. There have been no further deaths.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said she was heartened that just one case was discovered amid the 5571 tests carried out on Sunday – but warned parents that as schools return to face-to-face classes this week, more students like the 7-year-old are likely to contract coronavirus.
New South Wales Premier @GladysB says the state recorded only one new COVID-19 case from 5,500 tests overnight.
— Sunrise (@sunriseon7) May 3, 2020
Latest updates: https://t.co/NkVFH2ldL2 pic.twitter.com/7slHrfSV8Z
“I say to parents and teachers and school communities, this is more likely to occur as schools go back,” Ms Berejiklian said, adding that NSW had good cleaning and control protocols and would be able to adequately prevent widespread outbreaks in schools.
“I anticipate it will happen more frequently but please be confident.”
Ms Berejiklian said that although students will return to face-to-face classes just one day a week, she had instructed NSW public schools to “expedite” classes for year 12 students who are preparing for their HSC exams at the year’s end.
“The overwhelming majority of public schools have been able to expedite classes for year 12,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“If the first few weeks go well we will consider bringing back full time face-to-face teaching.”
If the first two weeks of face-to-face contact “go well”, full time teaching could resume by May, Ms Berejiklian said.
READ MORE: School closures ‘not based on advice’
Lachlan Moffet Gray 8.05am: Queenslanders behave well on freedom weekend
Queenslanders have largely abided by social distancing regulations over their first weekend of freedom, with Queensland police handing out just 146 fines for disregard of public health directives.
On Saturday, coronavirus restrictions in the state were lifted to allow for family picnics, non-essential shopping trips and visits to the beach – so long as residents stayed within 50km of their home.
Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll said that the fines handed out were largely for “blatant disregard of the directives,” telling Sunrise that an Airbnb property on the Gold Coast was fined after having seven people there one day and 18 the next for throwing parties.
Commissioner Katarina Carroll also said that certain beaches such as Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast were too busy.
“At the moment Burleigh is an example of where we have too many people congregating in one area,” she said, adding that police today will encourage people to go elsewhere if crowds grow too large.
“We have high visibility police presence in that area asking people to move.”
Lachlan Moffet Gray 7.45am: US intelligence: China hid outbreak severity
An explosive US intelligence report obtained by news agency Associated Press shows that American officials believe China covered up the true extent of their coronavirus outbreak and the contagious nature of the disease to stock up on essential medical supplies.
The four-page Department of Homeland Security Intelligence report dated May 1 reportedly said that Chinese leaders “intentionally concealed the severity” of the pandemic from January while increasing imports but decreasing exports of medical supplies.
It attempted to cover up doing so by “denying there were export restrictions and obfuscating and delaying provision of its trade data,” the analysis states.
In March Chinese-backed Australian property developer Greenland Australia was reported as instructing employees to buy up medical supplies to send to China.
The company later conceded that throughout January and February it “organised shipments of medical supplies – in the form of 10,000 surgical masks, 68,000 disposable gloves, 400 protective goggles, 30,000 medical protective gowns, 1,800 forehead thermometers and 300 shoe covers – to the Greenland Group global head office in Shanghai as a donation to provide support at the frontline of the virus.
“These supplies were dispatched to help contain the rapidly-developing coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis in China, which at the time, was the epicentre of the outbreak. In this sense, Greenland Australia’s efforts corresponded with those of many other companies and individuals around the world organising similar donations,” the company said in a statement on April 9.
The report also says China held off informing the World Health Organisation that the coronavirus “was a contagion” for much of January so it could order medical supplies from abroad – and that its imports of face masks and surgical gowns and gloves increased sharply.
Those conclusions are based on the 95% probability that China’s changes in imports and export behaviour were not within normal range, according to the report.
China has a history of infecting the world and they have a history of running substandard laboratories. These are not the first times that we’ve had a world exposed to viruses as a result of failures in a Chinese lab.
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) May 3, 2020
Speaking on TV on Sunday US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he had no reason to believe that the virus was deliberately spread, but said: “Remember, China has a history of infecting the world, and they have a history of running substandard laboratories.”
“I can tell you that there is a significant amount of evidence that this came from that laboratory in Wuhan,” Mr Pompeo said.
Despite the political sensitivity of the statement, Mr Pompeo tweeted a similar statement just hours later.
READ MORE: Truth threatens China, so it’s the big lie
Lachlan Moffet Gray 7.35am: Newmarch House brings in daily testing
Anglicare’s coronavirus-stricken Newmarch House aged care centre in Western Sydney is to institute daily testing of staff members in an attempt to control the spread of the virus.
The company is also moving to address criticisms by family of residents about a lack of general communication regarding their loved one’s wellbeing, instituting a comprehensive communications program.
Fourteen residents of the centre have died of coronavirus, while 26 staff and 37 residents have tested positive for the disease.
Anglicare Sydney said that the designated contact person of COVID-19 positive residents will start receiving a daily phone call from a registered nurse from Tuesday.
Contacts of all other residents will receive “regular calls and individual updates.”
“Our primary focus has been and continues to be the care and wellbeing of our residents”, said Grant Millard, CEO Anglicare Sydney in a statement on Sunday.
“At the same time, this situation is changing daily and we recognise we need to do more to ensure we are communicating effectively with families who are understandably distressed.
“The Family Support Program is designed to respond to the feedback from our families, ensuring they feel engaged and are in close contact with their loved ones.”
READ MORE: Waiting for death
Lachlan Moffet Gray 7.30am: ‘No need’ for criminal probe into nursing home
NSW Police Minister David Elliott has said there is no reason for a criminal investigation into the coronavirus outbreak at the Newmarch House aged care centre in Sydney, where 14 residents have died, calling the cluster a “natural disaster.”
Speaking to Sunrise on Monday, Mr Elliott said that police were assisting families in a routine fashion, but would not look to officially investigate the outbreak or management of COVID-19 in the facility.
“Every time there is a death there is some sort of investigation from the coroner, police, or department of health,” Mr Elliott said.
“Police will assist (families) any way they can but there’s no suggestion there should be any kind of criminal investigation.”
Mr Elliott said that he had a relative in a facility managed by Anglicare, who also operate Newmarch House, and that there were no issues in his personal circumstance.
“This is a natural disaster, there is no rule book.”
Mr Elliott also praised residents of NSW for continuing to abide by social distancing rules over their first weekend with two-person house visits once again allowed, saying his main concern was speeding.
“It was a very good weekend. We are still concerned about high speed traffic, people that are using the light traffic on roads to speed,” he said.
Other than that, it seems to have been a very successful reintroduction to our social life.”
READ MORE: COVIDSafe app is good for us
Cameron Stewart 7.15am: ‘Enormous evidence’ virus from China research lab
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says there is now ‘enormous evidence’ that coronavirus came from a research laboratory in Wuhan in China.
His comments are the strongest US claim so far linking the virus to Chinese scientists and will add to pressure on China to explain the origins of the virus that has cut a swathe of death and economic pain across the world.
“There is enormous evidence that that (a Wuhan lab) is where this began,’ Mr Pompeo said.
“Remember, China has a history of infecting the world and they have a history of running substandard laboratories. These are not the first times that we’ve had a world exposed to viruses as a result of failures in a Chinese lab.”
“And so while the intelligence community continues to do its work, they should continue to do that and verify so that we are certain, I can tell you that there is a significant amount of evidence that this came from that laboratory in Wuhan,” he said.
Mr Pompeo also invoked Australia as one of the countries that understood how poorly China has behaved in trying to conceal from the world the initial outbreak of the virus and its dangerous nature.
“China behaved like authoritarian regimes do. It attempted to conceal and hide and confuse. It employed the World Health Organisation as a tool to do the same … the Australians agree with that. You hear the Europeans beginning to say the same thing. I think the whole world is united in understanding that China brought this virus to the world,” Mr Pompeo said.
The US intelligence community announced last week it was investigating whether a research laboratory in Wuhan was the original source of the virus, a claim strongly denied by China.
Mr Pompeo did not say whether he believed the virus was leaked from the lab accidentally or intentionally.
The most common explanation for the outbreak of the virus was that it originated through animals, most likely bats, at a wet market in Wuhan.
NEW: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tells @MarthaRaddatz China “did all that it could to make sure the world didn’t learn in a timely fashion†about COVID-19.
— ABC News (@ABC) May 3, 2020
"It was a classic communist disinformation effort," he adds and they will be held "accountable." https://t.co/sLSKoZFK1N pic.twitter.com/TFoPQ2Um09
Donald Trump said last week that he had seen evidence that gave him a high degree of confidence that the virus originated in a Chinese lab but said he wasn’t permitted to say any more.
The office of the US Director of Intelligence says it will “rigorously examine emerging information and intelligence” to determine whether the outbreak began with infected animals or whether “it was the result of an accident at a laboratory in Wuhan.”
Mr Pompeo’s comments come as the US, and many countries in the west, including Australia, increase pressure on China to be more transparent about the origins of the coronavirus.
Mr Pompeo has backed Scott Morrison’s has called for an International inquiry into the origins of the virus – a call which promoted threats by China of economic retaliation against Australia.
The Trump administration has stepped up in attacks on China in recent weeks for its role in covering up the initial outbreak of the virus and hiding from the world the truth about its lethality and spread.
“Here’s what’s important, The Chinese Communist Party had the opportunity to prevent all of the calamity that has befallen the world, and here we find ourselves today,’ Mr Pompeo said.
“This is an enormous crisis created by the fact that the Chinese Communist Party reverted to form, reverted to the kinds of disinformation, the kinds of concealment, that authoritarian regimes do,’ Mr Pompeo said.
China’s role in the pandemic has increased hostility towards Beijing in the US. A Pew Search Centre survey released last month found more than two-thirds of Americans have a negative view of China – the highest level since the centre’s surveys began in 2005.
Mr Trump is expected to make China a major target during his upcoming presidential election campaign.
A recent Republican National Committee poll found that 51 per cent of voters in 17 swing states blame China the most for the coronavirus.
READ MORE: Twiggy describes an Australia we don’t know
Agencies 7.05am: Tasmania northwest lockdown lifted
A strict lockdown of businesses in Tasmania’s northwest has ended, but the state government has warned against non-essential travel to prevent another outbreak of coronavirus.
The restrictions in the north west, put in place three weeks ago after a breakout of coronavirus at the North West Regional and Private hospitals in Burnie, shut all non-essential retail stores and schools.
The state government on Friday declared the outbreak was under control. Twelve of Tasmania’s 13 COVID-19 deaths have been in the northwest and two- thirds of an overall 221 cases have come from the outbreak there.
The easing of restrictions in the northwest brings the region back in line with the rest of the state, with limits on public gatherings and a ban on non- essential trips still in place.
Tasmania recorded no new COVID-19 cases for another day on Sunday, but Tasmanian Health Minister Sarah Courtney stressed that was no cause to ease restrictions.
“We know in other countries we have seen second waves which have had devastating consequences,” she said.
“So please I ask all Tasmanians, while this is very encouraging, we cannot be complacent and we must continue to ensure we are complying with all the measures.
“Restrictions remain across Tasmania and police are going to monitor those.”
The North West Regional Hospital at Burnie is also set to be gradually reopened. The resumption of maternity, radiation, oncology and intensive care services will be prioritised this week, Ms Courtney confirmed.
The Spencer Clinic, a mental health inpatient unit, will also be up and running again during the week.
In the south, the Royal Hobart Hospital’s new hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber will be open from Monday, meaning it could potentially support COVID-19 patients who can’t get oxygen through a mask or a hood.
Of the state’s 221 confirmed cases so far, 158 people have recovered.
READ MORE: Regional easing too confusing
Lachlan Moffet Gray 7.00am: Italy records lowest daily toll
Italy has reported 174 coronavirus deaths in the last 24 hours, the lowest daily toll since the country entered widespread lockdown on March 10 – a welcome sign as restrictions begin to roll back on Monday.
The country also recorded 1389 new cases, one of the lowest figures since the beginning of March.
The hard-hit nation now has 210,717 cases of the coronavirus – third only to the US and Spain as well as 28,884 deaths – second only to the United States.
“Thanks to the sacrifices done until today we have managed to contain the spread of the epidemic. This is a great result,” Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Sunday.
“We are about to enter the phase of coexistence with the virus, and we need to be aware that during this phase the contagion curve could climb back in some areas. We need to speak honestly. This risk exists, but we need to face it with strategy and rigour.”
Manufacturing, wholesale and construction businesses will be allowed to reopen from Monday and limited family visits between households will be allowed.
Travel between regional areas remains restricted, as do the operations of schools and restaurants, which are expected to remain shut until September and June respectively.
It comes as nearby Spain lifted some restrictions over the weekend, allowing the young and the elderly outside for the first time in more than a month.
READ MORE: Residents get a kick out of freedom
Kieran Gair 6.50am: Families race to get loved ones out
Desperate families are scrambling to rescue their loved ones from a nursing home at the centre of a fatal coronavirus outbreak as health officials concede a breach of infection-control methods may have sparked a “second wave” of infections at the ill-fated facility in Sydney’s west.
Family members said they wanted to get their elderly relatives out of Anglicare’s Newmarch House near Penrith on Monday after a 76-year-old resident died on Saturday, bringing the death toll at the 102-resident facility to 14.
NSW Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant said families of the estimated 60 residents who were COVID-19-negative could apply to remove them from the home but they would have to first endure a 14-day quarantine at a hospital ward or family residence.
READ MORE: Dying in their beds as ‘bushfire’ takes hold
Lachlan Moffet Gray 6.40am: Sydney pupil tests positive, school closed
A school in Sydney’s west will be closed for cleaning on Monday after one of the school’s students tested positive for COVID-19, the NSW Department of Education said.
The primary school situated near Sydney’s Warragamba dam was informed of the student’s diagnosis by NSW Health.
“The school will be non-operational for the on-site attendance of staff and students while the school conducts contact tracing and is cleaned,” the NSW Department of Education said on Sunday night.
“Staff and students who are identified as a close contact will be contacted and advised they should self-isolate for the required period of time.
“The safety and wellbeing of our staff and students is of paramount importance to us at all times. As such we will continue to work closely with NSW Health to ensure that all necessary health advice is adhered to.”
Further details relating to the School’s reopening will be provided at a later date.
NSW has 3035 cases of coronavirus and has seen 44 residents die of the disease.
READ MORE: State’s school stance based on broader concerns
Lachlan Moffet Gray 6.25am: Pompeo spins ;man-made’ virus claims
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has continued to propagate the theory that coronavirus emerged from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, even going as far to contradict the nation’s intelligence community in saying the virus may have been man made.
Mr Pompeo told ABC’s This Week on Sunday that “there is a significant amount of evidence that this came from that laboratory in Wuhan.”
Last week the Office for the Director of National Intelligence released a rare statement saying there was no evidence to support the idea that the COVID-19 strain was grown or modified – but did not rule out the virus escaping from a scientific facility like the Institute of Virology, which is known to study coronaviruses.
However, Mr Pompeo went on to contradict this statement, saying: “The best experts so far seem to think it was man-made. I have no reason to disbelieve that at this point.”
When challenged by the interviewer who mentioned the intelligence statement, Mr Pompeo backtracked.
“I’ve seen what the intelligence community has said. I have no reason to believe that they’ve got it wrong,” he said.
The theory that COVID-19 was made in a laboratory is often supported by supporters of US President Donald Trump and is a political wedge issue in North America.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was on Sunday asked about Mr Pompeo’s comments and said it was still “too early to draw conclusions” about the virus’s origins.
“We will continue to work with intelligence agencies around the world, not just the Five Eyes, but friends and partners as well and look to find answers to the many questions people are asking – but it is still too early to draw from conclusions.”
The coronavirus has infected just under 1.15 million Americans and killed just under 68,000 of them.
READ MORE: The truth threatens China
Simon Benson 6.15am: COVIDSafe app downloads pass 4.3 million
The nation’s top cyber experts have backed the security of the coronavirus app after an independent review found it cannot be hacked, as the federal government seeks to encourage millions more Australians to download COVIDSafe ahead of a national cabinet meeting on Friday when significant easing of social controls will be on the table.
As of Sunday night, more than 4.3 million Australians had downloaded the app, with the federal government hoping to secure at least a further two million registrations ahead of the next meeting between Scott Morrison and the state and territory leaders on Friday.
Health Minister Greg Hunt told The Australian the uptake of the app would be a key factor in the national cabinet’s decision on how quickly to proceed with the gradual restoration of freedoms for Australians.
“We are more than a week ahead of where we had hoped to be on downloads of the app with over 4.3 million registrations to date,” Mr Hunt said.
“This has helped bring forward national cabinet consideration of easing restrictions by a week.”
Thank-you Australia for helping to stop the spread of COVID-19.
— Greg Hunt (@GregHuntMP) May 3, 2020
The COVIDSafe App will help protect us, our family and friends, and our frontline health care heroes.
DOWNLOAD LINK - https://t.co/vn3NoeQpal pic.twitter.com/9dIrKJ8s6P
Read the full story here.
Adam Creighton 6.00am: Australia ‘standout loser’: Nobel winner
One of the world’s top scientists has branded lockdowns a “huge mistake” and called Australia a “standout loser” for “massively” damaging its economy and society without obtaining immunity to COVID-19.
In an extraordinary 30-minute interview, Michael Levitt – who won the Nobel prize for chemistry in 2013 – also slammed Baby Boomers for “really screwing up” the world. “If I was a young person now I would say, you guys are going to pay for this,” said Professor Levitt, 72.
Professor of structural biology at Stanford University, he said “panic” stemming from “incorrect numbers” had prompted lockdowns whose damage “will exceed any saving of lives by a huge factor – there is no doubt in my mind”.
Read the full story here.
Jacquelin Magnay 5.30am: Boris Johnson preparing road map to restart economy
Britain recorded its lowest number of coronavirus deaths in a month on Sunday, but it continues to edge near the Italian tally to become Europe’s worst impacted country.
Italy’s death toll climbed by 174 yesterday, up to 28,884 total deaths, just as the country was to begin easing tight restrictions on movement that were put in place eight weeks ago.
This comes as the UK death toll across hospitals and care homes rose by 315 deaths, up to 28,446. This is the lowest increase in more than a month, and even allowing for a weekend reporting lag, the weekly average is also on a distinct downward trend.
But Britain remains in a political coronavirus holding pattern until later in the week when a cautious prime minister Boris Johnson is to set out a “road map” for the country to restart economic activity.
It’s believed that the government can’t make any advances until they have enough masks in stock to ensure enough public transport users can access them, before beginning to lift lockdown measures. The daily press conference has become a groundhog day of stressing the public to be patient.
There are five key tests that we must satisfy before we can adjust the current measures. - 1/6
— Boris Johnson #StayHomeSaveLives (@BorisJohnson) May 3, 2020
Last week Mr Johnson hinted that mask use would be advised, if not mandatory, for workers to use the usually heaving public transport system.
One - We must be sure that the NHS has sufficient capacity to provide critical care and specialist treatment right across the UK. - 2/6
— Boris Johnson #StayHomeSaveLives (@BorisJohnson) May 3, 2020
Despite the country’s statistics of falling death rates and hospital admissions, capability within the NHS system, a reproduction number under 1 (it is currently 0.7) and avoiding a second spike that may overwhelm the NHS, satisfying the five steps to begin easing the measures; the government continues to stall on any easing of measures.
Two - We must see a sustained and consistent fall in deaths. - 3/6
— Boris Johnson #StayHomeSaveLives (@BorisJohnson) May 3, 2020
Three - We must be sure that the infection rate is falling to manageable levels. - 4/6
— Boris Johnson #StayHomeSaveLives (@BorisJohnson) May 3, 2020
On Sunday the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove said a mobile phone app system as part of a “test, track and trace procedure” was being piloted on the Isle of Wight.
But Mr Gove added: “It is also important that we make clear that any approach we take is staged … a phases approach is one which allows us to monitor the impact that those changes are having on public health and if necessary, in a specific and localised way, that means that we can pause or even reintroduce those restrictions that might be required in order to deal with localised outbreaks of the disease.”
Four - We must overcome the operational and logistical challenges on testing and PPE with supply able to meet future demand. - 5/6
— Boris Johnson #StayHomeSaveLives (@BorisJohnson) May 3, 2020
It is understood the government is looking at a gradual easing that may not begin until June, testing the patience of retailers and business owners who believe the economy is so fragile a further month of inaction will deepen what is predicted to be a deep recession of more than 35 per cent decline in GDP and steep unemployment.
Five - We must make sure that any adjustments to the current measures do not risk a second spike that would overwhelm the NHS. - 6/6
— Boris Johnson #StayHomeSaveLives (@BorisJohnson) May 3, 2020
As well as the economic peril, scientists have warned the government that the isolation of lockdown and being cut off from people is so bad psychologically and physically it does as much harm to health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.
Professor Stephen Reicher told The Sunday Telegraph that being isolated can increase risk of death by up to 30 per cent.
I have tweeted about this many times. My point is that physical proximity kills but so does social isolation. So we must find ways of being (physically) apart (while socially) together. That is a key challenge - and the title of the book we are writing.
— Stephen Reicher (@ReicherStephen) May 3, 2020
It is understood that the government is looking at schools, construction work and non food retailers to be the first to re-open with people encouraged to work from home, while places of mass gatherings like pubs will remain closed for months longer until later phases.
READ MORE: Relieved residents get a kick out of freedom as Spain lifts restrictions
Jacquelin Magnay 5.15am: World Athletics relaunches with home pole vault
Three pole vault mats and bars were set up on driveways alongside houses in Sweden, France and the United States to host a special coronavirus lockdown competition between three of the world’s top athletes on Sunday.
While most of the world was confined to lounge rooms in lockdown, the pole vault world record-holder Armand ‘Mondo’ Duplantis of Sweden, two-time world champion Sam Kendricks of the USA and 2012 Olympic champion Renaud Lavillenie of France took part in a World Athletics fun jump-off trying to clear 5m heights as many times as possible in just 30 minutes.
What resulted was a fun and riveting competition of endurance and power.
We have two Kings of the Garden 👑👑
— World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) May 3, 2020
The #UltimateGardenClash pole vault finishes as a tie, with @mondohoss600 and @airlavillenie achieving 36 five-metre clearances.@samkendricks bags bronze with 26 clearances. pic.twitter.com/SHTGyYRcpz
While Kendricks was the most accurate, not missing a height, it was the other two, Duplantis and Lavillenie who ended up jumping more, both clearing 36 jumps and both with one miss.
In the conference call style four way production between the different homes and the commentator, there was some confusion at the end about whether there should be a special three minute jump off to separate Duplantis and Lavillenie.
While Duplantis was up for it, Lavillenie decided to call it a day, too shattered from what was a demonstrably hard workout. Lavillenie, who marginally completed his 37th jump before Duplantis, tried to claim some sort of victory, but said he would share the gold medal.
Mood now #UltimateGardenClash is over pic.twitter.com/aDTcYG6hXF
— World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) May 3, 2020
“I’m ecstatic to be able to compete again, especially against Sam and Renaud,” said Duplantis before the competition.
“Since it’s unknown what other competitions we will all have together, we definitely are going to enjoy this and have a good time with it. Also, winning this is crucial because I don’t like losing to them very much.”
Tens of thousands tuned in to watch the competition on social media. World Athletics is working on presenting other track and field sports in a similar way in the coming weeks.
Good match @airlavillenie 🤠we going to run this thing back??🤪 https://t.co/chPIjvSuSh
— Mondo Duplantis (@mondohoss600) May 3, 2020
READ MORE: Tamworth’s Warriors land for NRL return
David Penberthy 5am: SA Premier predicts post-pandemic ‘golden time’
The low-infection states of South Australia and Western Australia are set to jump-start their economies this week, stealing a march on the eastern states that continue to plot a more sluggish approach to the reopening of businesses and schools.
Reopening of the states’ economies sooner would demonstrate that working in less populous, more liveable cities was a desirable option in a post-pandemic world, South Australian Premier Steven Marshall told The Australian.
South Australia is poised to lift its ban on intrastate travel within days and encourage residents to stay in beach towns, wine regions and at their holiday homes, while Western Australia last week increased permitted gatherings from two people to 10.
“There’s a golden time for SA going forward because there is a growing recognition now that being successful doesn’t have to involve sitting on the 62nd floor of an office tower in Sydney or Hong Kong or London,” Mr Marshall said.
Read the full story here.
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