Coronavirus live news Australia: Ministers face quarantine in Canberra as Perth starts five-day lockdown
West Australian federal MPs and their staff will have to quarantine in Canberra after Perth went into a five-day lockdown with a plane-load of politicians stranded on a flight.
- Most of WA in five day lockdown
- NZ travel bubble resumes today
- 2000 health services sign up for vaccine
- Play your part in recovery, Qld Premier told
- More borders reopen from today
- EU backs down on vaccine bans
- Emergency order mandates masks in US
Welcome to The Weekend Australian’s live rolling coverage of the coronavirus crisis.
The whole Perth metro area will enter a five-day lockdown from tonight after COVID-19 was detected in the community for the first time in almost ten months. Greg Hunt says New Zealand is now considered sufficiently low risk to resume the travel bubble. G reg Hunt says Australia’s vaccine roll out remains on track, with an additional thousand health services signing up to administer it. Queensland’s Premier has been told to play her part in getting the state’s struggling tourism sector back on its feet amid her calls for federal handouts to continue. Meanwhile, as more state borders reopen around Australia, the European Union has backflipped on its attempts to block the export of coronavirus vaccines. The federal government says Australia is in a strong position because we can manufacture our own vaccines and the nation’s February rollout remains on track.
Paul Garvey 11pm: Guard triggers lockdown for millions
Two million West Australians have been plunged into five days of hard lockdown after a security guard at a Perth quarantine hotel spent days in the community after likely being infected with the highly contagious UK variant of the coronavirus.
Premier Mark McGowan said the state was taking “dramatic action immediately’’ to crush the virus, but the snap lockdown sparked an angry backlash from a major business group and threatened to disrupt fly-in fly-out rosters for the state’s mining industry.
WA federal politicians, who were in the air on the way to Canberra when the lockdown was announced were forced into quarantine ahead of the resumption of federal parliament on Tuesday. Mr McGowan delayed the return of school by a week and the Big Bash cricket final scheduled for Thursday will be moved to Canberra. The Perth Fringe Festival was cancelled.
Stephen Lunn 10.15pm: Victoria closes border to West Australians
Victoria’s border is now closed to people who have been in Perth, the Peel region or the South West region of Western Australia since January 25.
The Andrews government declared the regions “red zones” under its traffic light system and ordered the border to be shut to parts of WA after its Premier, Mark McGowan, imposed a five-day lockdown after a new case was recorded in the state.
“If people have been in one of these currently listed red zones since 25 January, they will not be allowed to enter Victoria without an exception, exemption or permitted worker permit,” a Victorian Health Department said.
“The rest of Western Australia outside of the red zone areas of the Perth metropolitan area, the Peel region and the South West region will remain green zones.”
READ MORE: Infected guard triggers lockdown for millions
Geoff Chambers 8.50pm: Resources call for budget to think big
Australia’s biggest mining, oil and gas companies have called on Josh Frydenberg to adopt an ambitious tax and industrial relations reform agenda ahead of the May budget and deliver investment incentives to unleash a wave of new projects and exploration.
With resources jobs booming during the pandemic, including a 25 per cent employment surge in coalmining, the Treasurer has been urged to embrace longer-term fiscal settings to support the nation’s top performing sectors.
Pre-budget submissions from the Minerals Council of Australia and Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association list 12 priority recommendations, including tax and industrial relations reform, slashing green tape, investment incentives, jobs creation and ensuring the resources sector remains globally competitive.
Rhiannon Down 8.10pm: Auction clearance rates soar
Auction clearance rates in Sydney and Melbourne soared above 80 per cent at the weekend as buyers sought houses in the middle and outer suburbs to accommodate more flexible working arrangements.
Property researcher CoreLogic reported 891 homes went under the hammer nationally, 266 more than the same week last year, returning a national clearance rate of 81.1 per cent, which was well above last year’s 61 per cent.
CoreLogic head of research Tim Lawless said record low interest rates and higher consumer confidence, especially among first-home buyers eager not to miss out, was driving the market.
“Consumer sentiment, which measures household mindsets about their finances and domestic economy and the willingness to make a high commitment decision, is seeing people get back into the market,” he said.
“If you’re going to be buying a home, it’s a big decision so to have a decent level of confidence is important.”
Greg Brown 7.35pm: Fears over WA flight passengers in Canberra
ACT Health has urged passengers arriving from Western Australia to Canberra on a flight on Sunday go “directly to their accommodation and to minimise their interactions with other people”.
A plane-load of federal MPs, ministers and staffers were in the air on a flight to Canberra from Perth when West Australian Premier Mark McGowan announced a five-day lockdown from 6pm on Sunday.
ACT Deputy Chief Health Officer Vanessa Johnston said passengers needed to take extra precautions.
“ACT Health advises that all passengers should wear a mask and go directly to their accommodation,” Dr Johnston said.
“Passengers should review the WA Government COVID-19 website (https://www.wa.gov.au/government/covid-19-coronavirus) and follow all directions from WA authorities. This website is being updated very frequently, so please check back regularly for the latest information.
“ACT Health is monitoring the situation in Western Australia and will be making further decisions as additional information is received from WA authorities. We will be in contact with passengers tomorrow.
“Of course, any person who starts to experience symptoms of COVID-19 should get tested immediately.”
READ MORE: Auction action hits soaring heights
AFP 7.15pm: WHO team visits Wuhan market
A team of WHO experts investigating the origins of COVID-19 visited a market in Wuhan on Sunday where one of the first reported clusters of infections emerged over a year ago.
Members of the group arrived at Huanan seafood market — which has been sealed since January last year — driving into its barricaded premises as guards quickly blocked others from entering.
The mission, delayed by China and weighed down by political baggage, has a remit to explore how the virus jumped from animal to human.
But with the fieldwork element of a trip in its early stages, World Health Organisation officials have already downplayed expectations of finding the source of a virus that has killed more than two million people and devastated the global economy.
On Sunday, the WHO team arrived at the Huanan market as part of a long-planned trip now closely monitored by the Chinese authorities.
The experts did not take any questions and the sprawling market remains boarded up.
Security staff told reporters outside to leave and shook a tall ladder on which a photographer was sitting for a better view.
Earlier this week, state media outlet Global Times published a report downplaying the importance of Huanan as an early epicenter of the virus, claiming “subsequent investigations” have suggested the market was not the source of the outbreak.
Chinese authorities have relentlessly pushed a positive narrative of heroism and decisive, swift action in their fight against the coronavirus that has spurred an economic recovery and kept deaths down to 4636.
READ MORE: No sense: Covid’s weirdest symptom
Ellie Dudley 6.40pm: Tehan backs vaccines for all nations
Australia will continue to support a global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines as the “only way” to end the pandemic, Trade Minister Dan Tehan says.
“One of the things countries committed to is to make sure when it came to the rollout of the vaccine is that it was made widely available to countries across the globe,” he told Sky on Sunday. “We will continue to push for this.”
The World Trade Organisation has pushed to make sure rich countries do not dominate the vaccine rollout.
Mr Tehan said the federal government would “be making representation” where they see signs of vaccine nationalism.
“The only way, in the end, that we will be able to successfully deal with the pandemic is by having a consistent approach right across the globe to the roll out of the vaccine,” he added.
READ MORE: Home auctions on the boil for summer
Richard Ferguson 6.25pm: WA MPs face quarantine in Canberra
West Australian federal MPs and their staff will have to quarantine in Canberra as Perth goes into a five-day lockdown.
The presiding officers of parliament have advised WA parliamentarians to report to staff at Canberra Airport when they arrive ahead of a month of three sitting weeks.
“As directed by the Speaker, all WA Members and Staff must report to the SAA and Whips staff on arrival at the gate in Canberra airport,” the advice states.
“You will be directed to quarantine until further advised by the whips office.”
The Australian understands a plane full of WA MPs — including Attorney-General Christian Porter — may be turned around and at least one member has visited the exposure sites announced today.
READ MORE: Tax Office says JobKeeper only for the living
Paul Garvey 6.05pm: Plane load of WA MPs, ministers stranded in the air
A planeload of federal politicians and staffers headed to Canberra from Perth were stranded in the air after the re-emergence of COVID-19 in Western Australia.
It is understood that at least one passenger on the flight had visited one of the exposure sites announced by WA Premier Mark McGowan earlier on Sunday.
Some of the MPs on board were pushing to have the flight return straight back to Perth.
But The Australian understands those on the plane will be able to go to their hotels in Canberra, pending further advice.
“The ACT government is monitoring the situation in Western Australia and will provide further advice on Monday 1 February,” a spokeswoman for the ACT government said.
Qantas flight QF 856 is scheduled to land in Canberra at 6.40pm, local time.
The plane took off from Perth just minutes before Mr McGowan announced that the Perth metropolitan area and the state’s southwest — which together cover 80 per cent of the state’s population — would enter a five-day lockdown.
Federal Liberal MPs on the flight included Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, Attorney-General Christian Porter and Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ben Morton. Most Labor MPs from WA, with the exception of Patrick Gorman, are also on board.
READ MORE: Enough doses coming despite EU, says govt
Charlie Peel 5.55pm: Queensland declares Perth a hotspot
Queensland health authorities have declared Perth and some surrounding areas a hotspot and called for anyone in the eastern state who has visited the West since Australia Day to get tested for the virus.
“Anyone who has been in Metropolitan Perth, Peel or the South West regions of WA who arrives in Queensland from 6pm tonight (Sunday) will be required to go into 14 days mandatory hotel quarantine,” Queensland Gealth said.
“This timeframe may change as we receive more information about the WA outbreak.
“Anyone who is already in Queensland but has been in Perth or the Peel or South West regions since January 26 should come forward and get tested and isolate until get a negative result.”
READ MORE: Tax Office says JobKeeper only for the living
Rhiannon Down 5.20pm: WA supermarket shelves stripped
Supermarket shelves have been stripped across Perth as West Australians facing five days of lockdown scramble to gather supplies, defying orders to resist panic buying.
Images of shoppers lining up at the check-out and cars backed up on the way in to shopping centres have surfaced online.
Mark McGowan announced a snap lockdown on Sunday afternoon after a hotel worker tested positive to COVID-19. The lockdown comes into effect at 6pm on Sunday.
Was already in the supermarket when the news about WA community transmission and lockdown broke - and it got v v v busy v quickly. Husband was due back from Melb next Saturday after 4 weeks away 😔 Could be a long year... but 🤞🤞🤞🤞
— Annie Wilson (@onewildpreclife) January 31, 2021
“Was already in the supermarket when the news about WA community transmission and lockdown broke — and it got (very) busy (very) quickly,” one shopper said online.
“Husband was due back from Melb next Saturday after 4 weeks away. Could be a long year.”
Authorities urged residents to resist the urge to stock up on supplies to prevent panic buying.
“I would ask you, just be very careful that you do not do things that you would not want done to you,” WA police commissioner Chris Dawson said.
“Sounds like a biblical statement, but be considerate, do not do panic shopping, we just have to respond in the way that we responded previously, and we will get through this in consideration of all our vulnerable people in the community.”
READ MORE: No sense: Covid’s weirdest symptom
Paul Garvey 5.05pm: Weddings cancelled, no visitors in aged care homes
A host of businesses, venues and organisations have been ordered to close, including pubs, bars and clubs, gyms and indoor sports, playgrounds and skate parks, the casino, and places of worship.
Restaurants and cafes will only be open for takeaway.
Weddings have been cancelled and funerals will be limited to 10 people. No visitors are allowed in aged care homes and hospitals unless there are “exceptional circumstances”.
The Big Bash final scheduled to take place in Perth on Thursday is likely to be played in front of empty grandstands, while the Fringe Festival already underway will be cancelled for the week.
Three people who lived in the same household as the security guard, aged in his 20s, have been taken into quarantine and have since tested negative, but Mr McGowan said they were expected to test positive for the virus in the coming days.
He said he had spoken to Prime Minister Scott Morrison and the other state premiers, asking them to “put a stop to any travel into WA”.
“Border controls are important here, and I 100 per cent support them to ensure that we can get through this,” he said.
While WA had not had a case of community transmission in almost ten months, it has consistently had several cases among returned overseas travellers in the state’s quarantine hotels.
More recently, some of those returned Australians have been infected with the UK and South African strains of the virus.
Mr McGowan has regularly called for the Federal government to use remote immigration detention centres and military bases to house Australians returning from overseas.
An earlier press conference scheduled for Sunday morning was cancelled at short notice.
Mr McGowan has previously flagged that he would not hesitate to introduce a lockdown in the event the virus was again detected in the WA community.
The news comes less than six weeks before the WA election, with Mr McGowan considered a firm favourite to return to power.
Mr McGowan said he would be suspending his campaign during the lockdown.
READ MORE: Home auctions on the boil
Richard Ferguson 4.55pm: PM confident WA will get on top of outbreak
Scott Morrison says he is confident Western Australia will get on top of coronavirus as Perth goes into a five day lockdown.
After WA Premier Mark McGowan confirmed a hotel quarantine guard contracted COVID-19, the Prime Minister thanked Perthians for their patience.
The coming days will be difficult for many Western Australians but we're confident WA will be able to get on top of the current outbreak. A big thank you to everyone in WA for your patience and cooperation as we all work to fight this terrible virus.
— Scott Morrison (@ScottMorrisonMP) January 31, 2021
“The coming days will be difficult for many Western Australians but we’re confident WA will be able to get on top of the current outbreak,” Mr Morrison tweeted on Sunday.
“A big thank you to everyone in WA for your patience and cooperation as we all work to fight this terrible virus.”
Mark McGowan asked other Australians to stay away from WA, telling them: “Now is not the time to come.”
READ MORE: Tax office says JobKeeper only for the living
Christine Kellett 4.45pm: McGowan to suspend election campaign over crisis
WA Premier Mark McGowan says he will suspend his re-election campaign to deal with the unfolding coronavirus situation.
The state election is scheduled for March 13.
Metropolitan Perth, Peel and the southwest region - about 80 per cent of the WA population - will enter a five-day lockdown from 6pm tonight after a hotel quarantine security guard tested positive for the suspected UK strain of COVID-19.
“We will suspend our campaign for the next five days, that is the furthest thing from my mind at the moment,” Mr McGowan said.
“I will leave it for their opposition to determine what they do, but we will be suspending our campaign. People do not want political campaigning in the next five days.”
Mr McGowan urged residents not to panic buy at supermarkets.
Perth residents have been asked to stay at home, only going outside for essential work, shopping and one hour of exercise. They have been told to wear a mask at all times, even at work.
Police will be be setting up checkpoints between Perth, Peel and the south-west and checking on residents moving between these areas.
READ MORE: Mr 89 per cent: Why Mark McGowan is riding high
Christine Kellett 4.35pm: Infected guard had second job as rideshare driver
Under questioning, Premier Mark McGowan has admitted the infected security guard also works a second job as a rideshare-driver but authorities did not believe he had performed any of that work while infected.
The man lives in a unit with three other men, who have tested negative, but are expected to develop COVID-19 in the coming days.
“I am advised that he may have had a second job along those lines, but I am also advised that he has not undertaken any work of that nature since Wednesday, which was his last day, working in hotel quarantine.
“We think he acquired the illness on Tuesday or Wednesday of the last week,” said Mr McGowan.
Asked why hotel quarantine security guards were being allowed to work second jobs after the Victorian debacle, Mr McGowan said it had been “a difficult system to resolve.”
“Essentially, you know, you rely a lot on trust. Because if people do an odd shift here or there, or elsewhere, it is hard to police that. We have been working on what protocols and arrangements we can work in place around that for some time.”
READ MORE: Push to rescind security license over Victorian outbreak
Anne Barrowclough 4.30pm: ‘We’re following the Brisbane model’
Mark McGowan has said that in locking down the Perth metro area health authorities were following the Queensland model, when Brisbane went into full lockdown last month.
“The main thing here is that we have a problem, we need the state, and the people of the state, to help in fixing it, and that is what we’re trying do here today,” he said.
“Make sure we do with this quickly, effectively, and efficiently. And not get community spread of the pilots as you’ve seen in other states in other parts of the world.
It is a highly infectious virus, when Brisbane had this issue, about a month ago, in very similar circumstances, it did not result in community spread of the virus. Basically, they crushed it because they took dramatic action immediately. That is the model we are following, dramatic action immediately. Try to crush the virus, prevent getting community spread across Western Australia.
Christine Kellett 4.10pm: List of potential exposure sites
Health Minister Roger Cook has outlined a list of potential exposure sites, including a Coles supermarket and KFC restaurant in Maylands, the consulate of India and a hairdressing salon.
“We understand the person has not worked in any other role during the period in question,” Mr Cook said. “It is under investigation, obviously because something did go wrong and we do need to get to the bottom of it. At this point in time we are investigating the current active cases in the hotel and undertaking genomic sequencing of those cases and that will be known in the next 24-48 hours and obviously do genomic sequencing on the individual himself.”
The sites are:
- Coles Maylands supermarket on January 25, between 8pm and 10pm.
- KFC Marylands on the 27 January from 6pm to midnight.
- Mitsubishi motors car dealership in Midland on January 27 from 7pm to close. - -- Spud Shed, Coventry Village, on January 27 from 8pm to midnight.
- ECU Joondalup on January 28, from 11am to 2pm stop
- The Consulate General of India on Saint Georges Terrace in Perth on January 28 from 12pm to 5pm.
- Halal Grocery Store in Cloverdale on January 28, from 7pm to 9pm. Venus
Ladies and Gentlemen Hair Design in Maylands on January 29 from 1pm to three p.m. Perth Convention Centre on January 29 from 4pm to six p.m. Nedlands family practice GP surgery on 29 January, from 5pm to six p.m.
Chemist Warehouse in North Perth pharmacy, from January 29 from 530 pm to 7:30pm. 7-11 Ascot petrol station on January 29, from 8pm to 9pm.
- Paul’s Maylands supermarket on January 29 from 8pm until 9pm
- Puma service station in Burswood on January 13 from 11am until 12 midday. - - - Coles Express Shell service station in Cloverdale on January 30 from 12pm until 3pm. Pharmacy
- Pharmacy 777 at Mayland1 Park Shopping Centre (time and date not yet advised)
Paul Garvey 4.00pm: Perth metro area in five day lockdown after guard tests positive
The whole Perth metro area will enter a five-day lockdown from tonight after COVID-19 was detected in the community for the first time in almost ten months.
WA premier Mark McGowan announced the step at an emergency press conference in Perth on Sunday afternoon after a male security guard at a city quarantine hotel tested positive with what could be the UK variant.
“I ask everybody to be cooperative and understanding of what is going to take place,” Mr McGowan said.
“WA has experienced community transmission of this virus before. We all did the
right thing and we crushed it. And it works.
“This lockdown will last until 6pm on Friday. It is crucial react to keep the community safe. We cannot forget how quickly this virus can spread, nor the devastation it can cause.”
The guard had tested negative on January 15, 17 and 23 but started showing symptoms of the coronavirus after working 12-hour shifts on January 26 and 27, Mr McGowan said.
There were two cases of the UK variant and one of the South African variant in the area where he was working.
Mr McGowan said the Perth metropolitan area, Peel and the south-west would remain in lockdown until 6pm Friday.
“People in these regions are required to stay home except for the following four reasons: shopping for essentials like groceries, medicine and necessary supplies; medical or healthcare needs, including compassionate requirements and looking after the vulnerable; exercise within their neighbourhood, but only with one other person and only for one hour per day; work, when you cannot work from home or remotely,” he said.
“In addition to this stay-at-home rule, if you do leave home for one of the four reasons you will be required to wear a mask at all times outside, and if you need
to do work indoors, then wearing a mask is also mandatory. To be clear, mask wearing on public transport is also mandatory. People in the Perth, Peel or south-west regions need to stay inside their region for the next five days, unless for an essential reason.”
The state’s public schools were due to resume on Monday morning, but that has now been delayed by one week.
A host of businesses, venues and organisations have been ordered to close, including pubs, bars and clubs, gyms and indoor sports, playgrounds and skate parks, the casino, and places of worship.
Restaurants and cafes will only be open for takeaway.
Weddings have been cancelled and funerals will be limited to 10 people. No visitors are allowed in aged care homes and hospitals unless there are “exceptional circumstances”.
Even before Mr McGowan formally announced the measures, there had been a run on supermarkets across Perth as rumours of an impending lockdown began to spread.
Reporters at the press conference were asked to put on face masks before Mr McGowan took the stage.
While WA had not had a case of community transmission in almost ten months, it has consistently had several cases among returned overseas travellers in the state’s quarantine hotels.
More recently, some of those returned Australians have been infected with the highly contagious British and South African strains of the virus.
Mr McGowan has regularly called for the Federal government to use remote immigration detention centres and military bases to house Australians returning from overseas.
An earlier press conference scheduled for Sunday morning was cancelled at short notice.
Mr McGowan has previously flagged that he would not hesitate to introduce a lockdown in the event the virus was again detected in the WA community.
The news comes less than six weeks before the WA election, with Mr McGowan considered a firm favourite to return to power.
READ MORE: What sort of world do we want after pandemic?
Paul Garvey 3.22pm: WA Premier calls urgent press conference
West Australian Premier Mark McGowan is due to front an emergency COVID-19 press briefing imminently, though details of his announcement are scant.
The state’s Health Minister Roger Cook is also due to address the public.
It follows the announcement yesterday of the relaxing of border rules for Queenslanders and Victorians entering the state, which are due to take effect from Monday and Friday respectively.
More to come...
Beranrd Salt 3.15pm: What sort of world do we want after the pandemic?
The US spends hundreds of billions of dollars a year on defence. It has assembled a fearsome armoury as much to intimidate would-be aggressors as to deploy on the battlefield. In 2019, the Trump administration even announced the formation of a Space Force. Yet for all this investment, this whiz-bang new technology, this teeth-baring display of military might, the greatest threat to the wellbeing of the American people has been COVID-19. In the US in recent weeks more people have died each day from Covid than in the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The virus has now claimed almost seven times as many US lives as the Vietnam War.
But it’s not just the pandemic that has weakened America. Dissent, social division and hatred are powerful allies. Consider the advantages of fomenting dissent in a nation such as the US, or Australia for that matter. It costs little. Unlike an intercontinental ballistic missile, it doesn’t leave a vapour trail or radar track pointing to a launch site. It allows for plausible denial. From an adversary’s point of view, sowing the seeds of internal division offers the kind of slow-burn impact that’s probably well worth the investment.
I have no doubt that analysts at the Pentagon have war-gamed all manner of conflict with all sorts of countries and yet arguably the greatest carnage inflicted upon the American people in three generations has come from within. Foreign adversaries haven’t had to lift a finger.
Read Bernard Salt’s full analysis here.
Tim Shipman 2.30pm: Panicked calls, hasty tweets: how vaccine crisis unfolded
Boris Johnson warned the European Commission they would endanger the lives of elderly and vulnerable patients if they persisted with plans to ban the export of coronavirus vaccine to the UK.
In a tense call with Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the commission, on Friday night the British prime minister said such action would prevent British pensioners getting a second dose of the Pfizer jab, forcing the EU into an about-turn.
After a tense diplomatic standoff the EU also backed down on plans to use article 16 of the Northern Ireland Protocol — thrashed out in Brexit talks — to close the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic.
This weekend senior officials revealed that ministers dusted off no-deal plans to airlift the vaccine from Belgium to the UK and were hours from asking the United States to intervene. One warned last night that there would be consequences for the EU’s actions.
Two months ago Johnson and Von der Leyen had worked together to finalise a trade deal between Britain and the EU in the face of scepticism that one could be reached. This time the atmosphere was less collaborative, more tense. “Things got pretty spicy,” a senior government official said. “The important thing was establishing with confidence that there would be no issue in relation to people needing their second jabs. They need the safety and security of knowing they will get another. His job on that call was to get her to agree that point.”
After five years of often dry exchanges over tariffs and trade, the first confrontation between Britain and Brussels was literally a matter of life and death.
READ MORE: The sad decline of lone wolf Tomic
Rhiannon Down 2.05pm: Green Zone flights from NZ deemed ‘low risk’
Australia’s acting chief health officer has explained further why Green Zone flights from New Zealand to Australia will recommence this afternoon, after the AHPPC made a ruling not to continue the pause on travel between the two countries today.
“The AHPPC at its meeting this morning noted that there had been no further confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the community in New Zealand since the initial three cases were infected with what was concerned — the B1351 variant — known as the South African variant,” Acting CMO Michael Kidd told a press conference on Sunday.
“As you know, the three cases all originated from transmission within hotel quarantine at the Pullman Hotel in Auckland.”
“The AHPPC has also noted that all close contacts of these three New Zealand cases have returned negative test results and there have been no further cases found to date in the casual contacts, in the previous residents of the hotel or in the staff of the hotel.”
Mr Kidd said travellers from NZ would be required to undergo 14 days of quarantine in the community before flying to Australia, and would not be able to board a flight directly after hotel quarantine.
He said the situation would continue to be monitored by authorities.
READ MORE: A slow death on the harbour
Rhiannon Down 1.55pm: Melbourne, Sydney auction clearance rates soar
Auction clearance rates in Sydney and Melbourne soared above 80 per cent at the weekend as buyers shrugged off COVID-19 concerns and plunged into the market.
Property researcher CoreLogic reported 891 homes went under the hammer nationally, 266 more than the same week last year, returning a national clearance rate of 80 per cent, which was well above last year’s 61 per cent.
Melbourne had 388 auctions and a clearance rate of 83 per cent, while Sydney recorded 272 auctions with a clearance rate of 82.9 per cent.
The figures indicate a renewed optimism in the market compared to last year’s opening weekend, where COVID-19 fears dampened buyers’ willingness to bid.
A year ago Melbourne had 211 auctions listed with 65.8 per cent clearing sale, and Sydney 158 auctions with a clearance of 72.9 per cent.
CoreLogic head of research Tim Lawless said record low mortgage interest rates and higher consumer confidence, especially among first home buyers eager not to miss out, was driving the market.
“Consumer sentiment, which measures household mindsets about their finances and domestic economy and the willingness to make a high commitment decision, is seeing people get back into the market,” he said.
“If you’re going to be buying a home it’s a big decision so to have a decent level of confidence is important.”
“There is a bit of urgency coming back into the marketplace, when listing numbers are low and we’re seeing homes selling faster, vendors have lost quite a bit of leverage to negotiate, so all those indicators are pointing towards a sellers market.”
“Under these conditions we expect prices to continue rising and for that reason buyers are feeling a sense of urgency, so FOMO is coming back into the decision making.”
READ MORE: Booming Byron pushes locals out
Richard Ferguson 1.30pm: Kiwis allowed back in from this afternoon
New Zealanders will be allowed back into Australia and will not have to quarantine from 2pm this afternoon.
Health Minister Greg Hunt said on Sunday New Zealand is now considered sufficiently low risk, after the travel bubble was suspended last week when the South African variant of coronavirus was found in New Zealand hotel quarantine.
“The Acting CMO noted there have been no further confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the community in New Zealand since the initial three cases originated from transmission within hotel quarantine,” Mr Hunt said.
“The Acting CMO also noted all close contacts of the three New Zealand cases have returned negative test results, and there have been no further cases found to date in the casual contacts, previous residents of the hotel or hotel staff.
“Given there is still a small risk of further associated cases being detected in New Zealand, with an abundance of caution, the Acting CMO has recommended pre and post flight screening be implemented for the safe travel zone flights for the next ten days.”
New Zealanders will need to be in their own country - and outside quarantine - for the past 14 days to be eligible for safe zone travel flights.
READ MORE: Hospitality seeks HECs style loans
Agencies 1.15pm: Biden’s Covid recovery howled down by Republicans
US President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion plan to revive the US economy has been met with howls from the Republican opposition in Washington, with conservative lawmakers saying it is full of money-wasting programs at a time when the country doesn’t need any more debt.
Yet it wasn’t so long ago that the party, led by fellow Republican Donald Trump in the White House, passed massive tax cuts and an even larger stimulus package to fight the economic disruptions caused by COVID-19 — expensive measures that fueled the rising budget deficit.
Now, with Democrats back in the presidency and narrowly controlling Congress, Republicans are citing concerns about the rising US debt and deficit as grounds to object to Biden’s agenda.
The $1.9 trillion package the president proposed to accelerate the country’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic is “a colossal waste, and economically harmful,” Republican Senator Pat Toomey said.
“The total figure is pretty shocking,” said Mitt Romney, a fellow Republican senator who seized on the rising national debt during his failed attempt to unseat Democratic President Barack Obama in the 2012 election.
READ MORE: Orders galore as Biden sets cracking pace
Rhiannon Down 12.55pm: No new Aus Open quarantine cases
Victorian authorities have recorded no new COVID-cases in Australian Open quarantine in the past 24 hours.
There are currently three active cases linked to the tournament in quarantine among 15 residents.
Some 346 residents exited quarantine on Saturday, with high profile players Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams were among those allowed out on Friday.
A total of eight cases have been linked to Australian Open arrivals since January 14.
READ MORE: Give us a tax break say tourism chiefs
Wayne Smith 12.10pm: Australia offers to host Lions tour
Perth almost certainly would host two of the three Tests between the British and Irish Lions and the Springboks if the two international sides accept Australia’s offer to stage this year’s planned but COVID-hit Lions tour to South Africa.
Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan told The Australian on Sunday he had contacted the South African Rugby Union’s chief executive Jurie Roux about a fortnight ago to offer Australia as a viable alternative to host the tour, which is in grave danger of being cancelled because of the global pandemic.
The story was broken by Stephen Jones in the Sunday Times.
McLennan said that if the offer was accepted it would make sense to stage two of the three Lions Tests in Perth to take advantage of the huge number of South African ex-pats living there. “Perth would be a natural, you would think that,” McLennan said. “But we would hope to stage one Test on the east coast.”
Perth’s new Optus Stadium, which hosted the record Wallabies win over New Zealand in 2019, is regarded as state of the art and provides the capacity – around 60,000 – to accommodate the fans who traditionally follow Lions tours in great numbers. “I don’t see why they would not sell out the ground,” McLennan said.
READ the full story
Rhiannon Down 11.55am: NSW records another zero case day
NSW has recorded another day of zero locally acquired cases, and three cases in hotel quarantine.
Today marks two weeks since a positive case was detected in the community, though authorities caution against complacency.
NSW recorded no new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night.
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) January 31, 2021
There were three cases acquired overseas, bringing the total number of COVID-19 cases in NSW since the beginning of the pandemic to 4,915. pic.twitter.com/aURefq94hj
“There were 8,811 tests reported to 8pm last night, compared with the previous day’s total of 10,504,” NSW Health said in a statement.
“Testing numbers remain low, which is a concern given that high rates of testing are an important tool in tracking the spread of the virus.”
NSW Health warned the virus could still be circulating in the community among those with no symptoms.
READ MORE: Billions fail to fix GP shortage
Rhiannon Down 11.45am: Frydenberg ‘supported Aus Open’
Josh Frydenberg has denied the Australian Open went ahead despite the global pandemic out of fear Melbourne would lose the grand slam.
“I did support the Australian Open going ahead subject to those very stringent COVID conditions,” the Treasurer said on Sky News.
He denied speculation the tournament went ahead under threat, insisting it was a staple of the country’s sporting calendar.
“Australians love their tennis. It’s a national event of significance but also an international event of significance,” he said.
“There are always parties in the country who are desperate to get such high profile events on their calendars.”
READ MORE: Choir singing from the wrong song sheet
Rhiannon Down 11.30am: ‘Shut up, we’re not going to sit down’
Footage appearing to show revellers dancing in defiance of health directives, onboard party boat Seadeck in Sydney has surfaced on social media.
The video posted on Saturday night shows a crowd of party-goers dancing despite the DJs pleas to “sit down”.
“We need you to sit down, we know it’s tempting,” he said in the video.
The crowded packing the dance floor refused to obey, with a voice off video saying: “Shut the f--k up, we’re not going to sit down… we pay our taxes”.
Although caps on household gatherings have been raised to 30 people and outdoor gatherings to 50 guests, NSW still has strict limits on social gatherings.
Hospitality venues are limited to one person per 4sqm, and singing and dancing remain banned.
NSW Police said it was not aware of the video, but it took potential breaches seriously.
READ MORE: Covid’s weirdest symptom
Rhiannon Down 10.45am: Hunt: 2000 health practitioners sign up to administer vaccine
Greg Hunt says Australia’s vaccine roll out remains on track despite the EU supply issues, with an additional thousand health services signing up to administer the vaccine.
The Federal Health Minister thanked the country’s health practitioners for their willingness to join the fight against COVID-19 this morning as he addressed the media this morning.
“What we’re doing is making sure there is appropriate remuneration and significantly we are able to increase our guidance on the likely number of points of presence in Australia,” he said.
“We had been conservative in indicating 1,000. I am now able to indicate today it’ll be 2,000, we’ve had much greater uptake from the practitioner community.”
Mr Hunt said the country remained on schedule to receive the vaccines despite the storm brewing in Europe over vaccine supplies that threatened to withhold doses from Australia.
“The guidance from the EU is provisional and preliminary at this stage, so I will remain cautious, but that guidance is that the EU regulatory steps are not aimed at Australia, and not expected to affect Australia,” he said.
“But we will continue to engage with the EU on a daily basis and at this point in time we are in the very fortunate position of having guidance that our international suppliers, Pfizer commencing with approximately 80,000 doses per week in late February, AstraZeneca with approximately 1.2 million doses for March.
“Then very importantly, bringing forward ahead of schedule the CSL doses, of approximately 1 million per week, commencing in late March, which would deliver 2 million doses of the AstraZeneca CSL produced vaccine here in Australia.”
READ MORE: EU slaps ban on vaccine exports
Anne Barrowclough 10.40am: Government to decide on NZ border ban today
The government will announce this afternoon whether it will open the borders to New Zealand.
Health Minister Greg Hunt said the decision would be made after acting Chief Medical Officer Michael Kidd met with NZ authorities this morning.
“We’ve had very good news out of New Zealand over recent days, “ Mr Hunt told reporters. “There has been no community transmission beyond those first three cases, all of which were most likely affected within the hotel quarantine system. He will have more details, final advice of the Australian government, and that will be announced this afternoon.
“So that processes and completed yet, but we will have guidance and updates this afternoon. That process isn’t completed.”
Anne Barrowclough 10.25am: Zero cases recorded in Queensland
Queensland has recorded zero new cases again, with just six active cases in the state. The state has carried out a total of 1,764, tests
Sunday 31 January – coronavirus cases in Queensland:
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) January 30, 2021
• 0 new cases
• 6 active cases
• 1,310 total cases
• 1,764,500 tests conducted
Sadly, six Queenslanders with COVID-19 have died. 1,295 patients have recovered.#covid19 pic.twitter.com/dnPpQlI8cN
Anne Barrowclough 10.20am: Another day of zero cases for Victoria
Victoria has recorded another day of zero cases, with 10, 681 test results received. however the DHHS says it has received notificaiton of an indeterminate result.
Yesterday there were 0 new cases reported. 10,681 test results were received - thank you for getting tested. #StaySafeStayOpen
— VicGovDHHS (@VicGovDHHS) January 30, 2021
More later: https://t.co/lIUrl0ZEco#COVID19Vic #COVID19VicData pic.twitter.com/JXXB4sw8zz
Rhiannon Down 9.30am: Climate change ‘will bring more pandemics’
South Australia’s chief health officer has warned Australia could be facing more pandemics in the years to come as climate change alters the environment.
CHO Nicola Spurrier said human impact on the environment was causing nature to change, thus creating new disease risk.
“The way humans have impacted on the natural environment in terms of flora and fauna sets up the right environment for pandemics,” Prof Spurrier told the Sunday Mail.
“With climate change, we expect to see different infections coming to different parts of the world.
“As the climate changes and animals, plants and insects try to adapt to those changes, we will see more infectious disease. The thing about pandemics is they are completely unpredictable.”
She also indicated QR codes could remain in SA after the pandemic has run its course, providing some defence against future pandemics.
READ MORE: Covid boffins make it up as they go
Agencies 8.35am: Global death toll climbs to 2.2 million
More than 2.2 million people have died of coronavirus since the outbreak emerged in China in December 2019, according to an AFP tally from official sources.
More than 102 million have been registered.
The US has suffered the highest toll with 436,810 deaths, followed by Brazil with 222,666 and Mexico with 156,579.
The number of deaths globally is underestimated. The toll is calculated from daily figures published by national health authorities and does not include later revisions by statistics agencies.
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Christine Kellett 8am: Play your part, Queensland Premier told
Tourism Minister Dan Tehan has told the Queensland Premier to play her role in getting the state’s crippled tourism sector back on its feet amid her push for federal assistance to be extended.
Annastacia Palaszczuk has asked for Commonwealth help for Queensland tourism businesses despite keeping the border shut to most of the country. She wants JobKeeper extended, but Mr Tehan today said that wouldn’t be happening.
“We’ve said that JobKeeper will end at the end of March,” Mr Tehan said, announcing a $5m domestic tourism campaign to encourage Australians to spend their money locally.
“I’ve been in discussions over Christmas and the New Year with the tourism industry about whether there could be support that we could provide them.
“We want to make sure that the states play their part and the Queensland Premier, along with other state and territory leaders, could really play an influential role by getting a consistency around hotspot definitions and border closures.
“If the Queensland Premier could play her part in that, that would be wonderful for the Queensland tourism industry. If we could get that consistency, that would provide
certainty to the sector. And I’ve got no doubt that we would see a strong rebound right across the tourism sector here in Australia.”
Latest figures show 170,000 businesses across the state are still drawing on the JobKeeper payments to survive.
READ MORE: Frydenberg blasts Qld Premier for handout plea
Christine Kellett 7.30am: Borders are reopening across the country
State border restrictions continue to be relaxed around the country, with Western Australia the latest state to announce changes from tomorrow.
– Queensland will reopen to NSW from 1am on Monday
– WA will reopen to Queensland travellers from Monday and Victorian travellers from Friday.
– NSW is open to every state and territory
– Tasmania is open to every state and territory
– The ACT is open to every state and territory
– Victoria is open to all travellers, but permits are required
– From today, Greater Sydney travellers will be allowed to enter SA, which is open to all visitors with a permit
– A 14-day quarantine period remains in place for all people entering the NT
READ MORE: Janet Albrechtsen — Border farce proves national cabinet is a joke
Rhiannon Down 7am: Australian vaccine supplies to be made here
Federal health authorities say certainty over Australia’s vaccine supply will be underpinned by our ability to manufacture doses domestically.
Federal acting chief medical officer Michael Kidd said Australia’s vaccine rollout program was on track to begin next month, with two million domestically-produced doses due to be available by March.
As the European Union declared itself as having the power to ration exports of coronavirus vaccines, Professor Kidd said the government had conferred with pharmaceutical heads and they had disputed reports that Australia’s supplies would be affected by EU export bans.
Professor Kidd said Pfizer had confirmed Australia would receive 80,000 doses per week from late February, while AstraZeneca would deliver 1.2 million doses from offshore in March, pending TGA approval.
Read the full story here.
Dow Jones 6.30am: Emergency order forces Americans to wear masks
US travellers and commuters will be required to wear masks on nearly all forms of public transportation and inside transportation hubs, according to a late Friday emergency order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The mandate, which goes into effect on Tuesday and applies to most everyone over the age of 2, effectively reverses the Trump administration’s policy of leaving the choice to local leaders. It follows an executive order issued by President Biden on Jan. 21, which required passengers to wear face coverings during interstate travel.
Under the new CDC policy, face masks must be worn over the mouth and nose by all travellers on airplanes, ships, trains, subways, buses, taxis, and ride-shares and inside airports, bus or ferry terminals, train and subway stations and seaports.
The order says that failure to comply is a violation of a federal law and people without a mask won’t be allowed to board public transportation. The CDC said the order is an “emergency action” and that it would be enforced by state, federal and local law officials.
The order comes as 25.9 million people in the US have tested positive for the virus since the pandemic began, accounting for more than a quarter of the global total.
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Agencies 6am: EU backtracks on restricting vaccines
The EU has backtracked over threats to restrict vaccine exports to Northern Ireland after London voiced “grave concerns” over the proposed move.
A furious row over shortages of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine has risked stoking conflict with the UK just weeks after London and Brussels sealed a Brexit trade agreement.
The EU had warned it would invoke Article 16 — overriding part of a deal with London allowing the free-flow of goods over the Irish border — but backed down after criticism from the UK and Ireland.
“The Commission will ensure that the Ireland / Northern Ireland Protocol is unaffected,” the EU Commissioner said in a statement late Friday.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had told EU chief Ursula von der Leyen of his “grave concerns about the potential impact” the European bloc’s decision might have.
The European scheme to monitor and bar exports of vaccines produced in EU plants has also been criticised by the World Health Organisation.
The WHO said the move was part of a “very worrying trend” that could jeopardise the global supply chain for vaccines.
Although the EU has rowed back from the Article 16 threat, a Commission statement said if there were vaccines circumventing the European system, “the EU will consider using all the instruments at its disposal”.
The EU earlier justified the “safeguard measure” as an attempt to keep member states’ vaccine rollouts on track.
And Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides insisted: “We are not protecting ourselves against any specific country. And we’re not in competition or in a race against any country.”
READ MORE: EU bans vaccine exports to Australia
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