Coronavirus live news Australia: Delta-day for southeast Queensland as more schools alerted; NSW Police deter protesters; NRL and AFL reschedule matches
Predicted new Delta cases on Sunday will be the first indication of whether southeast Queensland’s snap lockdown may last beyond Tuesday. NSW Police have deterred their state’s anti-lockdown protesters.
- NRL weekend matches saved for Brisbane
- Queensland CHO warns of ‘biggest ever’ outbreak
- AFL reboots its weekend matches
- Show of force in Sydney appears to deter protesters
- NSW records 210 new cases
- Queensland in lockdown from 4pm
- Victoria records two new cases
- PM sets goal of 16.8m shots for Covid freedom
Welcome to The Weekend Australian’s live rolling coverage of the coronavirus crisis.
Queensland awaits indications on Sunday of how long the Brisbane region’s lockdown will last, and two more schools have been alerted for possible cases. The NRL and AFL have dealt with the Queensland lockdown by rescheduling. Earlier as NSW recorded 210 new cases today, Queensland authorities announced a snap, three-day lockdown of 11 LGAs stretching from the Gold Coast to the Sunshine Coast, amid alarm over a growing cluster in the state’s south east. Meanwhile, Scott Morrison has set a goal to fully vaccinate a further 10.7 million Australians by the end of the year under a national reopening plan that will reduce restrictions for inoculated residents, resume some international travel and make lockdowns less likely. But the situation in the US may be a sobering lesson.
Staff reporter11.55pm:Queensland wary of more Delta cases on Sunday
More cases of community-spread Covid cases in southeast Queensland are predicted to be revealed on Sunday as the Brisbane-centred region enters its first full day of its strictest restrictions so far of the pandemic, putting millions more Australians under lockdown.
Details of the southeast Queensland lockdown ordered from Saturday afternoon are here. It is currently due to end on Tuesday afternoon but may be extended. Two more schools have been alerted for possible cases.
In the Sydney region, more than 1300 police prevented crowds from gathering in the city and the surrounding suburbs, with officers patrolling the skies, the harbour and the roads, the Sunday Telegraph reported.
Police had an enormous checkpoint operation around Sydney, including closing the Harbour Tunnel in both directions and patrolling the harbour, to thwart any repeat of last weekend’s lockdown rally – successfully for Saturday.
The Sunday Mail (Qld) says Queenslanders have been warned to expect there will be new cases of community-transferred infections announced on Sunday.
Health officials are on the hunt for missing links to the latest coronavirus incursion into Queensland, and chief health officer Jeannette Young has acknowledged the virus could be “anywhere” in the southeast, it says.
Authorities have warned to expect an “enormous” number of Covid exposure sites visited by the latest cases, with bus routes, supermarkets, chemists and a TAFE building among the new venues added to the list, the Sunday Mail says.
Six community-acquired Covid cases were revealed on Saturday – all linked to a Covid-positive Indooroopilly State High School student.
They included the girl’s family members – both parents and two siblings – as well as a medical student who tutors the 17-year-old and a staff member from Ironside State School, where one of the siblings attends.
Two other Brisbane high schools on Saturday night told parents they had been touched by the outbreak. Brisbane Grammar School emailed parents saying that a student had tested positive to Covid-19, saying anyone at the BGS Spring Hill campus on July 28, 29 and 30 was ordered into home isolation until further advice was provided directly by Queensland Health authorities.
St Peters Lutheran College in Indooroopilly also sent out a late email to parents saying the school had been identified by Queensland Health as a potential exposure site.
The snap, three-day stay-at-home order plunged the tourism and hospitality industries into turmoil, forcing mass cancellations at hotels and resorts, restaurants and function venues which had to lay off staff and bin tens of thousands of dollars worth of produce, the Sunday Mail reported.
Queensland Tourism Industry Council CEO Daniel Gschwind said tourism operators were already reeling from lockdowns in the southern states and last week’s hard border closure with NSW.
A freight company in southwest Sydney has become a Covid breeding ground with 24 workers testing positive, the Sunday Telegraph says.
“We need to make sure that in these smaller logistic organisations these owners understand the need for a strong Covid safe plan in the first instance, but then applying the Covid safe plan.”
This came as NSW recorded 210 new cases, with 81 in southwest Sydney and 72 in western Sydney.
Victoria has declared the 11 Queensland locked-down local-government areas red zones under the state’s border permit system. The lockdown applies to the City of Brisbane, Moreton Bay Regional Council, City of Gold Coast, City of Ipswich, Lockyer Valley Regional Council, Logan City, Noosa Shire Council, Redland City, Scenic Rim Regional Council, Somerset Regional Council and Sunshine Coast Regional Council.
ALSO READ:Why the unvaccinated have more to fear from Delta
Agencies11.05pm: Health, trade chiefs urge jab makers to spread help
Four of the world’s most prominent health, trade and financial organisations on Saturday implored Covid-19 vaccine manufacturers to prioritise doses for poorer countries to combat the “acute and alarming shortage”.
A joint statement by the heads of the World Health Organisation, World Trade Organisation, International Monetary Fund and World Bank said countries which have progressed far in vaccinating against the disease should release doses rapidly in favour of less fortunate nations.
“We reiterate the urgency of providing access to Covid-19 vaccines, tests and treatments to people throughout the developing world,” they said.
“In the area of vaccines, a key constraint is the acute and alarming shortage in the supply of doses to low and low-middle income countries, especially for the rest of 2021.
“We call on countries with advanced Covid-19 vaccination programs to release as soon as possible as much of their contracted vaccine doses and options as possible to Covax, AVAT (the African Vaccine Acquisition Trust), and low and low-middle income countries.” Covax aims to get donor-funded jabs to poorer countries.
The leaders said vaccine delivery contracts for poorer nations were being delayed, with less than 5 per cent of purchased vaccine doses having been delivered.
“We urge Covid-19 vaccine manufacturers to redouble their efforts to scale up production of vaccines specifically for these countries, and to ensure that the supply of doses to Covax and low and low-middle income countries takes precedence over the promotion of boosters and other activities,” they said.
They called on governments to reduce or eliminate barriers to the export of vaccines and all materials involved in producing them.
AFP
NOW READ:China outbreak spreads as WHO sounds alarm
Staff reporter10.20pm:Postponed NRL matches to be played on Sunday
The NRL have produced a Super Sunday comeback — securing Queensland government approval to restart the competition with a triple-header at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium despite the snap lockdown.
NRL CEO Andrew Abdo and ARLC chairman have used their persuasive powers and strategic nous to assure Queensland health officials the game is safe to continue under unprecedented protocols and empty stadiums after being forced into the extraordinary postponement of three matches on Saturday, News Corp Australia Sports Newsroom reports.
The NRL’s revised round-20 schedule will also include two crucial matches on Monday night.
A triple-header without crowds at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday will kick-off with the Knights versus Raiders at 1.50pm.
Originally scheduled for Saturday night on Fox Sports, the much-anticipated grand final rematch between the Storm and Panthers will now be played at 4.05pm on Sunday.
The final match on Sunday will be the Dragons versus Rabbitohs at 6.25pm.
In order to make-up for Saturday’s postponed matches, Monday night football will return to Fox Sports with the Bulldogs playing the Titans at 6pm before the Sharks and Sea Eagles clash at 8.05pm.
FULL report is here.
Staff reporter8.25pm:State’s CHO makes appeal to Queenslanders
Queensland’s chief health officer Dr Jeanette Young has issued an appeal to the state’s people affected by the new lockdown, which says in part:
“Queensland, I have always had faith in you. But I do not have faith in this virus.
“The latest incursion of Covid-19 into southeast Queensland is deadly serious. It is our biggest outbreak in months and risks being our biggest ever.
“The Delta strain of the virus is unforgiving, which is why we’ve placed southeast Queensland into lockdown until 4pm Tuesday.
“Right from the start, Queensland has gone hard and gone early when we’ve needed to lock down. It has worked. Your willingness to listen and take swift and strong action to help fight the spread of this virus has been our biggest asset in stopping the spread. Thank you.
“This time I need you to listen more carefully and adhere more closely to what we’re asking than ever before.’'
The Sunday Mail (Qld)
FULL statement is here.
Courtney Walsh6.25pm:New AFL schedule set for Sunday
The AFL has managed to baulk another Covid-19 challenge by hastily arranging the evacuation of clubs from Queensland and its southeast regional lockdown on Saturday.
All three matches due to be played in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast this weekend will instead be played on Sunday in Melbourne as a result.
At one stage on Saturday, the AFL had more charter flights in the air than West Coast had goals to three-quarter time in their clash against Collingwood at the MCG.
Brisbane have landed in Launceston but will be confined to their rooms ahead of a matching against Hawthorn on Sunday.
Melbourne is on a flight back to the Victorian capital after landing in Brisbane, only to be turned around after an extended stint on the tarmac awaiting instructions.
Port Adelaide was in Melbourne preparing for a flight to Queensland but instead will play the Giants at Marvel Stadium on Sunday night.
The Swans shared a flight to Melbourne with the Gold Coast Suns, while Essendon are also returning home after spending a fortnight in Queensland.
There will now be three matches in Melbourne in Sunday, beginning with the match between the Suns and Melbourne, with matches also played in Tasmania and Western Australia.
The Swans will play Essendon at the MCG at 3.10pm, while the Giants and Port Adelaide clash at 6.10pm will feature as the second leg of a double-header at Marvel Stadium.
AFL clubs and broadcast manager Travis Auld said it had been a challenge to rearrange three matches given the short notice ahead of the lockdown in Queensland.
“We thank each of the six clubs, players, venues, broadcasters, umpires, officials and ticketing agents for their agility and collaboration this morning as we worked through rescheduling the three games and we thank respective state governments for their ongoing support,” he said.
“While the pandemic will continue to challenge us, the health and safety of those in our game and the wider community remains paramount and we again thank everyone associated with the game for their continued support of the 2021 Toyota AFL Premiership Season.”
ALSO READ: Clarkson’s golden run at Hawks over
Nicholas Jensen5.30pm:Eight people arrested in Sydney crackdown
NSW Police issued more than 250 Penalty Infringement Notices and arrested eight people after thwarting a second anti-lockdown protest on Saturday.
At the conclusion of the operation, Deputy Commissioner Mal Lanyon said the vast majority of infringement notices were issued to individuals for breaching the stay at home orders by travelling outside their LGA.
More than 70,000 vehicles were checked by police at 11 designated traffic points stationed on major roads leading into the city centre, and 42 mobile units deployed across our roadways.
NSW Police said a man in his 40s was arrested at a home in Oatley after travelling on trains outside his LGA without a reasonable excuse. He was taken to Kogarah Police Station, where charges will be laid.
A further operation is planned for tomorrow and officers will have an ongoing presence to ensure there are no further protests and that the community comply with the public health orders.
“Today’s activities demonstrate to the community that NSW Police will not tolerate actions that present a risk to public safety and our ability to stop the spread of COVID-19. We continue to ask the community to work with police to ensure compliance,” said Deputy Commissioner Lanyon.
READ MORE:‘Freedom march’ unmasks the narcissists
Chris Kenny4.54pm: No end in sight for this lunacy
They thank us for staying home, and for getting tested. They thank us for getting vaccinated, and for checking in. And they thank us for snitching on our neighbours. In short, they thank us for our compliance – and we could do without all these thanks, thank you very much. They are, at best, patronising – and more likely manipulative and desperate.
We might prefer our politicians work sensibly through a crisis, taking tough decisions and accepting responsibility, rather than outsourcing to unelected officials the most draconian restrictions imposed on our society, while refusing to detail the “medical advice” or canvass any sort of public debate about costs and benefits – let alone defining outcomes.
Despite endless press conferences that catastrophise the situation daily, there is precious little clarity about objectives. Political leaders, health officers and media ignore how the vulnerable have been protected through the vaccination of aged care services and the over-70s – the nirvana we dreamed of last year – and instead focus on national adult full vaccination rates.
A University of Western Australia study this week said we might need 90 per cent vaccination of the entire population to put lockdowns behind us. The Grattan Institute went for 80 per cent. But to what end?
Are we in this to make sure there are no Covid-19 outbreaks? The aim should be to give the vulnerable a chance to accept protection – and then get on with life as openly as we can possibly manage.
Read Chris Kenny’s full analysis here.
Agencies4.35pm:China outbreak spreads as WHO sounds alarm on Delta
Mushrooming outbreaks of the highly contagious Delta variant prompted China to impose stricter Covid-19 restrictions on Saturday as the WHO urged the world to quickly contain the mutation before it turns into something deadlier and draws out the pandemic.
China’s most serious surge of coronavirus infections in months spread to two more areas Saturday — Fujian province and the sprawling megacity of Chongqing.
More than 200 cases have been linked to a Delta cluster in Nanjing city where nine cleaners at an international airport tested positive, with the outbreak spanning Beijing, Chongqing and five provinces as of Saturday.
The nation where the disease first emerged has rushed to prevent the highly transmissible strain from taking root by putting more than one million people under lockdown and reinstituting mass testing campaigns.
Worldwide, coronavirus infections are once again on the upswing, with the World Health Organisation announcing an 80 per cent average increase over the past four weeks in five of the health agency’s six regions, a jump largely fuelled by the Delta variant.
First detected in India, it has now reached 132 countries and territories. “Delta is a warning: it’s a warning that the virus is evolving but it is also a call to action that we need to move now before more dangerous variants emerge,” the WHO’s emergencies director Michael Ryan told a press conference.
He stressed that the “game plan” still works, namely physical distancing, wearing masks, hand hygiene and vaccination.
But both high- and low-income countries are struggling to gain the upper hand against Delta, with the vastly unequal sprint for shots leaving plenty of room for variants to wreak havoc and further evolve.
READ MORE:Sydney protesters warn of police ‘trap’
Nicholas Jensen4pm:Premier acknowledges ‘shock’ lockdown move
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has asked residents of 11 council areas in southeast Queensland to do the right thing, as strict new lockdown rules take effect.
In a video message posted to Twitter, the Premier said she understood the snap, three-day lockdown would come as a shock, but going “hard and fast” was her government’s only option to ensure contact tracers stayed ahead of a growing Delta cluster, which rose to seven cases today.
“I know that news of a snap lockdown will come as a shock to many families, but we know that this Delta virus is incredibly contagious and we have to go hard and we have to go fast,” said Ms Palaszczuk.
“I’m asking everyone in those 11 LGAs to stay home and stay safe, and remember if you have any symptoms whatsoever you must go and get tested.”
Queensland, together we will get through this 💪
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) July 31, 2021
Stay home and stay safe SEQ. pic.twitter.com/lWBSwjLZM8
Deputy Premier Stephen Miles earlier urged Queenslanders not to panic buy after they were given five hours’ notice of the lockdown, which would restrict them to within 10kms from their homes.
Mum reporting long lines at the supermarket on the Gold Coast😬 pic.twitter.com/VhX4ouOHp3
— Josh Nicholas (@joshcnicholas) July 31, 2021
READ MORE:Who is affected and what are the rules — all you need to know
Christine Kellett3.48pm:Locked down Queensland offered federal support
Vaccine supplies will be redirected to Queensland if required, Australia’s Acting Chief Medical Officer says, as greater southeast Queensland is declared a commonwealth hotspot.
Professor Michael Kidd said the Health Protection Principal Committee had held an emergency meeting today in response to the unfolding situation in Queensland and rising numbers in NSW, and both outbreaks remained matters of concern to the committee.
He said medical, financial and logistical support had been offered to Queensland at its request, including help with contact tracing. Disaster relief payments will also be available to those eligible for them.
“Asymptomatic testing will be made available by general practitioners and respiratory clinics, (and) we will reprioritise vaccine supplies if required,” Professor Kidd told a press conference this afternoon.
He said 40.5 per cent of all people aged 16 and above in Australia had now received a first dose of the Covid vaccine.
“This is a significant milestone in our response to COVID-19 — 18.7% of people aged 16 and above have now had both doses of a Covid in 19 vaccine, and are fully protected.
“More than a 200,000 doses of vaccine have been administered over each of the past three days. Over the past five days, 990,000 doses of vaccines have been administered, and we have now had over 4.2 million doses administered to people in Australia.
“Almost 80% of people aged 70 years of age and above, have now had a first dose of vaccine, and 41.5% of people aged 70 years and above have received both doses, and
are now fully protected.”
READ MORE:Under 40s in surge for AstraZeneca
James Hall3.08pm:Lockdown looms for Queensland
Queensland’s snap lockdown is due to take effect in little under an hour, Chief health officer Jeannette Young pleads with organisers of a planned protest to stay at home tomorrow.
Under what the government is touting as Queensland’s strictest lockdown yet, residents of 11 local government areas in the south east will only be allowed to leave home for the following reasons:
– To buy essentials such as grocery and medications
– To work if you can’t work from home. No school, except for those children of essential workers
– To exercise within 10km from home
– To seek healthcare, including to get a Covid-19 vaccination or to provide help, care or support
LOCKDOWN: Parts of South-East Queensland will enter a hard lockdown from 4pm today.
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) July 31, 2021
If you live in any of these 11 SEQ local government areas, there are 4 permitted reasons to leave your home: https://t.co/UztAwczJJK
These restrictions are hard, but necessary to keep Qld safe. pic.twitter.com/MLmBxfVZz9
The affected LGAs are Brisbane, Ipswich, Logan City, Moreton Bay, Redlands, Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, Somerset, Noosa, Lockyer Valley and Scenic Rim.
There will be no visitors to homes in those LGAs, and non-essential businesses will be forced to close down.
Read the full list of lockdown rules and their timeline here.
Nicholas Jensen2.30pm:Show of force deters protesters in Sydney
A show of force in Sydney’s CBD appears to have had the desired effect.
More than 1000 police officers have been deployed around the city and surrounds in a bid to deter any further anti-lockdown demonstrations.
The strong police presence has been concentrated across Victoria Park, Broadway and George Street, where more than 3000 protesters converged last Saturday.
NSW Police have also established checkpoints at a number of arterial roads into the city, including the Princes Highway, the Pacific Motorway, and the Bradfield Highway, where they are pulling over cars to ensure drivers are within 10km of their homes.
Boundaries have been drawn between the West Link Road and The Crescent at Lilyfield; South Dowling Street and Todman Avenue at Zetland; Bradfield Highway at Milsons Point and New South Head Road and Ocean Avenue at Edgecliff.
Mounted Police and helicopters have also been mobilised across the city, with public health orders reportedly being dictated to residents from loudspeakers.
Earlier, it was announced all taxis, Ubers and other ride-sharing services would be restricted from entering the CBD, and train and bus stations were also being monitored.
READ MORE:I couldn’t function without my faith, says PM
Agencies2pm:Chinese factory activity sinks to lowest level
Chinese factory activity weakened in July to its lowest level since the start of the pandemic, data showed Saturday, as manufacturing was impacted by slowing demand, weak exports and extreme weather.
The Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), a key gauge of manufacturing activity in the world’s second-largest economy, dropped to 50.4 in July from June’s 50.9, the National Bureau of Statistics said.
A PMI reading of over 50 indicates expansion, while below that figure suggests contraction.
The reading appeared to be levelling out between April and June, and July shows the first marked decline, making it the lowest PMI figure since February 2020, analysts said.
While the figure was worse than many forecasts, it was still above the 50-point mark that separates growth from contraction.
China’s fragile economic recovery is threatened by a recent resurgence of the Delta variant of the coronavirus that is threatening to dampen holiday consumption over the summer.
“On the whole, China’s economy continues to maintain expansion momentum, but the pace has slowed down,” said NBS senior statistician Zhao Qinghe.
AFP
READ MORE: Dutton’s China warning as ships are delayed
Ellen Ransley1.25pm:Vic authorities investigate traffic controller’s infection
Victorian authorities continue to probe how a traffic controller acquired Covid-19, after the state recorded two new locally acquired cases on Saturday
Both are linked to existing clusters, however one case was not in quarantine for their infectious period, but had “limited time in the community”.
The second case was in quarantine “throughout their entire infectious period”, a statement from the Victorian Department of Health said.
Health Minister Martin Foley said one of the cases was a personal close contact of the Newport apartments resident, who was moved “very quickly into hotel quarantine”.
The other is another Moonee Valley traffic controller, who shared a car with a previous case.
“He was isolated as soon as he was identified as a primary close contact, and had very limited time in the community,” Mr Foley said.
“But he did have an exposure site, which we posted last evening – the Woolworths in Devon Plaza, Doncaster, which was listed as a Tier 1 exposure site.”
Mr Foley said authorities were still trying to identify how the first traffic controller contracted Covid-19.
“Whilst we know that the genomic sequencing has linked him to the original incursions from New South Wales, we have yet to determine the precise acquisition source. We continue to work through possible links,” he said.
More than 32,000 tests were carried out on Friday, while 19,502 vaccine doses were administered.
There are currently 6654 Victorians isolating as close contacts.
Victoria has recorded more than 200 cases linked to the two outbreaks that jumped the border from Sydney’s deadly Delta cluster – one from a team of Sydney removalists who transited through the state and the other from a family who returned to Melbourne’s north from a NSW red zone.
READ MORE:Peter van Onselen — Drawing the line between rights and wrongs
Courtney Walsh1pm:Qld lockdown postpones matches as AFL grapples with fallout
The AFL is still working through the fallout from the snap Covid-19 lockdown in Queensland which has forced three games to be postponed.
Tonight’s update is here.
The prospect earlier was that all three matches will be played in Victoria on Sunday or, perhaps, Monday night.
But that was dependent on the ability of clubs to evacuate Queensland before the lockdown begins at 4pm on Saturday.
Melbourne was to be re-routed to Perth, where they will enter quarantine ahead of a match against West Coast scheduled for next Saturday night.
They have landed in Brisbane but remained on the tarmac with the prospect of instead returning back to Melbourne.
Port Adelaide is in Melbourne as they await direction on where and if they will play the Giants on Sunday.
A press conference with coach Ken Hinkley was postponed as a result of the uncertainty.
It has been reported the Gold Coast Suns players have been sent to pack their bags with a view to departing southeast Queensland.
AFL clubs and broadcast manager Travis Auld said it was an evolving situation.
“The evolving Covid situation in Queensland has seen the state announce a three-day lockdown and, as a result, we have had to postpone three games scheduled to be played in Queensland in Round 20,” he said.
“These games will be rescheduled to be played at a time to be confirmed.
“While the pandemic will continue to challenge us, the health and safety of those in our game and the wider community remains paramount and we again thank everyone associated with the game for their continued support of the 2021 Toyota AFL Premiership Season.”
READ MORE:Paul Kelly — Moment of truth for us, and Scott Morrison
Glenda Korporaal12.40pm:Rapid testing for CBA workers as companies pitch in
The Commonwealth Bank will begin rolling out rapid antigen testing for staff in some 30 branches in Covid hot spots in Sydney’s western suburbs next week.
The bank is also working on offering its 40,000 staff around the country Covid vaccinations at their workplace – possibly as soon as the next few weeks – once sufficient supplies are available.
The move is part of a push by corporate Australia to help accelerate the vaccine rollout in order to help re-open the economy and avoid costly lockdowns.
CBA chief executive Matt Comyn, who got his second shot of the Pfizer vaccine at Sydney’s Olympic Park on Thursday, said he believed that most of the bank’s staff were keen to get vaccinated.
The bank was working closely with the vaccine rollout task force headed by Lieutenant General Frewen to co-operate with the government’s rollout plan.
It was also offering its premises to the federal government if extra vaccine hubs were needed for the public.
Read the full story here.
Nicholas Jensen12.12pm:Pregnant women potentially exposed at ultrasound clinic
Pregnant mothers are being warned they could have been exposed to the highly infectious Delta strain of the coronavirus, after a Sydney ultrasound clinic was added to the list of exposure sites this morning.
The Sydney UltraSound clinic in Burwood has been named as the latest Covid-hit venue in NSW, as well as a childcare centre, two chemists and a Thai restaurant.
They are among a list of new locations that have been added to the state’s burgeoning list of exposure sites, including Alan Lo Chemist in Campsie, Chemist Warehouse in Strathfield, and Jumbo Thai in Pyrmont.
Tuesday July 27
Sydney UltraSound, L2 Suite 203, 21-23 Burwood Rd, Burwood, 8.45am – 10.15am
Chemist Warehouse, 11 The Boulevarde, Strathfield, 1.55pm – 2.10pm
Bread Top Shop, Shop 27/11 The Boulevarde, Strathfield, 2pm – 2.10pm
L.A. Donuts, Shop 2/328 King Georges Rd, Beverly Hills, 12.05pm to 12:15pm
âš ï¸PUBLIC HEALTH ALERT – NEW VENUES AND TRANSPORT ROUTES OF CONCERNâš ï¸
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) July 30, 2021
NSW Health has been notified of a number of new venues and transport routes of concern associated with confirmed cases of #COVID19. pic.twitter.com/2clyURmOsU
Monday July 26
Kids Guardian Angel Childcare Centre, 45 Dunbier Ave, Lurnea, 8.55am – 5.35pm
Alan Lo Chemist, 188 Beamish St, Campsie, 12.55pm – 1.05pm
Sunday July 25
Alan Lo Chemist, 188 Beamish St, Campsie, 4.30pm – 4.40pm
Saturday July 24
Jumbo Thai, 60 Union St, Pyrmont, 12.25pm – 12.40pm
NSW Health also listed dozens of new casual contact sites across Metropolitan Sydney, spanning south west and western Sydney.
READ MORE:‘Freedom march’ has unmasked the narcissists
Nicholas Jensen 11.45am:Taxis blocked from CBD, paramedic under investigation
NSW Police have responded to approximately 1500 Covid-related incidents in the state, 885 of which were reported through Crime Stoppers.
Deputy Commissioner Mal Lanyard said Strike force Season had deployed about 1000 police officers to central Sydney on Saturday to respond to any protesters. Taxis, Uber and other ride sharing services have also been blocked from entering the CBD in a bid to quell a repeat of last weekend’s scenes.
“Investigators have been continuing to investigate the events of last week’s protests with 85 people charged to date. Over 300 infringement notices have been issued and last night a 49-year-old man from the Central Coast was charged with criminal offences relating to the incitement of last week’s protest online.”
Regarding the NSW Health staff who attended last Saturday’s protest, Mr Hazzard said investigations were ongoing with police.
“I understand there was one paramedic and either an assistant in nursing or nursing staff and one other I am not sure about at this stage.”
“Can I just say how disappointed I was to hear about the process itself but the fact that health staff would go to such a demonstration … In a democracy people are entitled to demonstrate legally but it was not a legal demonstration. It was not approved by the police.”
READ MORE:Health staff face probe over Sydney protest
Nicholas Jensen 11.40am:NSW records 14th death linked to latest outbreak
NSW’s Deputy Chief health officer Dr Jeremy McAnulty has confirmed a man in his 60s has died in his south west Sydney home from Covid-19, marking the fourteenth death since the beginning of the Delta outbreak.
Health Minister Brad Hazzard would not elaborate when asked whether the man had sought medical treatment before he died, citing privacy reasons.
NSW Health says there are currently 53 patients in intensive care — six aged in their 20s, four in their 30s, 18 in their 50s, 14 in the 60s, nine in their 70s and one in their 80s.
“But the older age brackets are actually having less numbers now … it is the younger people who are actually taking up places in our intensive care units in our hospitals,” said Mr Hazzard said on Saturday, as the state recorded 210 new daily cases.
Mr Hazzard also said contact tracers were facing delays in the southwest because of a language barrier.
“When you have a large number, and successive days of test numbers, particularly in communities where it is sometimes very hard to get simpler answers, it can take a while.”
“I met last week with the senior people among the tracer team and the case interviewers and what they were indicating was that translation is an issue for us … We need to have translators and we do have them of course.”
Mr Hazzard also confirmed that the man who was reported to have attended last week’s protest while infectious did in fact not attend.
“One gentleman was stopped at Central Station and turned around, given a $1000 infringement. It appears he complied with the police order, saw that he was doing the wrong thing and followed police instructions.”
“Unfortunately he did test positive but we believe he did not actually go to the demonstration,” Mr Hazzard said.
READ MORE:Gemma Tognini — Inflicting carnage is okay, as long as it’s not Covid
Brent Read11.35am:NRL in emergency talks with Qld government
The NRL is locked in emergency talks with the Queensland government as they scramble to save the competition.
Tonight's update is here.
The Queensland government on Saturday morning confirmed 11 local government areas would go into lockdown from 4pm on Saturday afternoon as officials looked to stop the spread of the Covid-19.
Chief health officer Dr Jeanette Young said there would be no games played when asked about the NRL and AFL.
“No, there will be no football matches,” Dr Young said.
“So, no community sport, no professional sport, nothing for the next three days. Starting as of 4pm today.”
The NRL has three games scheduled to be played this afternoon including one in Rockhampton. That game could still go ahead but the two scheduled for Suncorp Stadium are in jeopardy.
ARL Commission chair Peter V’landys confirmed the game was locked in talks with the Queensland government as they sought exemptions to keep the competition alive.
The NRL sent a text message to their clubs urging them to instruct their players to return to their hotels.
They then released a statement confirming all clubs would return to level four by security protocols.
“All clubs have been advised to inform their players to return to the team hotels and remain at the team hotels until further notice,” the NRL said.
“The NRL is working with the Queensland Government, clubs and broadcast partners to determine the best course of action for today’s matches.”
READ MORE:Why Staggs call will shape Broncos rebuild
Courtney Walsh11.29am:AFL scrambles to relocate Qld matches
The AFL is scrambling in a bid to relocate the matches that were scheduled to be played in Queensland this weekend.
Melbourne was on the way to Brisbane to play the Suns on the Gold Coast at 3.10pm, but their plane has been diverted towards Perth instead.
Brisbane still has clearance to land in Launceston for a match against Hawthorn, but the restrictions they are travelling under have been tightened.
Port Adelaide was due to play the Giants on the Gold Coast on Sunday. Whether the Giants can relocate from Queensland before the 4pm lockdown and the match be moved remains to be seen.
The Swans were scheduled to play Essendon in Brisbane on Saturday night. That match is now off.
A game in the VFL between Southport and the Gold Coast was called off nine minutes into the match.
“There’ll be no football matches,” chief health officer Dr Jeanette Young said on Saturday.
“No community sport, no professional sport for the next three days.”
TONIGHT'S update is here.
READ MORE:Queensland’s top medico won’t budge on AZ vaccine stance
Nicholas Jensen11.01am:NSW records 210 new locally acquired cases
NSW has recorded 210 locally acquired cases of Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, with 21 of those infectious in the community and the isolation status of 120 people still under investigation.
More than 105,000 tests were recorded across NSW to 8pm on Friday.
“Again, unfortunately, of those 210 cases, by far, the majority were in southwest Sydney and western Sydney,” Health Minister Brad Hazzard has told a press conference.
“We had 81 cases acquired in southwestern Sydney and 72 cases acquired in western Sydney. Again, the focus, unfortunately, has been in that area and I’d ask everybody in the local area to do what NSW Health has asked on many occasions and that is a stay-at-home.
“Currently we have 198 people in hospital in New South Wales. Fifty-three of those are in intensive care, 27 are requiring ventilation.”
Mr Hazzard stressed the Delta variant was “partial to younger people” and continued to spread rapidly among people under 40.
Of the 210 locally acquired cases, 138 cases were people under the age of 40.
“My message to younger people is please understand this is a virus that you can be susceptible to,” said Mr Hazzard.
Watch the press conference live here:
More to come …
Nicholas Jensen10.46am:This lockdown is different: Miles
Queensland’s Deputy Premier has urged people in 11 local government areas not to panic buy ahead of a three-day lockdown authorities say is the strictest yet.
Residents in Brisbane, Moreton Bay, Gold Coast, Ipswich, Lockyer Valley, Logan, Noosa, Redlands, Scenic Rim, Somerset and the Sunshine Coast will be subject to stay-at-home orders from 4pm today, amid concern over the rapid spread of the Delta cluster, first identified in Brisbane’s Indooroopilly yesterday.
Chief health officer Jeannette Young said students and staff who attended the Indooroopilly State High School — where a 17 year-old girl first tested positive — have been sent into 14 days of quarantine.
Queensland Health will now also place all students and staff who have attended Ironside School into two weeks of quarantine.
“Today we now have all five people in one household infected (with the Delta variant) … We know that we have another person today who is a medical student at the University of Queensland who is a tutor for that 17-year-old that we announced yesterday. She’s infected.
Dr Young said she suspects the medical student is the “index case” and took the virus back to the household where it spread.
“We are rapidly contact tracing the medical student. She has been to a lot of venues, a lot of places, at Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, at the University of Queensland, at the Translational Research Institute at the PA, and also she has a sibling who works in a hospital.”
More to come …
Christine Kellett10.30am:Eleven Qld LGAs locked down, hunt for missing link
Queensland Health officials are searching for the missing link between two returned overseas travellers and the infection of a Brisbane medical student who is believed to have then passed the Delta variant on to an Indooroopilly schoolgirl, triggering a snap, three-day lockdown in southeast Queensland.
Eleven local government areas — Brisbane, Moreton Bay, Gold Coast, Ipswich, Lockyer Valley, Logan, Noosa, Redlands, Scenic Rim, Somerset and the Sunshine Coast — will be locked down from 4pm today, after locally acquired cases increased by six overnight, taking the current cluster to seven.
Chief health officer Jeanette Young said genome sequencing had traced the outbreak to two returned travellers — one from the UK, the other from Indonesia — who flew to Brisbane via Singapore on the same flight on June 29. Both served out their time in hotel quarantine at the Rydges Southbank. One then went home to Buderim, on the Sunshine Coast.
It has not been established how either of the travellers may have infected the University of Queensland medical student, who is then believed to have passed on the virus to the Indooroopilly teen, whose family is also now infected.
“Today, we now have all five people in one household have been infected,” Dr Young said.
“Then we know that we have another person today who is a medical student at the University of Queensland who is a tutor for that 17-year-old that we announced yesterday. She’s infected. And I suspect — although it’s hard to know because of the very rapid transmission time frames — I suspect that that medical student is the index case and has taken it into that household, and then it has spread within that household.”
More to come …
Nicholas Jensen10.07am:Queensland announces snap, three-day lockdown
Queensland Health has announced 11 local government areas will enter a snap- three-day lockdown from 4pm today, after recording six more locally acquired cases of Covid-19.
Deputy Premier Steven Miles said: “From 4pm today, the 11 LGAs that currently have mask-wearing requirements will go into lockdown.”
“This will be the strictest lockdown that we have had.”
Non-essential businesses will not be permitted to open, hospitality, including pubs, clubs, and cafes, will be restricted to takeaway only.
Cinemas, entertainment venues, hairdressers, gyms, places of worship will all be
closed.
Queensland Health says the restrictions will apply to anyone who has been in those 11 LGAs from 1am this morning.
“Even if you are no longer in those 11 LGAs, if you were here at 1am this morning, these restrictions apply no matter where you are now,” said Mr Miles.
“We have seen from the experience in other states that the only way to beat the Delta strain is to move quickly, to be fast, and to be strong. That is now the nationally agreed approach.”
It is now believed a 17 year-old Indooroopilly student who tested positive yesterday may have contracted the virus from a university tutor who came to her home. Other members of the family have since tested positive. The cluster now stands at seven
Chief health officer Jeanette Young said the tutor had attended many sites and authorities were now expecting “an enormous number of exposures” as a result, stretching all the way up to the Sunshine Coast.
More to come …
Nicholas Jensen10am:Vaccine debate turns into live TV shouting match
A debate about the government’s new national reopening plan has descended into an ugly shouting match between Liberal MP David Falinski and Labor MP Jason Clare on live television.
The conversation became heated after Mr Faliniski said the Labor Party and Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese needed to take a stronger stand against vaccine hesitancy in its party.
“We need the Labor Party generally not to endorse candidates like Michelle Raja, who’s spent a large part of this pandemic campaigning against what is a very safe vaccine,” Mr Falinski told the ABC’s regular Saturday Pollie Panel segment.
But Mr Clare returned fire, saying the Liberal Party had done the most to damage to the vaccine rollout because it told his electorate the AstraZeneca vaccine was not safe.
“How desperate is the Liberal Party that they’re now blaming the Labor Party for this vaccine rollout stuff-up?” Mr Clare said.
“I tell you who has done more damage to the AstraZeneca rollout than anybody else in the country that’s Scott Morrison … Remember that late-night press conference back in April? That scared the crap out of everybody in the country that AstraZeneca wasn’t safe. That’s why we’ve got vaccine hesitancy in my electorate at the moment.”
“If excuses won gold medals at the Olympics, Scott Morrison would be on the dais in Tokyo singing the national anthem at the moment,” said Mr Clare.
The pair shouted over each other for several moments, despite the hosts’ attempts to intervene, with Mr Clare telling Mr Falinski to “put a cork in it”.
Mr Faliniski also criticised the president of the Australian Medical Association, Omar Khorshid, saying: “I’d love to see the president of the AMA criticise doctors doing that rather than constantly criticising governments around Australia that are trying to do the best for their communities.”
Nicholas Jensen 9.30am:‘Isolate now’: Sydney exposure sites spike
A childcare centre, two chemists and a Thai restaurant have been named as the latest Covid-hit venues in NSW, as well as a string of new contact venues across Metropolitan Sydney.
They are among a list of new locations that have been added to the state’s burgeoning list of exposure sites, including Alan Lo Chemist in Campsie, Chemist Warehouse in Strathfield, and Jumbo Thai in Pyrmont.
Tuesday 27 July
Sydney UltraSound, L2 Suite 203, 21-23 Burwood Rd, Burwood, 8.45am – 10.15am
Chemist Warehouse, 11 The Boulevarde, Strathfield, 1.55pm – 2.10pm
Bread Top Shop, Shop 27/11 The Boulevarde, Strathfield, 2pm – 2.10pm
L.A. Donuts, Shop 2/328 King Georges Rd, Beverly Hills, 12.05pm to 12:15pm
Monday 26 July
Kids Guardian Angel Childcare Centre, 45 Dunbier Ave, Lurnea, 8.55am – 5.35pm
Alan Lo Chemist, 188 Beamish St, Campsie, 12.55pm – 1.05pm
Sunday 25 July
Alan Lo Chemist, 188 Beamish St, Campsie, 4.30pm – 4.40pm
Saturday 24 July
Jumbo Thai, 60 Union St, Pyrmont, 12.25pm – 12.40pm
NSW Health also listed dozens of new casual contact sites across Metropolitan Sydney, spanning south west and western Sydney.
Christine Kellett9.03am:Victoria records two new local cases
Victoria has recorded just two new cases of locally acquired coronavirus, both linked to known outbreaks.
One of the infected people was in quarantine during their infectious period.
There are now 180 active cases in the state.
More than 37,000 tests were conducted in the 24 hours to today.
Reported yesterday: 2 new local cases and 0 new cases acquired overseas.
— VicGovDH (@VicGovDH) July 30, 2021
- 19,502 vaccine doses were administered
- 32,760 test results were received
More later: https://t.co/lIUrl1hf3W#COVID19Vic#COVID19VicData [1/2] pic.twitter.com/gmRTvhRlYb
READ MORE:Janet Albrechtsen — Morrison has proved to be a slow learner
Adam Creighton8.35am:US provides a sobering lesson on vaccines
The US is limping towards President Joe Biden’s Fourth of July goal of having 70 per cent of American adults vaccinated with at least one shot of a Covid-19 vaccine.
Australia has a herculean task ahead to convince 80 per cent of the population to get vaccinated, a threshold the Grattan Institute says is necessary before lockdowns and masks can be consigned to the past.
The nation most responsible for the trifecta of vaccine miracles last year offers sobering lessons. US states, as early as May, started offering an extraordinary array of incentives to encourage Americans to get vaccinated.
The big states including California, New York, Illinois and Michigan offered a mix of cash lotteries with million-dollar prizes and for students the chance to win full university scholarships.
Other states were a little less conventional. Washington State offered Joints for Jabs (where marijuana is legal). The Snaxx for Vax scheme in Arizona extends to both joints and edibles.
Louisiana rolled out Shot for a Shot, offering an alcoholic beverage for every vaccination dose. Maine, a little more traditional, offered hunting and fishing licences.
Read Adam Creighton’s full analysis here.
Geoff Chambers, Greg Brown8am:PM sets goal of 16.8m shots to Covid freedom
Scott Morrison has set a goal to fully vaccinate a further 10.7 million Australians by the end of the year under a national reopening plan that will reduce restrictions for inoculated residents, resume some international travel and make lockdowns less likely.
Following a marathon national cabinet meeting on Friday, the Prime Minister unveiled a new four-phase national plan that sets a vaccine coverage target of 70 per cent before the country can move out of the current suppression phase.
With more than 3.7 million people already fully vaccinated, a further 10.7 million will have to receive both jabs to reach the target of 70 per cent of all Australians eligible for the vaccine, or 14.4 million people.
A further 16.8 million vaccine doses will be required to hit the 70 per cent target.
The reopening blueprint, based on health and economic modelling provided by the Doherty Institute and Treasury, outlines four stages ending in a post-vaccination phase where Australians live with Covid-19 in a similar way to influenza.
The Weekend Australian understands there will be enough supply to jab all eligible Australians twice before the end of the year and the federal government is increasingly confident it can hit 80 per cent coverage by December, advancing the country to the third phase of the plan.
Read the full story here.
Chris Griffiths7.30am:TGA defies US ban on ‘miracle’ disinfectant
A miracle, Covid-fighting disinfectant that lasts more than 15 weeks has achieved TGA approval in Australia despite a ban being slapped on it in the US this month.
SurfaceWise2, made by Allied BioScience, says it is the only product of its kind to be verified by a regulatory body to reduce germs by up to 98.5 per cent over 15 weeks. That includes Covid-19.
“The Therapeutic Goods Administration has listed SurfaceWise2 as a hospital-grade disinfectant effective against germs, bacteria and Covid-19,” Allied BioScience says in a statement.
The revised TGA listing mentions 98.5 per cent protection over 15 weeks. The TGA is the body that approves the drugs we take.
The revised TGA listing mentions 98.5 per cent protection over 15 weeks. The TGA is the body that approves the drugs we take.
Allied BioScience in a statement said the outcome was achieved through three-month pilots into the Australian healthcare and public transport sectors, and extensive independent lab testing. A spokesperson said this 15 weeks intended purpose clause had only now been added by the TGA, even though the original TGA approval was in 2020.
Read the full story here.
Sharri Markson, Liam Mendes7am:Doctors in the spotlight over anti-AZ stand
Australia’s top health officials are growing increasingly frustrated with the medical regulator’s failure to rein in medicos undermining public confidence in the lifesaving AstraZeneca vaccine by perpetuating conspiracy theories about the jab.
The Weekend Australian can reveal some of the country’s leading officials are highly concerned that doctors, who have a strong social media following, appear to be flouting the legislated guidelines that state a registered health practitioner must not “contradict the best available scientific evidence”.
The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency policies also prevent abusive online conduct, stipulating doctors “communicate effectively, courteously, professionally and respectfully with and about other health care professionals”.
Several vocal medical professionals have come to the attention of commonwealth and state health officials for aggressive anti-AstraZeneca commentary.
Robert Hackett, a Sydney anaesthetist, has also perpetuated a conspiracy theory that the Coalition is deliberately spreading Covid-19 in order to make money from AstraZeneca, calling for a royal commission into the vaccine and accusing the LNP of being a “crime family”.
Read the full story here.
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Plucky Perth paper presses its own case for survival
The Post’s new printing press may have also opened up for the publication of the Australian Financial Review on the other side of the Nullarbor.
Activist throws Shelf spanner in Watt’s works
A report on the potential impacts of emissions on the rock art of the Burrup Peninsula has been with the federal minister since 2023.
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