Coronavirus Australia live news: Lockdowns out, flights cut: national cabinet’s 4 phase pathway out of pandemic
As lockdowns end in WA and the NT, and extend in Qld, PM announces they will become a measure of last resort under national cabinet’s four phase pathway out of pandemic.
- WA lockdowns lift at midnight
- NT exits lockdown
- International arrivals cut in half
- NSW records 31 new cases
- Brisbane, Moreton remain locked down
- PM deal to end lockdowns, open travel
- Qld, WA, NT await lockdown lift decision
- More to consider on AstraZeneca: experts
Welcome to live updates on Australia’s battle with the Covid-19 pandemic.
The PM reveals four phase pathway out of the pandemic, which will include cutting international arrivals by 50 per cent. NSW has recorded 31 new cases, with 13 of these not in isolation while infectious. Queensland’s lockdown will partially lift tonight after three local cases were detected on Friday. The NT exited lockdown at 1pm. And in WA, despite one new case, Perth and Peel lockdowns end at midnight. Scott Morrison will use today’s national cabinet meeting to seal a deal on vaccination thresholds to end lockdowns and open international travel.
Rhiannon Down10.35pm:Victoria relaxes borders to NT
Victoria has downgraded Greater Darwin and Alice Springs to orange zones, as the virus threat appears to recede in the Northern Territory.
It comes as snap lockdowns, put in place in response to serious infection scares linked to the Granites gold mine, were eased at 1pm today.
“Effective at 11.59pm AEST on 2 July, the Local Government Areas of Alice Springs and Greater Darwin including City of Darwin, Palmerston and Litchfield will become orange zones under Victoria’s Travel Permit System,” health authorities said.
Though the restrictions have been pared back, travellers from the regions will still be required to obtain a permit, get tested and isolate on arrival.
“If you travel from Greater Darwin or Alice Springs from 11.59pm AEST 2 July, you need to apply for an orange zone permit to enter Victoria,” the Department of Health said.
“Orange zone permit holders entering Victoria must isolate on arrival, get tested within 72 hours, and stay isolated until they get a negative result.”
Rhiannon Down10.30pm: NSW list of exposure sites
A hotel, medical centre and multiple food outlets have been added to NSW’s list of exposure sites, after the state recorded 31 local cases.
The Bistro area at Novotel Sydney Manly Pacific, Strathfield Plaza Medical Practice, Sushi Hub in Burwood, Matraville Woolworths, Volkswagen Rockdale and The Coffee Emporium in Roselands were added to the list as close contact venues.
Shoppers at Fresh Quality Fruit and Vegetables in Lakemba, Woolworths and Australia Post Office in Eastlakes were also put on high alert.
Exposure sites have continued to emerge in every corner of Sydney including Avalon Chemist Warehouse and Avalons Organics at the tip of the Northern Beaches, Strathfield Plaza in the inner west, South Hurstville’s Cure Café in southern Sydney and several venues in the east including Bondi Junction Aldi, EzyMart and Bite Box Kebabs in Bondi Beach.
The full list of exposure sites is available on the NSW Health website.
âš ï¸PUBLIC HEALTH ALERT – ADDITIONAL VENUES OF CONCERNâš ï¸
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) July 2, 2021
NSW Health has been notified of new venues of concern associated with confirmed cases of COVID-19 pic.twitter.com/3MwMW2AaKB
Rhiannon Down10.05pm: More venues linked to Queensland exposure sites
Queensland has added more venues to its list of exposure sites, including several shopping outlets at Brisbane Airport, after the state recorded three local cases today.
Brisbane International Airport, as well as several outlets at the domestic terminal including Coles Express, xpress@BNE Cafe and Nippon Ramen have been added as venues of concern.
Parts of Wellcamp Airport, the Greek Orthodox Community of St George Brisbane in South Brisbane and multiple outlets at the BP Haigslea Service Centre, including the BP Service Counter Area, Origin Kebabs, the Coolibah Tree Cafe, Hungry Jacks as well as the toilet and the food court generally have also been added.
Shell Rusty’s in Hatton Vale, Anytime Fitness Griffin, Coles Murrumba Downs and Harris Farm Market in West End, ALDI and Miracle Worker massage & Holistic Therapies in West End, Zara at the Queen Street Mall and Mecca Maxima in Brisbane City, have also been listed.
Shoppers at North Lakes have also been put on high alert after Getta Burger, EB Games, Health Shop, Coles, Best and Less and anyone who visited the ground floor men’s toilets, has been put on high alert.
Queensland’s lockdown was partially lifted today though hard lockdowns were extended for 24 hours in two local government areas, Brisbane and Moreton, after a mother and daughter from Carindale, in Brisbane’s east, moved around the area “quite extensively” while infectious.
âš ï¸ Public Health Alert âš ï¸
— Queensland Health (@qldhealthnews) July 2, 2021
Queensland Health has issued contact tracing alerts for parts of Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, in relation to new community cases.
Contact tracing venues and flights can be found at https://t.co/rujm8F3qL4pic.twitter.com/BQ3o17fEcJ
Rhiannon Down8.20pm: ‘Good plan’ away from lockdowns: epidemiologist
Deakin University chair of epidemiology Catherine Bennett has backed the federal government’s four phase plan to move forward.
“Any plan would have been something but this is a good plan,” she told Sky News.
“This is a staged plan which includes piloting different ideas for different options around quarantine so that in the next phase we will be starting to return to our normal quarantine levels for unvaccinated travellers, but actually increasing the people we bring in who are vaccinated who are ready for that.
“I think it’s a really good combination of preparation, piloting, trialling things, tightening hotel quarantine up - it has to do a bit more work for us yet as we get vaccinations up.
“But we’ve got these stepped ways out and we’re not waiting until that final end point that might seem a long way away, we have some benchmark thresholds in the near future.”
Professor Bennett said she hoped the plan would encourage those in the community who were hesitant to get the vaccine to step up when they saw the benefits.
Australia is charting a pathway out of COVID-19 that will get us to the other side and see life gradually return to normal. A four-phase plan was agreed in principle at today’s National Cabinet by all the states and territories. Read more: https://t.co/RdDCOEo7QZ
— Scott Morrison (@ScottMorrisonMP) July 2, 2021
“By (the later stages) people will expect the vaccine to translate to far more freedoms, some more options and some differences to the way travellers are handled depending on their vaccination status,” she said.
“Hopefully it’ll take people who are a little bit complacent back into the mix of why it’s important and the advantage in doing that sooner than later.”
Rhiannon Down8.00pm:Covid snapshot paints grim picture
The nation has recorded 33 local cases in the past 24 hours bringing the total to 370 active cases, as much of the country continues to grapple with recent outbreaks.
A staggering 162,784 Covid tests have been processed in the past 24 hours, with a total of more than 21 million in the course of the pandemic, according to the latest snapshot of the country’s Covid situation.
The number of Australians currently in hospital being treated for the virus has risen to 73, though no further deaths have been recorded with the total remaining on 910.
Australia has recorded 30,685 cases since the start of the pandemic.
The majority of today’s cases were detected in NSW which recorded 31 cases of COVID-19.
This daily infographic provides a quick view of the current coronavirus (#COVID19) situation in Australia. https://t.co/YcsPBOTHZDpic.twitter.com/9q7xRuUu5G
— Australian Government Department of Health (@healthgovau) July 2, 2021
Ellie Dudley7.30pm:Covid app ‘failure’ as zero cases found
The federal government’s much-hyped COVIDSafe app – downloaded by more than 7 million Australians – has not been used to identify any close contacts associated with the latest Australian outbreaks, despite $100,000 continuing to be poured into its development each month.
A Senate inquiry hearing in March was told COVIDSafe had cost more than $6.5 million.
Now, NSW Health says it “had not been necessary” to use the app in its latest outbreak, because other measures had been put in place for contact tracers, including CCTV footage and the state’s QR check-in system.
A spokeswoman from SA Health also told The Weekend Australian that no close contacts had been identified using the app since it had been created, while Queensland Health would not confirm whether it had been used.
WA Health and NT Health had not identified any close contacts of existing infections using the app during their latest outbreaks.
Roger Montgomery 6.10pm:Three travel stocks ready for a rebound
With Australia in the grip of another lockdown, the prospect of restriction-free travel is being pushed further towards the increasingly distant horizon.
Even some hopes for domestic air travel have been dashed and tourism operators are flat out dealing with cancellations rather than bookings.
Consequently, travel stocks are taking a battering. But as we have seen previously and as many other geographies are experiencing currently, travel bounces back quickly. The sell-off in travel stocks is, if nothing else, an obvious investment opportunity.
Rachel Baxendale5.10pm: Vic CHO not expecting ‘huge’ under-40s interest in AZ
Victorian chief health officer Brett Sutton said he did not think “huge numbers” of under-40s would get vaccinated with AstraZeneca, despite the Morrison government this week moving to remove indemnity for GPs administering the jab.
Professor Sutton said his advice to under-40s hadn’t changed, avoiding directly addressing a question about what he made of his Queensland counterpart Jeanette Young’s comments earlier this week that she did not want under-40s in her state to have the vaccine.
“My advice hasn’t changed. Follow the (Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation) advice. That advices is there is an opportunity for those under 40, under 60 to get the AstraZeneca vaccine in individual circumstances,” Professor Sutton said.
“There’s a consent process they’d need to go through, and they need to discuss their individual circumstances with a health practitioner. I think that’s reasonable.
“I don’t think it’ll mean huge numbers of under 40s getting vaccinated with AstraZeneca.
“It does relate to your individual circumstances, and there might be some individuals who know they’re in a family with very vulnerable individuals who haven’t been vaccinated, are not going to be vaccinated for whatever reason, they might make that choice to protect others. I think that it’s reasonable for them to be open to that, but they need to have that detailed conversation with a medical practitioner.”
Professor Sutton said ATAGI’s considerations of whether to recommend the vaccine for under-40s had not changed.
“The clinical risk with getting an AstraZeneca vaccine remains a very, very rare, but significant side effect in (blood) clots.
“What they weigh it up against is the risk of us all being faced with a significant Covid epidemic, and people’s opinions on that risk will differ somewhat.
“No one’s got a crystal ball to understand exactly what the next four or five months might mean in that regard. So they’re subjective judgments to make, but everyone’s got a right to talk those issues through with their GP and their individual circumstances.”
Rachel Baxendale4.50pm: Anti-vaxxers views ‘remain on the margins’: Sutton
Asked whether anti-vaxxers had been emboldened by his Queensland counterpart Jeanette Young’s comments regarding the AstraZeneca vaccine, Victorian chief health officer Brett Sutton said he was confident the views of anti-vaxxers would “remain on the margins”.
Dr Young on Wednesday said she did not want to see under-40s getting the AstraZeneca jab, claiming they were more likely to die from the extremely rare risk of blood clots than from Covid-19.
Professor Sutton said: “I don’t know if that’s true” when asked whether he was concerned that anti-vaxxers appeared to have been emboldened by the comments, which have featured widely in anti-vaccination videos and memes online.
“Anti-vaxxers will do what they do,” Professor Sutton said. I think the great majority of Australians don’t listen to that.
“(Anti-vaxxers try and punch above their weight in the social media world, but the great majority of Australians, and we’ve seen the evidence, still have an intention to be fully vaccinated.
“Some of them might waver on the timing of that. I would continue to urge everyone to get vaccinated as soon as eligible.
“The outbreaks across Australia is another reminder of just how acute this issue can be and how quickly it can develop.
“Anti-vaxxers will remain on the margins, and the conversations that GPs and others will have will be with ordinary Victorians, ordinary Australians, who’ve got legitimate and reasonable questions about the vaccine, and those questions can be answered pretty straightforwardly.”
READ MORE:‘It’s sad’: Nurses abused at vaccine hubs
Rhiannon Down4.35pm: Australia closes in on 8 million jabs
The nation’s vaccine rollout has surpassed 7.9 million doses after 163,178 jabs were administered in the past 24 hours.
Some 4,579,304 jabs have been administered by the federal system and 3,390,849 by the states and territories, according to the latest Department of Health data.
NSW, which recorded 31 coronavirus cases today, continues to pick up the pace with 21,289 jabs in the last 24 hours, bringing its total to 872,689.
However, Victoria remains at the front of the pack with 1,121,235 jabs total, after 19,663 jabs were administered in the last 24 hours.
Some 4,140,510 jabs were administered via the primary care network, while 3582 doses were administered in aged and disability care.
Rachel Baxendale4.25pm: Victorian CHO welcomes home quarantine plan
Victorian chief health officer Brett Sutton has welcomed the national cabinet’s decision to trial home quarantine for fully vaccinated international arrivals in South Australia.
Professor Sutton said he did not know whether Victoria would also participate in the trial, but that he believed a trial was appropriate.
“I welcome it. I think we need to have an understanding of how feasible it is, what the practical risks might be,” he said.
“It’s one thing to be quarantining at home as a vaccinated individual, but you need the compliance and enforcement overlay as well, so a trial’s entirely the appropriate thing, and it will give us a good picture of how much it might be able to be scaled up.
Professor Sutton said he had been pleased with the levels of compliance from Victorians who have been required to quarantine at home as a result of the state’s latest outbreaks.
“We’ve had literally thousands of people who’ve needed to complete that 14 day quarantine period, to test through that period and then to be released. So that’s a great sign,” he said.
“That said, when you’re in the middle of a really significant outbreak, people’s motivation to do so might be different from a returning, fully vaccinated traveler who might feel differently about their own level of risk.
“We just need that real world kind of trial or pilot experience to understand exactly how much compliance you can get. We need to get very high levels of compliance even in vaccinated individuals, because clearly they can still become infected and transmit it to others.”
READ MORE: Australia’s Covid-19 exit plan explained
Paul Garvey4.07pm: One new WA case; Perth, Peel lockdowns lift at midnight
Western Australia’s Perth and Peel regions will emerge from lockdown at midnight tonight, WA premier Mark McGowan has confirmed.
The decision came despite another case of the virus being detected overnight. The latest case is the partner of a man who contracted the virus earlier in the week.
Mr McGowan said the latest case had been isolating since her partner tested positive earlier in the week.
“That is a good number this far into lockdown,” Ms McGowan said.
“Western Australian’s getting tested in these numbers too means we have the confidence to take safe and sensible steps out of the lockdown and on a pathway back to normal.”
There will be incremental steps taken over the next few days after the lockdown lifts, with the four square metre rule in place and 20-person limit caps in place for venues.
People in the Perth and Peel region will be able to travel outside those areas – a relief for many families given school holidays begin on Saturday – but must follow mask requirements when outside those regions.
Mr McGowan said the incremental restrictions should be fully lifted by Monday, July 12.
READ MORE: ‘It’s sad’: Nurses abused at vaccine hubs
Rhiannon Down3.45pm: Nationals’ revamped front bench sworn in
The Nationals revamped front bench has been formally sworn-in in a formal ceremony at government house with many of the new cabinet ministers forced to tune in online amid nationwide lockdowns.
Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce’s reshuffled cabinet saw Senator Bridget McKenzie return from the back bench as Minister for Regionalisation, Regional Communications and Regional Education as well as taking on the Emergency Management portfolio.
MP Andrew Gee gained the Veterans Affairs portfolio from Gippsland MP Darren Chester and MP David Gillespie was sworn in as Minister for Regional Health, in a ceremony conducted by Governor-General David Hurley.
Hinkler MP Keith Pitt, who lost the Northern Australia portfolio in the reshuffle, proved that no one is above the foibles of working from home after his microphone was left on mute for his part of the ceremony.
MP David Littleproud retained his duties as Agriculture Minister and gained the Northern Australia portfolio.
Capricornia MP Michelle Landry became the new Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Environment and Minister for Family and Social Services and the Assistant Minister for Regional Tourism and Assistant Minister for Children and Families.
MP Kevin Hogan took on the role of Parliamentary Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development as well as Assistant Minister to the Deputy Prime Minister and Assistant Minister for Local Government
Rachel Baxendale3.25pm: Abuse, spitting, threats: anti-vax attacks on staff condemned
Victorian vaccination centre staff have been subjected to verbal abuse, racist remarks, spitting and physical threats from anti-vaxxers, Martin Foley says.
The Health Minister said one incident on Friday at Cranbourne, in Melbourne’s outer southeast, and required police intervention.
Acknowledging there has been “some confusion around vaccines”, Mr Foley urged Victorians to be patient when phoning the health department’s vaccine hotline and attending vaccination centres.
“Our nurses, our admin workers, our pathology workers, our doctors are working hard to keep us safe from the threat of the virus, and their workload has been enormous in recent weeks, dealing with just a few weeks ago the highest surge in demand that we’d seen for vaccinations, and continuing to build on that as we roll the vaccines out within the restrictions of supply that we have, and I’m sure I speak for all Victorians when I say thank you to you for that work,” he said.
“That’s why it’s been so disappointing to hear about some totally unacceptable behaviour that they’ve had to endure lately: verbal abuse, racist remarks, spitting, and other disgusting behaviour, including, I’m advised, an anti-vaxxer barging into a mass vaccine centre in Cranbourne this morning, and making completely inappropriate, threatening remarks to our nursing staff that have required us to get Victoria Police involved.
“Let’s be clear: violence, physical and verbal threats against our healthcare workers and call centre staff is not OK and will not be tolerated.
“No matter what the situation is, no matter how frustrated and stressed you are, no matter what wacky theory you might think is real, you are not entitled to abuse our healthcare staff, and what we want to make sure is that if you think you (are), Victoria Police will make an appointment to see you.”
Mr Foley said the health department had been forced to employ more security staff at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre vaccination clinic “as a result” of increased threats from anti-vaxxers.
“Conditions of entry banners have also now been introduced to remind people that you will be asked to leave immediately if there is any aggression towards our people,” he said.
“It’s sad and disappointing that this has to happen, but we know that it is only a very small minority of people who want to challenge the science and challenge and evidence.”
READ MORE:Has Covid killed off our cities?
Rachel Baxendale3.25pm: 2100 checks Victoria’s border policing continues
Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley says Victoria Police stopped and checked 2100 people near the NSW border on Thursday, up from 2000 on Wednesday.
Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Wollongong, Shellharbour and the Central Coast have all been classified by Victoria as red zones, while the remainder of NSW is orange.
The orange classification for NSW border LGAs came into effect at 6am on Friday.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s by car, or by bus, you will be checked, and we also have support at our airports, for our authorised officers meeting all flights from all red zones,” Mr Foley said.
He said about 900 people from red zones had flown into Melbourne Airport on Thursday, the vast majority of whom were from Queensland.
“That’s less than half that arrived the day before, and we want to thank everyone for assisting in the necessary checks that were carried out through that process, and I was particularly pleased that we had such an extraordinary level of compliance, well into the 90 per cent for the permits that Victorians returning home are required to have,” Mr Foley said.
He said health officials had visited more than 160 households on Thursday to ensure residents were complying with red zone requirements to quarantine for 14 days.
“To help us increase on that, we’re very pleased to welcome 50 members of the Australian Defence Force who today join that household visit program,” Mr Foley said.
“These ADF members are specially trained to conduct these household visits with our authorised officers, and I want to thank them and the Australian Defence Force for providing us that extra resource.”
Mr Foley urged Victorians to continue to get tested for coronavirus, use QR codes to check in at all venues, and get vaccinated when eligible, and apply for permits when entering Victoria.
“There’s been a lot going on over the course of this week around the nation when it comes to Covid, and Victoria’s relatively lucky position has been actually not luck. It’s been hard earned, hard fought by all Victorians and particularly our public health team,” he said.
Rachel Baxendale3.20pm: No new cases in Victoria, three in quarantine
Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley and chief health officer Brett Sutton have provided a daily Covid update.
Premier Daniel Andrews, who attended national cabinet on Friday morning, is not expected to make a public appearance.
Victoria had no new locally acquired cases on Friday, with three new cases detected in hotel quarantine.
There are now 32 active cases in the state, eight of which were locally acquired.
This includes two workers at a dry cleaning business in bayside Sandringham, one of whom contracted the virus at a party in Sydney’s Hoxton Park.
No other cases have been linked to the Sandringham dry cleaner since the second worker tested positive on June 24.
There are currently 225 close contacts of the pair who are completing quarantine, including residents of an Oakleigh housing complex where one worker lives.
Victoria processed 27,726 Covid-19 tests in the 24 hours to Thursday night.
State vaccination centres administered 19,470 jabs on Thursday, with a total of 77,353 administered since Monday, including 49,000 second doses of both Pfizer and AstraZeneca.
The Victorian health department has taken 35,000 bookings for first doses of Pfizer next week, and 50,000 bookings for second doses.
“There is a second dose vaccine ready and waiting and available for every Victorian who is due their second dose, so please make your booking if you have yet to do so,” Mr Foley said.
READ MORE:Gladys’s warning as case numbers spike
Erin Lyons3.15pm: Virus warning for Coles Bondi Junction among new alerts
A Coles supermarket in Bondi is the latest venue to be added to NSW’s exposure site list.
NSW Health sent out a warning on Friday afternoon about potential coronavirus spread at the store.
Anyone who visited the store during the following times earlier this week will be deemed a close contact, meaning they must immediately get tested, self-isolate for 14 days regardless of the result, and contact the health department.
BONDI JUNCTION
- Coles Eastgate, Eastgate Shopping Centre, Spring St & Newland St, Bondi Junction, Tuesday 29 June, 2pm – 7pm
- Coles Eastgate, Eastgate Shopping Centre, Spring St & Newland St, Bondi Junction, Wednesday 30 June, 5.30pm – 6.30pm
People who visited the store at certain times last Saturday will be considered casual contacts, meaning they must get tested and self-isolate until receiving a negative result.
BONDI JUNCTION
- Coles Eastgate, Eastgate Shopping Centre, Spring St & Newland St, Bondi, Saturday 26 June, 4.20pm – 4.40pm
- Coles Eastgate, Eastgate Shopping Centre, Spring St & Newland St, Bondi, Saturday 26 June, 7pm – 8pm
Earlier on Friday, the Sydney Airport domestic terminal was among several exposure sites listed by health officials.
READ the full story here.
Jess Malcolm2.35pm: We’re a great Delta shot: Johnson & Johnson claim
Pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson says its single-shot coronavirus vaccine is effective at providing strong protection against the highly infectious Delta variant.
The company released a statement on Friday confirming its vaccine produces strong neutralising antibodies against the variant in promising preliminary studies.
The positive findings add to a growing body of evidence that Covid-19 vaccines are effective against the Delta variant, which epidemiologists predict will become the dominant strain of the virus around the world.
Australia has decided not to purchase doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine which is being widely used in the US, over similar blood-clotting concerns associated with the AstraZeneca jab.
The government has secured contracts with Pfizer, Moderna and the Novavax Covid-19 vaccine.
READ MORE:Where would evolution be if left to covidiots?
Robyn Ironside2.15pm: Travel industry welcomes four-phase virus plan
Travel industry leaders have welcomed national cabinet’s “four-phase strategy” out of the Covid crisis, saying the plan will help incentivise residents to get vaccinated.
Phase one of the strategy involves all adult Australians getting vaccinated, with a view to gradually relaxing border restrictions in response.
Fully vaccinated residents could expect to be allowed to travel overseas in phase three, ahead of a broader reopening of borders in phase four.
Australian Tourism Industry Council executive director Simon Westaway said the plan made it clear vaccination was the only way out of border closures and lockdowns, while Melbourne Airport chief Lyell Strambi said the strategy would give purpose to the vaccination rollout.
“Vaccination has to be the ticket to greater freedom. It has to mean something,” said Mr Strambi.
Australian Federation of Travel Agents’ chairman Tom Manwaring welcomed the plan as a road map to the return of international travel, and said it was pleasing to hear the goal of treating Covid-19 like any other infectious disease.
Mr Westaway said he hoped to get more details about the four-phase strategy in coming weeks, and was particularly keen for working holiday-makers to be included in the priority visa holders list.
“The role of working holiday-makers in the Australian economy has been valued above $3 billion a year,” Mr Westaway said.
“They’re a critical part of the seasonal workforce and I think they need to be a priority along with fully vaccinated students and business visa holders.”
A Virgin Australia spokesman declined to comment on the strategy, other than to reiterate the airline’s commitment to growing core domestic operations.
Qantas was also keeping quiet, despite uncertainty over the airline’s planned resumption of international flights in mid-December.
The flying kangaroo has previously flagged “incentives for vaccination” in the form of flight vouchers and frequent flyer points with details expected to be announced soon.
READ MORE:High price PM had to pay to secure his four-phase plan
Jess Malcolm2.10pm: Two infected cases spark new Brisbane venue alerts
Urgent contact tracing is underway In Queensland after two additional cases of Covid-19 were infectious while in the Brisbane community.
Queensland Health has issued several new exposure sites in Brisbane, West End and Brisbane City.
Residents of these areas are being asked to check the list carefully.
Urgent contact tracing is underway after additional cases of COVID-19 were detected in the community. The public health alert has been updated to include new sites in South Brisbane, West End and Brisbane City. Please check the list carefully: https://t.co/T0b6Rtiwbi#covid19pic.twitter.com/RJH75u7gQZ
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) July 2, 2021
Jess Malcolm2.00pm: NSW corrects infected health workers figure, new alerts
NSW Health has issued a correction clarifying the number of healthcare and aged-care workers who were infected with Covid-19 after a student nurse first tested positive on Wednesday.
There are four new healthcare or aged-care workers who have tested positive, rather than nine as was previously reported.
The total cluster of these workers is now five, and have been linked by social or household contact, not by their workplace.
NSW Health has confirmed that four of these healthcare or aged care workers worked while infectious, and all contacts of patients and staff at the facilities have been identified and tested.
An alert has also been issued for Coles Eastgate Bondi Junction on Tuesday June 29 (2pm to 7pm) and Wednesday June 30 (5.30pm to 6.30pm). Anyone who attended the venue at this time is a close contact and must isolate for 14 days.
NSW recorded 31 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night, of which 27 are linked to previously confirmed cases. pic.twitter.com/Uiwda2a5SQ
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) July 2, 2021
Jess Malcolm1.00pm: It is over: Northern Territory exits lockdown … now
The Northern Territory’s lockdown will end at 1pm today, Chief Minister Michael Gunner has confirmed.
Both the Top End and Alice Springs residents will be freed, after health authorities deemed the public health risk low.
Despite a late night public health scare after a Darwin man broke stay-at-home orders and visited his local store, rapid testing and tracing have revealed no new positive cases.
As of 1pm today, residents will be able to leave their homes and the travel restrictions into lockdown areas will end.
But mask wearing and social distancing rules will remain in place and private gatherings in households will be limited to 10 visitors.
The rules will remain in place for another seven days.
“It is over,” Mr Gunner said.
“I know it’s been a bit of a wild ride but we are really happy with what’s come through overnight,” he said.
There were 3502 tests processed in the Territory yesterday.
READ MORE:Australia’s Covid exit plan explained
Jess Malcolm12.45am: Arrival caps likely to stay at 50pc all year
Overseas arrival caps are likely to remain cut to 50 per cent until at least the start of next year, Scott Morrison has confirmed.
As part of phase one, states and premiers have also agreed that lockdowns will only be used as a last resort.
The Prime Minister was not able to outline a timeline for the phases, he said it is “possible” to be in phase two by the end of the year.
Mr Morrison said the phase will be a major shift in the mindset of the public health response towards Covid-19.
“Our mindset on managing Covid-19 has to change once you move from pre-vaccination to post-vaccination,” he said. That’s the deal for Australians.”
“Australians are ‘prisoners of our own success’.”
“You don’t lightly start changing these settings and move from seeking to suppress community cases to moving into the phase where you are focused on hospitalisations. You don’t do that lightly.”
READ MORE: States sweat on new cases
Jess Malcolm12.25pm:PM denies AZ advice inconsistent with experts
Scott Morrison has rebuffed claims that his messaging on AstraZeneca was inconsistent with medical advice, saying it “reflected equally” with the advice from the nation’s top vaccination advisory body.
The Prime Minister encouraged younger Australians to speak with their GPs about getting the AstraZeneca vaccine on Monday night, sparking confusion from doctors and GPs who said it was contrary to the advice from ATAGI.
“All I said on Monday was reflected equally in what the co-chair of ATAGI has said,” he said.
“That is, ATAGI advice remains a preferential recommendation for Pfizer for under 60, but this does not preclude them from having AstraZeneca.
“Australians should have the choice to go and talk to their doctor and make a decision about informed consent about their own health.”
Mr Morrison also said, to “clear up the record”. the decision to provide a public indemnity to support doctors was never a decision of national cabinet.
Commonwealth Covid-19 vaccination chief Lieutenant General John Frewen has revealed over 1300 GPs will soon be able to administer vaccines in a bid to deliver one million doses a week.
He also confirmed 6.2 million Australians have now had their first dose, and 1.7 million people are now fully vaccinated.
Lieutenant-General Frewen said he will be engaging with the states and territories on Tuesday next week to understand the specific requirements of the states’ plans and work through any issues.
READ MORE: PM must seize control of rollout
Jess Malcolm12.10pm: Covid to be treated like flu
In the third phase of the new public health response plan, Covid-19 will be treated like the flu.
Under this phase, most Australians will be vaccinated, meaning there will be no need for lockdowns and the government will abolish all caps on returning vaccinated travellers.
It will also lift all restrictions on outbound travel for vaccinated Australians, and extend the travel bubble to low-risk countries like Singapore and the Pacific.
In the last phase, life will return back to normal.
This includes uncapped arrivals on vaccinated people without quarantine, and allowing uncapped arrivals of non-vaccinated travellers subject to pre-flight and post-flight arrival testing.
This part of the plan still hinges on the vaccination threshold yet to be determined.
Mr Morrison flagged the modelling to decide this threshold “over the course of the next month”.
“It’s a critical number,” he said.
“We need to be sure about that in framing where we go from here. And that will include of course recommending those vaccination targets for each phase of the plan based on that modelling.”
READ MORE:In defence of the rollout
Jess Malcolm12.05pm:Lockdowns to be used only as last resort
In the second phase of the new plan, Scott Morrison says a vaccination threshold will mean lockdowns will only occur in certain extreme settings and return international caps to previous times.
At this threshold, which is still to be decided by scientific modelling, lockdowns will only be used to minimise serious illness, hospitalisation and death as a result of Covid-19.
It will also include less restrictions placed on vaccinated restrictions such as lockdowns and border controls.
Caps on inbound travel arrivals will also be increased to previous levels.
There will also be a capped entry of student and economic visa holders allowed in, depending on quarantine arrangements and availability.
Home quarantine could be an option, depending on the success of the trials outlined in phase one.
READ MORE:‘Don’t leave lockdown’
Jess Malcolm11.55am:International arrivals cut by 50pc under Nat Cab plan
national cabinet has agreed to cut international arrivals by half under a new, four phase pathway out of the pandemic, Scott Morrison has said.
The Prime Minister said national cabinet had agreed a four phase plan based on expert medical evidence and modelling work. It would include making lockdowns a measure of last resort.
The first phase is continuing to pursue a suppression strategy of the virus, while leaders aim to vaccinate Australians as fast as possible, offering every Australian a vaccine “as soon as possible”.
In this phase, officials have decided to temporarily reduce commercial inbound passenger arrivals by 50 per cent, due to the transmissibility of the Delta strain.
The commonwealth will also aim to divert commercial flights to Howard Springs, as a way to reduce inbound flights at major airports.
The government has also decided to extend the international freight subsidy scheme to ensure essential freight supply will continue.
The current and first phase will also include a small-scale trial of home quarantine for returning vaccinated travellers.
READ MORE:How new eatery rolled with lockdown
Jess Malcolm 11.45am: SA records one new local case
South Australia has recorded one new case of locally acquired Covid-19, but Premier Steven Marshall has not extended restrictions.
The case is the fourth child of the miner’s family, a baby, meaning all six family members have now tested positive to the Delta variant.
They are all currently in isolation and no further exposure sites have been added.
There was one new case in hotel quarantine who is a man in his 60s.
Peter van Onselen11.40am:Defence of vaccine rollout
Monday morning quarterbacks as far as the eyes can see. That’s what you find when trolling through social media to see what people are thinking when it comes to the vaccine rollout. Everyone is wise after the fact. All those who care but aren’t responsible.
Experts in their own lunch boxes who would have done things differently to how the government managed the rollout, and indeed the choice of vaccines and the prioritisation around when to start giving Australians the jab. It would be funny if it wasn’t so serious.
Pile-ons are of course the abiding consistency we see on social media, as people rush to judgment airing their views, often before turning on their brains. The rapid fire nature of the medium lends itself to such knee jerk reactions. Politicians fall victim to it, so do commentators, and so does the general public. We all do to varying extents. Or at least those of us addicted to the platforms on offer.
READthe full story
Jess Malcolm11.30am:International arrivals ‘likely reduced’ after Nat Cab
Gladys Berejiklian has revealed the number of international arrivals is likely to be reduced following a decision from this morning’s national cabinet meeting.
The NSW Premier said she is “disappointed” by the decision, but says this will not change the likelihood of further outbreaks.
“My heart goes out to thousands of Australians who have to wait longer to come home,” she said.
“We will follow the national cabinet decision and I appreciate that some members of the community in New South Wales will be relieved at that.
“Please don’t assume that outbreaks aren’t going to happen just because the numbers have been reduced.”
Ms Berejiklian also took aim at her state counterparts, urging them to “look at the science” before making snap decisions.
“Why would you lock out people from a state when there is no hotspot associated in that region, when there is no concern?”
READ MORE:Readers’ Comments: Step up, take control
Jess Malcolm11.25am: Chant won’t be drawn on lockdown release
Dr Kerry Chant has refused to reveal whether the NSW lockdown will extend beyond two weeks, amid a surge in cases who have been infectious whilst in the community.
The Chief Health Officer reiterated that officials need to see the number of cases and exposure venues decrease before making a decision on restrictions.
“What I can say is that the factors we consider closely are those infectious days in the community,” she said.
“If you stay at home for the vast majority of the time, limit your grocery shopping to as brief as you can, make sure that you’re going at times that are not busy, maintaining that social distancing, even if you haven’t been isolating, you are not posing a threat to the rest of the community.”
Gladys Berejiklian reiterated that the success of the lockdown depends on residents limiting their contact with others.
Officials expect a reduction of the number of people who have exposed the virus to others from early next week.
READ MORE:How to stay resilient in lockdown
Jess Malcolm11.20am: Eight cases linked to RNS nurse
Eight of the cases recorded to today have been linked to the 24-year-old student nurse announced on Wednesday, bringing the total cluster to 10.
Nine of these cases are healthcare or aged care workers, sparking concern for further transmission in NSW healthcare settings.
There have now been 390 staff and patients who have been identified as close contacts, with health authorities still scrambling to detect the origin of the index case.
READ MORE:PM: We need to change gear
Jess Malcolm11.10am:Five NSW cases still being probed
There are currently five cases in NSW still under investigation, Dr Kerry Chant has confirmed.
Of the new cases, 11 were in isolation through their infectious period and a further three were in isolation for part of their infectious period.
Authorities are concerned there were 13 cases who spent time in the community whilst infectious.
There were no new cases linked to the Great Ocean Foods fish wholesaler in Marrickville.
There was one new case linked to the West Hoxton birthday party, and two new cases connected to the Crossways Hotel.
A further case has been identified from the Joh Bailey hairdresser, and three new cases linked to a Bronte Beach cafe.
Officials are also concerned about a number of retail settings where transmission has occurred, including a growing hotspot linked to the Coles in Bondi Junction in the city’s east.
Several hairdressers, beauticians and retail venues have emerged as venues of concern for authorities, and residents are being asked to remain on high alert when shopping for essential services.
READ MORE:van Onselen: In defence of vaccine rollout
Jess Malcolm 11.03am: NSW records 31 new local cases
NSW has recorded 31 new cases in the 24 hours to 8pm last night, with 13 of these not in isolation while infectious.
The new cases bring the total number in the outbreak up to 226.
Sydney-siders have been told to brace for higher case numbers in the coming days after a number of positive cases have spent time while infectious in the community, and a “lag time” until cases were detected.
Thirteen of today’s new cases spent time in the community while infectious, Gladys Berejiklian has confirmed.
But the NSW Premier admitted the case numbers are not as bad as they could have been.
There were 76,000 tests conducted yesterday.
READ MORE: Why national cabinet could be tipping point
Jess Malcolm 10.55am: NSW Labor supports Berejiklian over arrivals
NSW Opposition Leader Chris Minns is supportive of Gladys Berejiklian’s push to keep international arrival numbers the same, amid a bid to play a “constructive” role as leader.
As NSW is the largest employing state in the country, Mr Minns told Sky News it was the best way to help the economy recover.
“We have had international travellers coming into NSW which has allowed some form of commerce to continue,” he said.
“It should be about managing international arrivals … to dramatically reduce the numbers would have an even worse economic impact.”
When asked why he was taking a softer approach towards the Liberal party, the Opposition Leader said the current health outbreak is his top priority.
“There will be plenty of time for questions about the latest outbreak, but for now it’ about getting through this health pandemic before we return to politics,” he said.
“The way of approaching politics needs to be in a more constructive way, it’s not as if anyone is sweeping it under the rug.”
Jess Malcolm10.25am:Birmingham: Vax issues caused by supply from abroad
Finance Minister Simon Birmingham says Australia’s vaccine supply issues are in part because overseas drug companies have prioritised countries that have been harder hit by Covid-19.
“Australians should be assured that we continue to have discussions with the drug companies, but it’s a global pandemic and a global vaccine approach,” he told Sky News.
“These companies have prioritised places where there have been huge outbreaks and loss of life.
“This is why we build a strategy around our domestic vaccine production capacity, but the changing of the health advice has disrupted that process.”
Mr Birmingham said the vaccination threshold targets on the table at this morning’s national cabinet meeting will be influenced by updated modelling around the Delta variant.
He also said Australia could consider opening up to countries that pose lower Covid-19 risks, as the nation’s vaccination rollout ramps up.
READ MORE:PM emerges from quarantine
Jess Malcolm 9.40am:Berejiklian to give NSW update at 11am
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian’ will give an update on cases in the state at 11am. She will be joined by Health Minister Brad Hazzard, NSW CHO Dr Kerry Chant and NSW police deputy commissioner Gary Worboys.
Health officials will reveal whether there has been further transmission after two healthcare workers tested positive for the virus, one of whom was an unvaccinated aged-care worker.
Lydia Lynch9.15am:Brisbane hospital’s failures over staff testing
Queensland’s lockdown might have been avoided if a north Brisbane hospital complied with staff testing rules.
The latest lockdown was triggered when an unvaccinated Covid-ward receptionist tested positive after spending 10 days infectious in the community with the Delta strain.
The casual worker, 19, developed symptoms on June 21 then went to work for the next two days, immediately outside the Princes Charles Hospital Covid ward.
Under public health orders, people working in isolation wards are meant to be tested every day.
Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said she was not tested “for the same reason she was not vaccinated”.
“The hospital did not consider her a worker in a Covid ward so therefore she was not getting daily tests,” she said.
Infectious disease expert Dr Paul Griffin will lead the investigation into the failures in containing the virus.
From 6pm, lockdown ends for the local government areas of Townsville, Palm Island, Ipswich, Logan City, Redlands, Sunshine Coast, Noosa, Somerset, Lockyer Valley, Scenic Rim and Gold Coast. Additional measures remain in place for 14 days until 5.59pm on Friday 16 July. #covid19pic.twitter.com/rhVwspEY57
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) July 1, 2021
Meanwhile, lockdowns will continue in Brisbane and Moreton council areas until Saturday night after a mother and daughter, with no known links to other outbreaks, tested positive.
Dr Young said the state’s high testing rates gave her confidence their was not mass undetected spread in the community.
“With that amount of testing I can be reasonably comfortable that we do not have an unlinked train of transmission going on.”
Five positive results were confirmed on Friday after almost 27,000 tests were conducted. Two of those were in hotel quarantine and the other had already recovered from the virus.
READ MORE:How to stay resilient in lockdown
Lydia Lynch 9.00am:Palaszczuk: Offer all Aussies vax before open borders
Annastacia Palaszczuk has backed Dan Andrews call for all Australians to be offered a vaccine before international borders open.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has called a meeting of state and territory leaders today to map a path to international travel.
“The country is very much keen for us to start that way out of where we are [with COVID-19],” he said.
“Australia has done incredibly well over the course of these last 18 months. But now we need to change gears for the road ahead. I was very encouraged yesterday by the record day of vaccinations. The vaccination program is really gathering pace.”
The Queensland Premier said once all Australians had the option to be vaccinated, state border closures would also cease.
“If members of your family had not had the offer of a vaccine, the virus came in and they ended up on ventilators, you wouldn’t forgive yourself.”
Ms Palaszczuk’s Victorian counterpart Dan Andrews said lockdowns would also end in his state once every eligible person had been offered a jab.
READ MORE:Queensland’s concerning new cases
Jess Malcolm9am:Victoria records no new local cases
Victoria has recorded no new cases of locally acquired Covid-19, following 24,726 tests.
There were three new cases recorded in hotel quarantine.
Victorian health authorities administered 19,470 vaccines yesterday, bringing the total doses given in the state to 1,121,235.
There are currently just 32 active cases.
Reported yesterday: 0 new local cases and 3 new cases acquired overseas (currently in HQ).
— VicGovDH (@VicGovDH) July 1, 2021
- 19,470 vaccine doses were administered
- 24,726 test results were received.
More later: https://t.co/2vKbgKZgn3#COVID19Vic#COVID19VicDatapic.twitter.com/WE2CJp5b3X
READ MORE:Small number of foreign arrivals here to help, heal or grieve
Rachel Baxendale8.50am:Andrews releases four-point plan to exit pandemic
Ahead of today’s national cabinet meeting, the Andrews government says it has put forward a plan designed to keep Australia safe until a critical mass of the population is vaccinated “and do everything we can to avoid lockdowns”.
In a press release issued on Friday morning, the Victoria government said its plan urged national cabinet to chart a course out of the pandemic for Australians by focusing on four key areas:
• “A nationally consistent approach to reducing numbers of international arrivals in hotel quarantine, until greater vaccine coverage has been reached.”
• “Refining the eligibility criteria for Australians to travel abroad and to return home.”
• “A nationally agreed vaccination target which would allow for the application of different quarantine arrangements based on stratified risk assessments of incoming travellers.”
• “Options for safer, commonwealth-led alternatives to hotel quarantine that can be used both in the short-term and as part of an ongoing reset once a vaccination target has been reached Australia continues to face newer, more contagious COVID-19 strains which leave the nation with little choice but to apply restrictions to limit movement and stop the spread of the virus.”
“More than half of Australia’s population is currently living under a lockdown order – in New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory,” Premier Daniel Andrews said. “In the past two months alone, hotel quarantine leaks across the country have seen more than 17 million Australians forced to endure hard lockdowns and tough restrictions.
“Nationally, there were 4.9 failures per 1,000 positive cases in quarantine – meaning one outbreak from quarantine is expected for every 204 infected travellers. Since April 2020, on average 308 infected travellers arrived in Australia each month, amounting to 1.5 outbreaks expected per month.
“Victoria’s plan aims to reduce the risk of new, highly infectious COVID-19 variants entering the country through international arrivals in quarantine – no matter which state they’re arriving in – until we have a critical mass of Australians vaccinated.”
Mr Andrews says the plan gave Australia “the best chance to bolster new approaches to fighting COVID-19, including greater vaccination coverage, the completion of alternative quarantine accommodation as proposed in Victoria, diverse quarantine arrangements, as well as the ability to safely open the country – reducing the number of lockdowns and restrictions.”
“Australians want to know that there’s a plan to get us through this pandemic. This is the work that needs to happen to get us there and people are entitled to expect their governments to work together to get it done,” he said.
“We have a critical window to get our population vaccinated, defeat this pandemic and return to a sense of free and normal life. Locking some people out is much better than locking everybody down.’’
READ MORE:Why today’s national cabinet meeting could be the tipping point
Jess Malcolm8.40am:50pc vax rates mean ‘radical change’ to risk
Infectious diseases expert Catherine Bennett says 50 per cent of Australians would need to be vaccinated for it to be safe to remove the need for strict lockdowns.
Professor Bennett said reaching half the population vaccinated would see a “radical change” in the risk posed by infectious cases.
“We should be looking at a radical change in their background level of risk that hopefully will mean we can contain outbreaks more easily with our normal test, trace and isolate,” she told Today on Friday.
“We saw our biggest ever day yesterday in vaccination uptake. That is what we need to see if we’re going to hit any kind of target that will take pressure off lockdowns and our borders any time soon. That is a good thing.”
Professor Bennett said today’s national cabinet meeting where leaders are set to discuss vaccination thresholds should help leaders “calibrate”their settings”.
“Every state has its own particular issues but having consensus about what you can do at different risk levels and what that means for border closures or lockdowns will help the states have a plan to move ahead as our vaccination rates rise.”
Lydia Lynch8.30am: Another 24 hours lockdown for Brisbane, Moreton Bay
Queensland’s lockdown will partially lift tonight after three local cases were detected on Friday.
Hard lockdowns will be extended for 24 hours in two local government areas – Brisbane and Moreton, with a mother and daughter from Carindale, in Brisbane’s east, out and about “quite extensively,” Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has said.
Friday 2 July – coronavirus cases in Queensland:
— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) July 1, 2021
Three new locally acquired cases.
Two new overseas acquired case.#covid19pic.twitter.com/ktVRAE1Uzp
Restrictions on other local areas including Noosa, Logan, Ipswich and the Gold Coast will be lifted
Ms Palaszczuk said the mother and daughter tested positive on Friday morning.
Their infections have not been sourced back to another outbreak and they had been out “extensively” in the community.
The third local case was the partner of a woman who worked at the Qatar Airways check-in desk at Brisbane airport.
The man, a baggage handler at the airport, had already recovered from the virus when he tested positive.
READ MORE: PM must seize control of rollout
Jess Malcolm8.20am: PM: We need to change gears for road ahead
The Prime Minister has emerged from 14 days quarantine at the Lodge in Canberra, ahead of today’s national cabinet meeting where he will push for a vaccination threshold to allow vaccinated Australians to travel internationally.
Scott Morrison said Australia now needs to “change gears for the road ahead”.
“national cabinet today is a very important meeting,” he said.
“The country is very much keen for us to path that way out of where we are and Australia has done incredibly well over the course of these last 18 months but now we need to change gears for the road ahead.”
“I was very encouraged yesterday by the record day of vaccinations. The vaccination program is really gathering pace. Some almost 3.5 million doses administered in the month of June.”
“At that pace we will get there by the end of the year and I think that is very encouraging. So today we just need to focus on the job for the Australian people and I have every confidence that the national cabinet will do just that.”
Mr Morrison said he is confident the states and federal leaders can work together, following fiery statements from some premiers this week who have been pushing for a decrease in international arrival caps.
“I’m very confident that we will keep working together for what Australia needs to take us through what has been one of the most difficult times in our history,” he said.
“national cabinet has done it before and I’m sure we will do it again today.”
READ MORE:PM seeks deal over borders
Jess Malcolm 8.10am:Canavan: Qld health’s quarantine remarks ‘embarrassing’
Queensland Senator Matt Canavan has accused the Queensland government of covering up for its own mistakes in hotel quarantine ahead of its push to reduce the international arrivals caps.
Mr Canavan called the state’s authorities’ comments “embarrassing”.
“These outbreaks have been caused because the Queensland government placed a FIFO miner into a hotel where there were coronavirus cases and the other issue is the nurse who was working while unvaccinated,” he told Sky News.
“Both of these things involve the Queensland government, it is just a standard operating procedure to distract others.”
Mr Canavan also took aim at the state’s comments about the risks of blood clotting associated with the AstraZeneca vaccine, encouraging younger Australians to make their own informed decision.
“I don’t know why the Chief Health Officer made those exaggerated comments this week,” he said.
“Now we know more about these conditions, in saying that they are rare … just consult your GP, just like every other medical procedure in the country and make your own decision.’
READ MORE: PM’s chance to lead amid pile-on
Jess Malcolm7.35am:Birmingham: Delta variant changes border hopes
Finance Minister Simon Birmingham says the federal government is working with health experts to decipher what percentage of the population would need to be vaccinated to eliminate lockdowns and allow domestic and international travel exemptions.
The Australian revealed today the Prime Minister will seek a deal with state premiers in today’s national cabinet meeting to set a threshold to end lockdowns and allow domestic and international travel for vaccinated Australians.
Mr Birmingham said further work needed to be done with the new, highly infectious Delta variant, but he wants all states and territories to “get onboard”.
“We will sit down with the nation’s health leaders as we have done at every step of this pandemic,” he told Today.
“That work has been done previously around the Alpha variant but the Delta variant changes these things.
“We have to do that work again and make sure we give Australians the confidence that, when we take those steps to reopen, which will be when all Australians have had a chance to be vaccinated.”
Mr Birmingham says 70 per cent of over-70s, more than 50 per cent of over-50s and 30 per cent of younger Australians have had their first dose.
READ MORE:PM seeks deal over borders
Jess Malcolm7.15am:Mandatory vaccine for health workers ‘challenging’: Griffin
Infectious diseases expert Paul Griffin says some healthcare workers in Queensland don’t understand the importance of vaccination, despite having a responsibility to protect vulnerable people.
Dr Griffin is leading the probe launched by the Queensland government into why a hospital worker at the centre of the latest outbreak was not vaccinated.
Dr Griffin said a lack of understanding of the benefits of vaccines was central to the issue, but that it would be difficult to make vaccination mandatory for all healthcare workers.
“I think making it mandatory is challenging,” he told Today.
“I would like to think particularly about that group and understand those benefits perhaps better than the general public and we wouldn’t need to make it mandatory.
“I think there are some communication pieces around that as well as some logistical and access issues with supply which are in the process of being addressed.”
Dr Griffin also said he hoped to increase the transparency of the state’s rollout, considering rates of vaccinated healthcare workers were not currently reported.
READ MORE: Industry leader in staff vaccine data push
Jess Malcolm7am:New alert for Sydney swimming pool, airport
While millions of Australians are set to be released from lockdown today, NSW premier Gladys Berekilian remained alarmed that a number of people had been in the community while infectious.
NSW recorded 24 new locally acquired cases, triggering the Premier to encourage Sydney-siders to “assume you have the virus”. A swimming pool, soccer stadium and Terminal 2 at Sydney airport were added to the growing list of exposure sites late on Thursday night. Anyone who transferred through Domestic Terminal 2 at Sydney Airport on Saturday June 26 between 11.00am to 11.30am has also been asked to isolate and get tested, after a positive case travelled on a flight to Sydney from the Gold Coast.
âš ï¸*RE-ISSUE* PUBLIC HEALTH ALERT - VENUES OF CONCERNâš ï¸
— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) July 1, 2021
*Please note update to exposure at Sydney Airport in red.* pic.twitter.com/KqgYuJKoYx
Health authorities are also scrambling after a positive case visited a mass vaccination centre this week. Several Sydney hospitals and an aged care home are also on high alert after an unvaccinated worker tested positive, sparking concerns there remained unvaccinated staff working in the healthcare system.
Northern Territory residents are hopeful the lockdown will ease at 1pm, but health authorities are still waiting on final test results from two high-risk exposure sites. Late on Thursday night a new exposure site was added in Darwin, threatening to extend the city’s lockdown. Northern Territory chief minister Michael Gunner said a man who tested positive had defied Covid-19 health restrictions and went to the local shop when he should have been in self-isolation. The man was wearing a mask, but Mr Gunner said he had been interrogated by police and lied several times about his whereabouts.
South Australian authorities were relieved on Thursday after the state recorded no new cases of Covid-19. All 28 miners who were exposed to the virus from the Northern Territory to Adelaide last Friday had also all returned negative test results. Urgent testing was also underway for the 121 passengers on the Virgin flight from Alice Springs, after a miner tested positive sparking a 72-hour lockdown in Alice Springs.
Queenslanders are set to be released from their strict stay-at-home orders after the state recorded two new cases. The state’s 3-day lockdown is scheduled to end at 6pm tonight. While Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk says she is encouraged by the numbers, the state was “not out of the woods yet”.
Queensland #COVID19 update 1/07/21
— Queensland Health (@qldhealthnews) July 1, 2021
Queensland has recorded 4 new cases of COVID-19 today. 2 cases were locally acquired and 2 cases were overseas acquired, detected in hotel quarantine.
Full details here: https://t.co/kapyXpSIAPpic.twitter.com/ZcYvl80Byx
More than two million Perth and Peel residents are also entering their final day of lockdown which is set to end at midnight tonight. The state recorded no new locally acquired cases of community transmission, leaving the total number of the northern suburb’s cluster at four. Health authorities have also been reassured that wastewater resting has revealed no signs of the virus spreading. Premier Mark McGowan said a final decision would hinge on whether any further infections were identified by this morning.
Media statement: COVID-19 update 1 July 2021 https://t.co/YhlHhRl8ct
— WA Health (@WAHealth) July 1, 2021
READ MORE: Millions in three states await decision on lockdowns
Simon Benson5am:PM seeks deal to open travel, end lockdowns
Scott Morrison will seek a new deal for Australians in a critical meeting of national cabinet today that would secure agreement from premiers and chief ministers on vaccination thresholds to eliminate lockdowns and give domestic and international travel exemptions for vaccinated Australians.
The Prime Minister told The Australian ahead of today’s critical national cabinet meeting that it was important to sketch out the benefits of having a vaccinated population and consider the “magic numbers” at which vaccine thresholds could be set.
“What does it mean and what can people expect in terms of restrictions and movement?” Mr Morrison said.
“It’s time to start laying it out for the Australian public. It is imperative that the premiers, chief ministers and I address that question. It comes down to the medical science and what are the magic numbers. We have already done modelling on the alpha variant and are now doing it on the delta variant, which will set a threshold marker going forward.
“Australians have been patient and that has helped us achieve what we have achieved to protect lives and livelihoods.
“We now need to get to the next level. The package the public deserves needs a consolidated agreement from all of us.”
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said on Thursday there should be no more lockdowns once every eligible person had been offered a vaccine, arguing that he would not shut down businesses to protect those unwilling to get the jab.
Modelling for a vaccination threshold based on the alpha variant of the virus was presented to national cabinet three weeks ago. Modelling based on the more-contagious delta variant is understood to be almost complete.
Read the full story, by Simon Benson and Greg Brown, here.
Lydia Lynch4.45am:Millions wait on Covid-19 lockdown release decision
About six million Australians are set to be released from lockdown today after no widespread transmission of Covid-19 was detected in Western Australia, Queensland or the Northern Territory.
Authorities in the three jurisdictions imposed hard lockdown orders earlier this week as cases of the more virulent Delta strain were detected in the community.
When the lockdowns lift, other restrictions were expected to remain including mask wearing and density rules.
No local cases were detected in WA on Thursday, but Premier Mark McGowan said a final decision would hinge on whether any further infections are identified by this morning.
In Queensland, just one case has been linked back to the Prince Charles Hospital Covid breach, when a Covid ward receptionist’s younger brother tested positive on Tuesday. Greater Darwin’s lockdown, triggered by a Queensland hotel quarantine blunder, was also on track to lift today.
Read the full story, by Lydia Lynch and Paul Garvey, here.
Natasha Robinson4.30am:More to consider with AstraZeneca: experts
Experts say weighing up the risk of hospitalisation from Covid-19 versus the benefit of getting a vaccine straight away should not be the only factor young people consider in deciding whether to get the AstraZeneca shot.
According to the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation, about three people aged under 50 are likely to suffer a rare blood clotting disorder out of every 100,000 who receive a first dose of AstraZeneca vaccine.
Out of every 25 cases of the condition known as thrombosis with thrombocytopenia (TTS), there is likely to be one death, based on Australia data.
Many countries around the world have moved to restrict the AstraZeneca vaccine to older people in the same way as Australia. The United Kingdom’s policy is that those aged between 18 and 39 are offered an alternative to the AstraZeneca vaccine, where a different vaccine is available and provided it does not cause delays in being fully vaccinated.
There have been 27 cases of TTS experienced by people aged between 18 and 29 in the UK following the AstraZeneca vaccine, and six deaths in that age group. Among peopled aged between 30 and 39, there have been 49 reports of TTS and 11 deaths.
Read the full story here.
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