Coronavirus Australia live news: Victorian lockdown triggers $300m GST haircut as state records 208 new cases, 17 deaths;
Victoria’s six week, stage-four lockdown risks reducing the national GST pool by $300m, according to analysis by NSW Treasury.
- Sydney teen suicide cluster linked to pandemic
- Palaszczuk locks down aged care, disability homes
- Hit TV show shut down amid outbreak on set
- Pandemic to blame for NT election result
Welcome to The Australian’s rolling coverage of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Victoria has recorded 208 new cases and 17 deaths in the past 24 hours. Meanwhile, a highschool suicide cluster on Sydney’s north shore has been linked to the pandemic.
Damon Johnston 10.40pm: Streets of fear in city’s wealthy enclave
East Melbourne reeling from violence, screaming, theft, drug use and unruly drunks with DHHS accused of abandoning homeless in coronavirus hotel.
Rosie Lewis 10.10pm PM wins crossbench support for jobs plans
Scott Morrison has secured a key Senate vote for his JobKeeper 2.0 package and controversial bid to extend emergency industrial relations change.
Grant Ayre 9.40pm: Victorian cases by LGA: Map
Mackenzie Scott 9.10pm: Race to trace the detention cluster
Health authorities are racing to track down dozens of former inmates released from a Brisbane Youth Detention Centre linked to COVID-19 cluster.
Richard Ferguson, Jill Rowbotham 8.40pm: Students rush to avoid jobless
Australians leaving school or left jobless by the COVID recession are flocking to secure early spots at university, with thousands of students already securing places.
Adam Creighton 8.10pm: Stage-four lockdown key to a $300m GST haircut
Victoria’s six-week, stage-four lockdown risks reducing the national GST pool by $300m, according to analysis by NSW Treasury.
Richard Ferguson 7.40pm: JobKeeper sweetens life in a lolly shop
JobKeeper and federal tax changes have made life much sweeter for` a 20-year old confectionary shop in Melbourne’s north which faced a COVID-19 collapse.
AFP 7.10pm: Indian cases top three million
India’s confirmed coronavirus cases crossed the three million mark Sunday with nearly 70,000 new infections, as the disease continues to surge in the world’s second most-populous nation.
The health ministry said 69,239 cases were detected on Sunday, with 912 deaths taking the total number of fatalities to 56,706.
Many experts say, however, that the real scale of the infection is much higher. Authorities in New Delhi said last week that an antibody study in the megacity suggested more than a quarter of the capital’s population had contracted the infection.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government imposed one of the world’s strictest lockdowns in late March, which has been mostly eased in recent weeks.
But the epidemic has left Asia’s third-largest economy reeling, and tens of millions of people have lost their jobs and livelihoods.
Individual states and cities have imposed localised lockdowns — including Haryana and Punjab, where cases have spiked in recent weeks.
AFP 6.40pm: South Korea reports worst spike since March
South Korea reported its highest daily number of coronavirus cases since early March on Sunday as authorities warned the country is “on the brink of a nationwide pandemic”.
The majority of the 397 new infections were in the greater Seoul region — home to half the country’s 51 million people, the Korea Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said.
Authorities warned of tougher social distancing rules, which may include closing schools and businesses, if the number of new cases continues to grow at a fast pace after South Korea had largely brought its earlier outbreak under control.
“The situation is very grave and serious as we are on the brink of a nationwide pandemic,” KCDC chief Jung Eun-kyeong said, adding the number of infections had yet to peak.
READ MORE: Trump allies told to fire up the GOP faithful by speaking live
Rachel Baxendale 6.10pm: Victorian cases by LGA: Full list
Active coronavirus cases continued to fall in the vast majority of Victorian local government areas in the 24 hours to Sunday, in line with the state’s downward trend in case numbers, although small increases in some locations bucked the trend.
This included a net increase of three active cases in the City of Melbourne, which has a total of 137 active cases, as well as net increases of three in the Mitchell Shire, immediately north of Melbourne’s outskirts, and Moorabool in western central Victoria.
There were net increases of one case in Bayside and Mornington Peninsula in Melbourne’s southeast, as well as Ballarat in central Victoria, and Surf Coast in the state’s southwest.
The LGA with the highest number of active cases in the state continues to be Wyndham, in Melbourne’s outer southwest, with 406 active cases.
This is a net decrease of 52 cases since Saturday, and down from a peak of 929 on August 12.
Greater Geelong has the highest number of cases of any regional LGA at 90, following a net decrease of eight since Saturday, and down from a peak of 180 on August 11.
Maroondah, in Melbourne’s outer east has the lowest number of active cases of any metropolitan LGA, with 19 — down from 22 on Saturday.
Of the Melbourne’s 31 LGAs, 12 have active caseloads of more than 100 — down from 19 on August 12.
Active confirmed cases of COVID-19 by LGA as of Sunday, with net increase and percentage change since Saturday in brackets:
Wyndham (outer southwest): 406 (-52)
Brimbank (outer west): 354 (-24)
Hume (outer north): 284 (-34)
Whittlesea (outer north): 252 (-26)
Melton (outer northwest): 239 (-30)
Moreland (north): 236 (-15)
Darebin (north): 197 (-13)
Casey (outer southeast): 182 (-10)
City of Melbourne: 137 (+3)
Hobsons Bay (inner southwest): 129 (-4)
Greater Dandenong: (outer southeast): 122 (-8)
Maribyrnong (inner west): 113 (-7)
Moonee Valley (northwest): 94 (-6)
Kingston (southeast): 92 (-14)
*Greater Geelong (southwest regional Vic): 90 (-8)
Bayside (southeast): 82 (+1)
Yarra Ranges (outer east) 78
Yarra (inner northeast): 70 (-4)
Frankston (outer southeast): 69 (-5)
Mornington Peninsula (outer southeast): 59 (+1)
Port Phillip (inner south): 53
Banyule (northeast): 53 (-6)
Monash (southeast): 52 (-2)
Boroondara (east): 46 (-2)
Nillumbik (outer northeast): 43 (-3)
Cardinia (outer southeast): 33 (-9)
Manningham (east): 30
Glen Eira (southeast): 30 (-7)
Knox (outer east): 26 (-3)
Stonnington (inner southeast): 26 (-5)
*Greater Bendigo (central regional Vic): 24 (-1)
Whitehorse (east): 21 (-7)
*Mitchell (central regional Vic, north of Melb): 19 (+3)
Maroondah (outer east): 19 (-3)
*Greater Shepparton (northern regional Vic): 16 (-1)
*Macedon Ranges (central regional Vic): 15
*Colac-Otway (western regional Vic): 12 (-1)
*Moorabool (western regional Vic): 11 (+3)
*Latrobe (eastern regional Vic): 11 (-2)
*Warrnambool (southwest regional Vic): 7
*Ballarat (western regional Vic): 5 (+1)
*Surf Coast (southwest regional Vic): 5 (+1)
*Murrindindi (northeast regional Vic): 4
*Wellington (eastern regional Vic): 3
*Horsham (western regional Vic): 2
*Bass Coast (southeast regional Vic): 2
*Glenelg (western regional Vic): 2 (-2)
*Ararat (western regional Vic): 1
*Campaspe (northern regional Vic): 1
*Central Goldfields (central regional Vic): 1
*East Gippsland (eastern regional Vic): 1
*Golden Plains (western regional Vic): 1
*Mansfield (northeast regional Vic): 1
*Mildura (northwest regional Vic): 1
*Baw Baw (eastern regional Vic): 1 (-2)
Interstate: 9 (+6)
Unknown: 140 (+19)
Regional total: 236 (-11)
TOTAL: 4012 (-281)
*Denotes regional Victorian LGAs
Source: Victorian Department of Health and Human Services
READ MORE: Ruby Princess story splits ABC
Rachel Baxendale 5.40pm: Cancer centre ward linked to cases
A ward at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne is among new sites linked to coronavirus cases in Victoria on Sunday.
Victoria’s Department of Health and Human Services has not offered any further information, other than to say it is investigating cases linked to the site.
Other significant Victorian clusters with new coronavirus cases on Friday include:
● 211 cases have been linked to Bertocchi Smallgoods in Thomastown, in Melbourne’s north, up from 209 cases on Thursday;
● 158 cases have been linked to JBS abattoir in Brooklyn, in Melbourne’s west, up from 156 on Friday;
● 35 cases have been linked to Werribee Mercy Hospital, in Melbourne’s outer southwest, up from 28 on August 15;
● 35 cases have been linked to Ausfresh food manufacturing in Broadmeadows, in Melbourne’s outer north, up from 34 on Saturday;
● 21 cases have been linked to Vawdrey Australia truck manufacturing in Dandenong South, in Melbourne’s outer southeast. This is the first time the Health Department has publicly mentioned this outbreak;
The department is also investigating cases linked to the following settings:
● Princeton View Aged care in Brighton, in Melbourne’s bayside southeast;
● Estia Health aged-care facility in Keysborough, in Melbourne’s southeast;
● A ward at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne’s inner north;
● Western Private Hospital in Footscray, in Melbourne’s inner west;
● The Laming racing stable in Cranbourne, in Melbourne’s outer southeast;
● The Channel 10 Studio in Docklands, after at least seven cases were linked to reality TV show The Masked Singer.
READ MORE: ‘Dr Common Sense’ kicks a Covid hornets nest
Rachel Baxendale 5.20pm: Worst aged-care clusters
As of Sunday, 1616 active cases of coronavirus have been linked to Victorian aged-care facilities, down from 1689 cases on Saturday.
Of Victoria’s 17 coronavirus deaths in the 24 hours to Friday, 11 were linked to aged-care facilities.
Of the 415 coronavirus deaths in the state since the pandemic began, 278 have been linked to aged-care facilities.
The largest aged-care clusters include:
● 210 cases linked to Heritage Care’s Epping Gardens facility in Melbourne’s north - up from 209 on Saturday. This includes more than 100 residents, 77 staff and 28 contacts;
● 193 cases linked to St Basil’s Homes for the Aged in Fawkner, in Melbourne’s north — the same number as Saturday. This includes more than 90 residents, 74 staff and 26 contacts;
● 158 cases linked to Estia Health in Ardeer, in Melbourne’s west — the same number as Saturday. This includes more than 50 residents, 76 staff and 31 contacts;
● 156 cases linked to BaptCare Wyndham Lodge in Werribee, in Melbourne’s outer southwest, up from 155 on Saturday. This includes more than 60 residents, 59 staff and 17 contacts;
● 133 cases linked to Kirkbrae Presbyterian Homes in Kilsyth, in Melbourne’s outer east — the same number as on Saturday. This includes more than 55 residents, 51 staff and 25 contacts;
● 115 cases linked to Cumberland Manor aged-care facility in Sunshine, in Melbourne’s west, up from 113 on Saturday. This includes more than 51 residents, 36 staff and 12 contacts;
● 114 cases linked to Twin Parks aged care in Reservoir, in Melbourne’s north, up from 112 on Saturday. This includes more than 65 residents, 34 staff and two contacts;
● 113 cases linked to Outlook Gardens aged-care facility in Dandenong North, in Melbourne’s outer southeast — the same number as on Saturday. This includes more than 40 residents, 55 staff and 16 contacts;
● 110 cases linked to Estia Health in Heidelberg, in Melbourne’s northeast — the same number as Saturday. This includes 29 residents, 57 staff and 24 contacts;
● 107 cases linked to Japara Goonawarra in Sunbury, in Melbourne’s outer northwest — the same number as Saturday. This includes more than 48 residents, 38 staff and 14 contacts;
There are also 57 active cases in residential disability accommodation in Victoria on Sunday, down from 63 on Saturday. This includes 13 residents and 44 staff.
READ MORE: As the young lose their jobs, should older workers be forced to retire?
AFP 4.55pm: Global death toll tops 800,000
The global death toll from the new coronavirus has surpassed 800,000, with numerous countries ramping up restrictions to battle an eruption of new cases.
Western Europe, particularly Spain, Italy Germany and France, has been hit with infection levels not seen in months, sparking fears of a fully-fledged second wave.
And in Asia, South Korea became the latest country to announce it would boost restrictions to try to stem a new outbreak, after largely bringing the virus under control.
Across the world, the number of deaths has doubled to just over 800,000 since June 6, with 100,000 fatalities in the past 17 days alone, while more than 23 million cases have been reported, according to a tally by the news service Agence France-Presse.
Latin America is the region the most affected, while more than half the global fatalities have been reported in the hardest-hit US, Brazil, Mexico and India.
The surging numbers come after the UN health agency said the world should be able to rein in the pandemic in less than two years.
World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus sought to draw favourable comparisons with the flu pandemic of 1918 which cost the lives of up to 50 million people.
“We have a disadvantage of globalisation, closeness, connectedness, but an advantage of better technology, so we hope to finish this pandemic before less than two years,” he said.
“(By) utilising the available tools to the maximum and hoping that we can have additional tools like vaccines, I think we can finish it in a shorter time than the 1918 flu.” The WHO also recommended children over 12 years old now wear masks in the same situations as adults as the use of face coverings helps stop the virus spread.
READ MORE
Rachel Baxendale 4.25pm: Hunt for source of 162 cases
Of Victoria’s 208 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, 46 have been linked to outbreaks, while the remaining 162 are under investigation.
Of 18,231 people who have had coronavirus in Victoria since the pandemic began, 13,708 have recovered as of Sunday — an increase of 469 since Saturday.
The number of cases in people from metropolitan Melbourne reached 16,674, with 1096 cases in regional Victoria. Men account for 8735 cases (48 per cent), with 9462 in women.
While the number of active cases in health workers fell by 138 in the 24 hours to Sunday, the total number of cases in health workers in Victoria since the pandemic began rose by 38 to 2693.
This means there were 38 new cases in health workers in the 24 hours to Sunday, but 176 recovered over the same period.
READ MORE: Virus twist: ‘The epidemic is changing’
Rachel Baxendale 3.55pm: ‘Survival payments’ to Vic firms hit $1.3bn
The Andrews government’s business support fund has paid out $1.3bn to 126,420 businesses across the state, but it remains unclear how many business owners are still waiting for payments.
Callers to Melbourne radio station 3AW last week said they had been told by Business Victoria that their small businesses may not receive payments until next month or October.
Under the expanded business support fund, businesses adversely affected by the coronavirus lockdown can apply for grants of up to $10,000 if they are in Melbourne or the Mitchell Shire, and $5000 if they are in other regional areas.
Mr Andrews described the grants as “survival payments” on Sunday.
Asked whether he had any statistics on the proportion of those who had applied for the payment who were still waiting to receive it, Mr Andrews said he did not have the information to hand.
“Those 126,420, those applications have been paid. If you want me to come back to you on are there others that in the system, I hadn’t heard that issue around having to wait,” he said.
“Let me chase that up. If we can come back to you with more information, we will.”
Mr Andrews said 24,968 Victorians had also received coronavirus worker support payments for workers who do not have sick leave and need to isolate while awaiting coronavirus test results.
The payment was previously worth $300 and was increased to $450 this month.
A total of $8.89m has been spent on providing these payments.
“That payment is a really important way that we can achieve that outcome that people can take the time off, still be paid and not be worse off at a very personal sense, but play a really important part in us tracking and tracing and ultimately defeating this virus,” Mr Andrews said.
READ MORE: Littleproud orders fresh Ruby Princess probe
Angie Raphael 3.25pm: Calls for Covid vaccine priority list
Australia must develop a distribution plan now for any potential COVID-19 vaccination to ensure it reaches the population quickly, the Australian Medical Association says.
AMA president Omar Khorshid said he was pleased to see efforts to fast-track a safe and effective vaccine were going well and the government planned to make it available to all Australians.
“The greatest challenge is likely to be accessing enough doses of an approved vaccine and we expect that it will take some time to provide enough vaccine for the whole population,” he said in a statement on Sunday.
“We need to develop a plan for a Therapeutics Goods Administrated endorsed vaccine to be distributed to at risk groups first, particularly the aged and those with other health conditions leaving them at increased risk.”
Frontline healthcare workers should also get early access to a vaccine, Dr Khorshid said.
The Federal Government has struck up a landmark agreement with AstraZeneca to manufacture one of the world’s most promising coronavirus vaccines being developed by Oxford University researchers.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said it ensured Australians would be among the first in the world to secure the safe jab as soon as early next year.
It will not be a compulsory vaccine, but Dr Khorshid predicted Australians would willingly queue to get the jab so they could get back to their pre-coronavirus lives.
“There are of course implementation issues yet to be tackled,” he said.
“We know there are often distribution problems in getting the influenza vaccination distributed on time and to those who need it first.
“To ensure Australia is ready and able to get a vaccination out, be it the Oxford vaccination or any other vaccine approved for use by Australian authorities, we need a national COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan.”
READ MORE: Immunity breakthrough a shot in the arm
Rachel Baxendale 2.47pm: I’ll lead Labor to the election, Andrews insists
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews says he will lead Labor to the 2022 state election, amid debate within Labor over who should succeed him.
The Australian’s Victorian associate editor John Ferguson reported on Thursday that powerbrokers were openly discussing Mr Andrews’s future as his government faces scrutiny over hotel quarantine failures which lead to Victoria’s deadly second wave of coronavirus.
Mr Andrews will have been premier for six years in November, and Labor leader for a decade.
Asked on Sunday whether he would contest the next election, due in November 2022, as Premier, Mr Andrews said:
“Yes, I will.”
“This honour, this job, is a great honour, it’s a great privilege, and it’s something that I am 100 per cent committed to,” he said.
“There’s a lot more that needs to be built. There’s a lot more that needs to be done, and I’m honoured to lead a big team, and a team that’s all about getting the job done.”
READ MORE: Labor MP’s plot Daniel Andrews’ succession
Rachel Baxendale 2.20pm: Fines for ‘just chilling’ in Melbourne’s west
Five men who told police they were “just out chilling” in a car in the northwestern Melbourne suburb of Airport West, and a man who said he was visiting a friend because he “got bored at home” were among 199 people issued with fines by Victoria Police for breaching coronavirus restrictions in the 24 hours to Sunday.
Police said the man was from the western suburb of Altona Meadows, in the local government area of Hobsons Bay, and told police he was aware of the restrictions when he was pulled over in the neighbouring LGA of Brimbank.
There was a net increase of three COVID-19 cases in Hobson’s Bay on Saturday, to a total of 133.
Active cases in Brimbank fell by 23 to 378 — the second-highest caseload of any LGA in Victoria.
Others fined by police included two women and three men drinking together on the Mornington Peninsula, southeast of Melbourne, who told police “we are idiots” when asked why they had breached the chief health officer’s orders.
Police said another of those fined was a man seen leaving a petrol station in Glen Eira, in Melbourne’s southeast, told them he had just been buying chocolate for a friend with diabetes who had low blood sugar, but later admitted to lying and produced cigarettes he had just purchased.
The 199 fines included 20 $200 fines for failing to wear a face covering, and 73 $1652 fines for curfew breaches.
There were also 14 fines issued following 5,538 checks at vehicle checkpoints.
Police conducted 3869 spot checks on people at homes, businesses and public places in the 24 hours to Sunday, with a total of 316,136 spot checks conducted since March 21.
Home visits for purposes other than work or essential caregiving purposes have been banned in Melbourne since all metropolitan LGAs went into Stage Three restrictions on July 9.
The same restrictions have applied in all of regional Victoria since August 2 — the same day Melbourne went into Stage Four, which saw an 8pm to 5am curfew in place and all exercise and shopping limited to within a 5km radius of people’s homes, with work and medical care otherwise the only legitimate reasons for leaving home.
Mackenzie Scott 1.45pm: Rush to track kids released from Qld prison
Queensland Health authorities are scrambling to track down dozens of children released from a Brisbane Youth Detention Centre which has emerged as a new virus cluster.
Testing is underway within the facility at Wacol, south of Brisbane, to assess the extent of the outbreak, but contact tracers have also been deployed to find the “dozens” of youths released since the end of July.
While some tests of the children within the facility are yet to be conducted or returned, the state’s chief health officer Jeannette Young said she was more concerned by those out in the community.
“I’m actually more concerned about the children who have left the centre,” Dr Young said.
“Police have done a brilliant job over the last 24 hours going out across the state to find any of the youth who have been discharged from that facility since the 22nd of July.”
Police have tracked down half of the released youths “across the state”, with deputy commissioner Steve Gollschewski saying he is aiming to have those outstanding found today. None of the children who have been tracked down have refused tests.
Staff of the Youth Detention Centre have recorded negative 202 results, with more than 100 of the young people also confirmed free of the virus. No child held in the facility has tested positive. Nine cases have been linked to the cluster to date, including several staff and close contacts.
Youth Justice director-general Bob Gee said the Wacol Youth Detention Centre would swap in an entirely new workforce, with procedures put in place to ensure the children are able to go about the facility in a safe way. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is being used by the new staff.
“The young people are moving in and out of their cells in a very structured and targeted way so that they’re not just in their rooms,” Mr Gee said.
About 500 staff worked at the centre, with some having worked elsewhere since the outbreak began.
READ MORE: Queensland prisons move to Stage Two restrictions
Rachel Baxendale 1.15pm: Victoria’s mystery cases top 3,920
Victoria has now had 3,920 cases where contact tracers have been unable to establish a source of infection — all but 302 of which have occurred since July 1.
This represents an increase of 82 cases since Saturday, and does not include most of the 741 cases which remained under investigation on Saturday (this figure is not yet available for Sunday), and the proportion of Sunday’s 208 new cases which are yet to be linked to known outbreaks.
#Covid19VicData for August 23, 2020.
— VicGovDHHS (@VicGovDHHS) August 22, 2020
There have been 208 new cases of #coronavirus (#COVID19) detected in Victoria in the last 24 hours, and 17 deaths.
We send our condolences to all of those affected.
More information will be available later today. pic.twitter.com/CP0Kww6m3v
The total number of active cases in Victoria is now 4012 - down 281 since Saturday.
The number of active cases in health workers is 536, down 138 since Saturday.
READ MORE: Steve Waterson — We’re paying for an epidemic of stupidity
Mackenzie Scott 12.45pm: Only half of Melbourne properties selling at auction
Half of the few properties taken to auction in Melbourne last week sold under the hammer, as withdrawals continued to weigh heavily on the success rate.
Melbourne recorded a preliminary auction clearance rate of 50.3 per cent from 223 properties as the city approached the end of week three of lockdown, according to property researcher CoreLogic found. Nervousness from sellers and the inability for buyers to inspect properties in-person saw numbers fall far lower than the same time last year (77 per cent clearance from 662 homes).
Meanwhile, Sydney continued to produce strong numbers, with early figures showing 71.9 per cent of the 632 properties taken to market sold. Volumes were lightly up on the same week last year, when 503 properties achieved a clearance rate of 78.1 per cent.
The national preliminary clearance rate for last week hit 64.7 per cent from 1,082 properties.
CoreLogic said the last few weeks have seen both the clearance rate and number of homes taken to auction remain relatively steady each week.
Read the full story here.
Mackenzie Scott 12.10pm: 43 Queensland venues may pose transmission risk
Queensland Health has issued a list of over 40 venues attended by virus positive people with a message: anyone with symptoms should get tested.
Stretching as far back as August 9, the list details a string of 43 locations, including restaurants, gyms, and shopping centres in Brisbane’s south west and Logan regions.
Bunnings and OfficeWorks at Browns Plains, Ikea at Slacks Creek and Westfield Carindale are just some of the locations identified. One gym, Village Square Anytime Fitness at Browns Plains, was visited several times.
Restrictions were reintroduced yesterday after a jump in the number of new cases to nine, which shrunk the number of people allowed at households and outdoor gatherings to no more than 10. Businesses are unaffected so long as they adhere to a COVID safe plan.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said there were no plans at this stage to implement further social distancing measures.
The state’s chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young said that it makes sense so many locations are on the list due to limited instances of community transmission until recently.
“These people — apporotaitly so as we didn’t have any community transmission — were just out and about living their normal lives and people move around,” Dr Young said.
“Anyone who lives in Greater Brisbane... with any symptoms at all should come forward immediately and get tested.”
Queensland currently has 16 active cases, with nine linked to the youth detention centre cluster. Five people are currently in hospital but none are in the ICU. Two new virus cases were identified overnight linked to the new cluster, including a woman and a young boy.
Health minister Steven Miles said 5,388 tests were conducted yesterday.
“We need to be testing a lot more people than we did in the last 24 hours,” he said.
The full list can be accessed here.
READ MORE: ‘Dangerous’ to think masks will stop virus
Rachel Baxendale 12pm: Victoria records 1.0 per cent positive test rate
Victoria’s 208 new cases in the 24 hours to Sunday come after 20,747 tests were processed over the same period, working out to a 1.0 per cent positive test rate.
This compares with an August low of 0.85 per cent on Saturday, from 182 new cases and 21,346 tests processed, and the record of 3.73 per cent from 671 new cases and 18,000 tests processed on August 2.
There have now been 2,091,328 tests processed in Victoria since the pandemic began.
READ MORE: Dr Common Sense holds officials to account
Rachel Baxendale 11.40am: Victoria’s virus cases top 18,000
Victoria’s 208 new cases in the 24 hours to Sunday have brought the total number of cases in the state since the pandemic began to 18,231.
The 17 deaths in the 24 hours to Sunday have brought the state’s coronavirus death toll to 415, all but 20 of which have occurred since July 4.
The most recent deaths include those of a man and a woman in their 60s, three men in their 70s, four women and six men in their 80s, and two men in their 90s.
Of the 17 deaths, 11 are linked to aged care facilities.
There are 585 people in Victorian hospitals with coronavirus on Sunday, including 32 in intensive care, of whom 21 are on ventilators.
This compares with 610 people in hospital on Saturday, including 36 in intensive care and 22 on ventilators.
READ MORE: Survival at stake in shopping centre showdown
Adeshola Ore 11.05am: NSW records four new cases, one linked to restaurant
NSW has reported four new coronavirus cases, with two locally acquired.
One case is a household contact of a case linked to the Apollo Restaurant cluster.
Another case is a hotel security guard that was reported yesterday. The source of this infection is currently under investigation.
Two were reported in returned overseas travellers in hotel quarantine.
The state conducted 26,480 tests reported in the 24-hour reporting period, compared with 30,810 in the previous period.
Meanwhile, NSW Health is investigating how a second security guard who worked at Sydney Harbour Marriott Hotel contracted coronavirus.
The health authority said there was no additional risk to guests and staff at the hotel.
“Contact tracing and investigations into the source of infection of the new case, including potential links to the previously reported case, are continuing,” it said in a statement.
NSW Health is now treating 90 active cases of the virus, including seven patients in intensive care and five requiring ventilation.
NSW Health has added two new venues to its list of locations visited by a COVID-positive person.
People who attended the following venues at these times are urged to monitor their symptoms and get tested and isolate for two weeks if they present:
- Westfield Shopping Centre Burwood from 6-7pm on Thursday, 20 August, including Kmart and Woolworths from 6.30-7pm
- Service NSW Burwood 2.30-3pm on Friday, 21 August
READ MORE: Terry McCrann — From one debacle to the next
Rachel Baxendale 10.40am: Signs of lockdown fatigue are emerging
Signs of lockdown fatigue emerged in Victoria last weekend, according to mobility data released by the Andrews government.
The data compared the week of August 10-14 with August 2-7, and the weekends of August 15-16 with August 8-9.
All metropolitan public transport modes showed increased activity 15-16 August compared with the previous weekend.
However, weekday activity was more restrained with notable drops in public transport and road use during 10-14 August compared with 3-7 August.
All but two local government areas saw less weekday movement 10-14 August compared with 3-7 August. Only Moorabool in western central Victoria and Colac-Otway, in Victoria’s southwest, increased.
Most metropolitan LGAs experienced a rise in Saturday public transport use.
Port Phillip, in Melbourne’s bayside inner south, stood out with large increases on 15 August compared to 8 August.
Train and tram use in Port Phillip were both up 37 per cent, and bus use 25 per cent.
Senior Myki card holders contributed to the jump in weekend public transport use, with 20 per cent more using the system 15-16 August compared to the previous weekend.
Student use increased 11 per cent and full-fare patronage two per cent.
The 8pm-5am curfews in metropolitan Melbourne affected weekday public transport, reducing train use across 10-14 August by 10 per cent, bus patronage seven per cent and tram use three per cent compared to 3-7 August. The curfew came into effect on August 2.
Stage 4 metropolitan exercise restrictions have seen altered exercise habits.
Visits to parks increased 12 per cent overall, with Frankston (in Melbourne’s southeast), and Banyule and Manningham (in Melbourne’s northeast) all experiencing close to 30 per cent jumps 10-14 August from 3-7 August.
Afternoon recreational bike-riding rose 30 per cent overall from the previous week.
READ MORE: Return to the office, not worth the risk
Richard Ferguson 10.15am: Littleproud orders new Ruby Princess probe
Agriculture Minister David Littleproud has asked his inspector general to investigate whether his department acted properly during the Ruby Princess debacle, but maintained NSW Health was ultimately responsible.
A special commission led by barrister Brett Walker SC has found the NSW government’s health expert panel was ultimately to blame for letting COVID-19 infected passengers off the ill-fated cruise ship.
But questions remain over the role of Federal Agriculture Department agents, and particularly claims they they were responsible for a “Travellers with Illness” check list.
Mr Littleproud said he would pursue anything that emerges about his department’s role in the Ruby Princess, but reiterated NSW Health were the ones who advised biosecurity to clear the ship.
“I’m very sympathetic to the 28 families that have lost loved ones out of this. And the Australian Government is sorry for any loss of life during this COVID-1,” Mr Littleproud told ABC News.
.@David_Speers asks @D_LittleproudMP whether he will apologise for his department's role in the Ruby Princess debacle.
— Insiders ABC (@InsidersABC) August 22, 2020
"We are working off the Walker inquiry that quite clearly ... found that it was the failure of NSW Health expert panel that caused this." pic.twitter.com/9YZqxfYbC6
“But we are working off the Walker inquiry that quite clearly, in its recommendations and its findings, found quite clearly that it was the failure of NSW Health expert panel that caused this. That they were in charge of human health.
“And that if there is anything that comes forward - let me make this clear - I will be pursuing it vigorously. And in fact, I have asked the Inspector-General of Biosecurity to overview this process ... And the department secretary looks very, very closely at the department and anything else that may be gleaned out of this.
“This is something we should learn but we should not be prosecuting people or individuals or departments that have done no wrong and have not been found to do any wrong at this point in time, but I’m still open.”
READ MORE: The litany of errors behind Ruby Princess debacle
Rachel Baxendale 9.57am: Victorian cases hit 208, 17 deaths
Victoria’s number of new coronavirus cases has risen above 200 for the first time in three days, with 208 new cases in the 24 hours to Sunday.
However, the overall downward trend is continuing, with the seven day daily average falling from 229 on Saturday to 218 on Sunday on what is the eighth straight day of case numbers below 300.
There have been 17 deaths in the 24 hours to Sunday, bringing Victoria’s coronavirus death toll to 415, all but 20 of which have occurred since July 4.
#Covid19VicData for August 23, 2020.
— VicGovDHHS (@VicGovDHHS) August 22, 2020
There have been 208 new cases of #coronavirus (#COVID19) detected in Victoria in the last 24 hours, and 17 deaths.
We send our condolences to all of those affected.
More information will be available later today. pic.twitter.com/CP0Kww6m3v
Sunday’s 208 cases follow 182 on Saturday and 179 on Friday.
The seven day daily average of 218 is the lowest since July 14, almost six weeks ago.
It follows the peak of 725 new cases and a seven day daily average of 573 on August 5.
Michael McKenna 9.35am: Young boy among growing Brisbane cluster
Queensland has recorded two new cases of COVID-19 from a cluster that emerged out of the Brisbane Youth Detention Centre and forced new restrictions in the south-east of the state in the past 24 hours.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the two new cases, which includes a young boy, takes the total number of confirmed coronavirus infections from the detention centre to nine.
Authorities are still trying to determine the sources of the outbreak in the centre, with testing showing that, so far, none of the more than 150 detainees have been found to have the virus.
All nine of the people with the virus either work at the centre or are related to the estimated 500 staff.
The cluster, first detected with a 77-year-old female supervisor on Thursday, triggered new restrictions on Saturday, with limits on outdoor or indoor gatherings of 10 people and lock downs on aged care facilities.
The new restrictions do not involve any new limits on cafes, bars or restaurants with a Covid-safe plans.
“This is going to be tough on a lot of families,” Ms Palaszczuk said about the lockdowns.
“As soon as we can lift those restrictions, we will.”
Ms Palaszczuk said she had also cancelled a planned sitting of the cabinet next week in Cairns.
With Mackenzie Scott
READ MORE: China shakes off season of doom
Anthony Piovesan 8.55am: Couple slugged $59k for cancelled trip
A Melbourne couple have been slugged nearly $59,000 in cancellation fees after their dream European cruise was called off because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Scenic Australia denied Michael Butler and Melinda Manley’s request for a full refund this week after their May 15 trip was cancelled 42 days out.
Correspondence seen by NCA NewsWire showed the luxury cruise and travel operator was only prepared to refund the Altona couple $9439, while their remaining $58,877 was deemed the “total cancellation fee”.
Scenic Australia did offer future travel credit for 2021 and 2022, but Mr Butler said his partner, a frontline healthcare worker, could not travel so long as COVID-19 remained a global threat, and could not take up the offer.
Scenic Australia then directed Mr Butler to his travel insurance provider instead.
“I’m 67 years old and have never been overseas in my life, this was something I’ve been saving up for for years and years,” Mr Butler said.
“It’s the most absurd cancellation fee I’ve ever come across – we entered into this agreement in nothing but good faith and Scenic haven’t showed us any good faith in return.”
READ MORE: Can the cruise industry recover? It’s certainly trying...
Anthony Piovesan 8.20am: Outbreaks linked to two more Melbourne hospitals
The Department of Health is investigating new coronavirus outbreaks at two Melbourne hospitals.
There are COVID-19 cases at Dandenong Hospital, and Cabrini Hospital in Malvern, but the DHHS could not confirm how many infections across the two sites in a detailed list of outbreaks released on Saturday afternoon.
A volatile outbreak at the Royal Melbourne Hospital Royal Park campus continues to grow with active cases soaring to 155.
It comes after the state recorded 182 new infections overnight, the second day in a row where Victoria has seen new daily COVID-19 cases below 200.
Chief medical officer Brett Sutton said he expected numbers to fall below 150 next week.
“It’s great to see two days in a row where cases are under 200,” he told reporters on Saturday morning.
“There’s a decrease in the number of people being hospitalised, in ICU and people ventilated so the overall trend is positive and next week if we carry on like this I expect to see numbers below 150.”
READ MORE: Chris Kenny — Leaders spruik their delusion to the nation
Dow Jones 7.50am: Wine makers hit by 14-week Covid booze bans
South Africa’s $1.5 billion wine industry is reeling after a series of pandemic-induced shocks, including successive bans on the sale of alcohol totaling some 14 weeks.
The country’s Chardonnays and Cabernet Sauvignons have become household staples world-wide, and wineries centered in the rolling farmlands around the Western Cape are among South Africa’s most successful and lucrative industries. As alcohol sales resumed nationwide this week, many of these businesses have emerged battered, and some might not survive.
The wine industry in South Africa — the world’s eighth largest producer and exporter — employs about 290,000 people, while the broader liquor industry accounts for roughly 1 million jobs. Liquor sales and taxes typically account for about 3% of South Africa’s $351 billion economy and 10% of its total tax revenue, according to the South African Liquor Brand Owners Association, which represents manufacturers and distributors in the liquor industry.
But the measures taken by the ruling African National Congress government to halt the spread of the coronavirus have dealt twin blows: two bans on booze salees — along with shorter bans on wine exports — and the closing of South Africa’s borders, since the wine industry’s revenue is closely intertwined with tourism.
READ MORE: You don’t have to be a wine drinker to enjoy this
Tom Whipple 7.25am: Pandemic is easing, but no one really knows why
At the beginning, when beds were full and deaths common, doctors were still trying to understand the best treatment for coronavirus. “In March, if you came in and had trouble breathing, you’d be put straight on a ventilator,” says Alison Pittard, dean of the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine.
This was what, in frantic Zoom calls to Italy and China, they had been told was the best approach. The learning curve since then has been steep.
These days, Dr Pittard and her colleagues are more careful about who is put on ventilators, lest invasive treatment causes more problems. They also have a drug, dexamethasone, that can significantly improve survival among those who do reach ventilators.
It would be easy to claim that we are seeing the results of this. In Britain, even as recorded cases rise, deaths are not following. In the western world daily deaths and death rates are falling.
But Dr Pittard is not prepared to take credit on behalf of her colleagues. “Yes, the way we manage patients has changed,” she says. “But I don’t think that has had much impact on mortality.” Some statisticians have argued that the effect is an illusion, created by more testing. She disagrees, at least to the extent that more tests explain everything. “Something does appear to have changed. We don’t know for certain what that is at the moment.”
She has a theory though. It may not be that the disease has altered, or that treatment has. It could simply be that the people getting it have.
Read the full story here.
Christine Kellett 7am: PPE graft ‘actually murder’, says WHO chief
World Health Organisation chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has branded corrupt practices around the distribution of personal protective equipment for health workers “murder”, amid reports of hoarding in South Africa.
Asked about Covid-related corruption scandals that have hit Cyril Ramaphosa’s government — including claims of hoarding food donations and PPE purchases not reaching hospital workers — the WHO director general did not hold back.
“Any type of corruption is unacceptable,” Mr Tedros told a virtual news conference.
“However, corruption related to PPE... for me it’s actually murder. Because if health workers work without PPE, we’re risking their lives. And that also risks the lives of the people they serve.
“So it’s criminal and it’s murder and it has to stop.”
READ MORE: Whites balmed as African poor pay price
Christine Kellett 6.30am: The Masked Singer shut down amid outbreak on set
Network 10’s hit show The Masked Singer has been shut down over an outbreak of coronavirus on its Melbourne set.
“Production of The Masked Singer has been immediately suspended as a result of several crew members receiving a positive test result for COVID-19,” a Network 10 spokesman has been quoted as saying.
“The health and safety of the community, and our staff and production partners is our number one priority.
“The entire production team, including the masked singers, the host and panellists are now in self-isolation. They are all being monitored closely and are in constant contact with medical authorities.”
Dannii Minogue, Dave Hughes, Jackie O and Urzila Carlson are among those now in self-isolation.
The Herald Sun reports seven dancers on the show have tested positive.
READ MORE: Glorious sound, deadly threat
Christine Kellett 6am: COVID linked to Sydney teen suicide cluster
Nine students from high schools on Sydney’s north shore have died in a suspected suicide cluster that officials have linked to the impact of coronavirus.
The Daily Telegraph has launched a campaign for mental health resources for young people on the back of the deaths — mostly students in Year 12 — citing NSW Health figures showing an 11 per cent rise in demand for psychological help in August.
“Just when the community had been through enough this year, we are dealing with this tragic loss of young life,” Hornsby State Liberal MP Matt Kean was quoted as saying.
“COVID-19 is making it harder for young people who are unable to get the support and camaraderie from their friends that they would get in a normal year.”
If you or anyone you know is struggling, call Lifeline 13 11 14 or Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800
READ MORE: PM promises to prioritise suicide prevention in pandemic
Emily Ritchie, Sarah Elks 5am: CMO confident Queensland will contain outbreak
The country’s top medical officer is confident Queensland’s swift response and implementation of new restrictions will help contain a growing coronavirus outbreak in Brisbane.
The state recorded nine new cases on Saturday, six of those connected to a growing cluster at Brisbane’s Youth Detention Centre in Wacol, west of the city.
Four of those were workers at the centre and two were close contacts. There are now seven cases related to the outbreak and 15 active cases of the virus in the state.
The Palaszczuk government acted quickly, locking down nursing homes and disability accommodation and limiting gatherings in Greater Brisbane to 10 people effective immediately.
Gatherings outside of Greater Brisbane have also been limited to 30.
There are real concerns infected staff may have spread the virus to suburbs such as Carindale, North Ipswich, Marsden, Bundamba, Forest Lake and Springwood, where one infected person also did work at a local school and another visited Ipswich Hospital. Contact tracing and testing of all 500 staff at the centre is currently under way.
The government said it had been planning for such an outbreak and expected infections to increase over the coming days.
New fever testing clinics were being opened across the south-east and Queenslanders were being urged to get tested.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Professor Paul Kelly said he was “very confident” of his colleagues in Queensland who had acted quickly enough to make a difference.
He said liaison officers from the federal government and Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission would now be stationed in Queensland’s health emergency control centre as an added precaution.
“We don’t have any outbreaks in aged care right now, but with that cluster of cases, we believe there is a need to really think and work closely together to prevent that happening,” Professor Kelly said.
“Will look to provide masks where it is needed and look to increase and improve those visits to reinforce infection control.”
The governmental response to aged care outbreaks was discussed in the national cabinet on Friday, Professor Kelly said, with all state governments agreeing to promote new measures to prepare for and prevent future outbreaks.
Meanwhile Victoria is beginning to map a path out of stage four lockdown, as the state recorded it’s second-lowest case numbers in five weeks.
With 182 new cases and 13 deaths reported on Saturday, Premier Daniel Andrews has insisted the state is getting to the other side.
“There should be a sense of hope and a sense of being positive about these numbers,” Mr Andrews told reporters, earlier saying the days where measures are rolled back “are not too far off”.
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Professor Brett Sutton said Victoria is on a trend to hit less than 150 new daily coronavirus cases next week, but testing numbers needed to remain high.
“It’s great to see two days in a row under 200, certainly we are trending down,” Professor Sutton said.
Read more: Sailors at centre of new QLD virus cases
Amos Aikman 12.15am: Pandemic to blame for poor results: Mills
Territory Alliance leader Terry Mills has blamed the coronavirus pandemic for his fledgling party’s disappointing result at the Northern Territory election.
With more than half the votes counted in his Greater Darwin seat of Blain, Mr Mills trailed both the Labor and Country Liberal candidates but declined to concede defeat.
The former CLP chief minister, who took government in a landslide in 2012 only to be knifed by his colleagues seven months later, left parliament entirely, then returned as an independent before forming Territory Alliance late last year.
Mr Mills had predicted his new political vehicle could win government outright. But the counts so far suggest he and another TA incumbent, Jeff Collins, will be out of the parliament. A third member, Robyn Lambley, is fighting for her seat. Territory Alliance may make one gain, in the seat of Katherine.
Find The Australian’s full coverage of the Northern Territory election here.
AFP 12.10am: Chinese Super League opens stadium to fans
The Chinese Super League permitted spectators on Saturday for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic, with former Chelsea star Oscar marking the occasion by hitting the winner.
In a significant development for football in China, where the virus emerged last year, up to 2,000 people were allowed to attend the clash in Suzhou between title rivals Shanghai SIPG and Beijing Guoan.
Football chiefs in China plan to allow a restricted number of spectators at selected future matches as part of a very gradual reopening.
However, fans must adhere to strict rules to prevent an outbreak of infections. Beijing and SIPG fans were bussed to the stadium in Suzhou, had to take a coronavirus test in the preceding week, and were sat one metre (three feet) apart. Rules stated spectators had to wear face masks throughout, but officials appeared to have relaxed the policy given the 30-degree-Celsius (86 F) weather.
The CSL became one of the earliest sporting victims of the coronavirus when its February 22 start was indefinitely postponed.
The league finally began on July 25, behind closed doors and with players kept in two bio-secure “bubbles” in Suzhou, near Shanghai, and the northeastern city of Dalian.
The 16 teams have been split into two groups, one in each city.
Reported coronavirus infections spiked in China in February but have since plummeted, allowing domestic sports to tentatively return.
Read more: China rolls out mass testing in Xinjiang
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