Category Archives: Australia news

Coronavirus live news: UK adds France to quarantine list from 4am BST on Saturday

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UK move takes effect as of 4am BST on Saturday; Pandemic has killed three quarters of a million people; Germany case jump shows ‘unsettling trend’; Iraq reports record daily Covid-19 cases

Britain’s decision to impose a 14-day quarantine on all arrivals from France will lead to a reciprocal measure, French junior minister for European affairs Clément Beaune said late on Thursday.

“A British decision that we regret and which will lead to a measure of reciprocity, hoping that things will return to normal as soon as possible,” Beaune said on Twitter at midnight.

Une décision britannique que nous regrettons et qui entraînera une mesure de réciprocité, en espérant un retour à la normale le plus rapidement possible @Djebbari_JB https://t.co/6pA0qDQun6

La France regrette la décision du Royaume Uni et appliquera des mesures de réciprocité dans le champ des transports. J’ai dit à mon homologue @grantshapps notre volonté d’harmoniser les protocoles sanitaires pour assurer un haut niveau de protection des deux côtés de la Manche. https://t.co/bH7LkqD3LB

Hi, Helen Sullivan joining you now.

I’ll be bringing you the latest for the next few hours. Get in touch on Twitter @helenrsullivan or via email: helen.sullivan@theguardian.com with questions, comments and news from your part of the world.

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Coronavirus live news: Auckland back in lockdown; Paris marathon cancelled as cases rise

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France cancels marathon as cases pick up; WHO warns displacement of people in Beirut risks accelerating spread; four new cases in Auckland

Jordan will close its only land trade border crossing with Syria for a week after a spike in Covid-19 cases coming from its northern neighbour, officials said.

They said the interior minister’s decision to close the main Jaber border crossing would come into effect on Thursday morning.

Britain’s NatWest is cutting at least 500 jobs across its retail business and closing one of its remaining offices in London as banks press on with cost-cutting in the face of a wave of expected loan losses due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The state-backed bank is finalising a voluntary redundancy round targeting cutting 550 full-time equivalent roles across its branches and ‘premier banking’ premium service, union Unite told Reuters.

Tens of thousands of people working for banks have risen to the challenge that the pandemic created. The banks’ response should not be a repeat of the austerity measures that we saw after the financial crisis.

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Disability care agency banned after degrading death of Adelaide woman Ann Marie Smith

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NDIS quality commission says Integrity Care SA is being banned for a number of contraventions following an investigation into the ‘appalling circumstances’ of Smith’s death

The disability care provider for an Adelaide woman with cerebral palsy who died in “disgusting and degrading” conditions earlier this year has been banned from operating under the NDIS.

The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission on Wednesday announced it was revoking the registration of the company responsible for caring for 54-year-old woman Anne Marie Smith before her death in what police described as deeply shocking conditions in April.

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Canberra residents stuck at NSW-Victoria border given four days to travel home to ACT

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New South Wales relents on decision to prevent Canberrans transiting through the state after six-day standoff

Canberrans stuck at the Victorian border have been given four days to return home, after New South Wales relented on its decision to prevent them transiting through the state.

The New South Wales health minister Brad Hazzard said a resolution had been reached on Wednesday, and that drivers must take a direct route and only travel between 9am and 3pm.

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Covid live news: Lebanon hits record daily cases after blast; Russian vaccine must follow safety procedure, says WHO

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Coronavirus updates: New Zealand records first new local cases in 102 days; global deaths likely to pass 750,000 this week, says WHO

As we reported earlier, the Dutch health minister said he plans to introduce mandatory home quarantine for people identified by local authorities as having been in close contact with somebody infected with coronavirus, and for travellers returning from high-risk countries.

Health minister Hugo de Jonge said in a letter to lawmakers that mandatory quarantine could be imposed if people refuse to isolate voluntarily.

Germany has extended a partial travel warning for Spain to the capital of Madrid and the Basque region due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the foreign ministry said on Tuesday.

The foreign ministry said it was warning against any unnecessary tourist trips to both regions because of a rising number of new infections and local restrictions put in place to contain the spread of coronavirus.

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Where can you be safe in this world? Maybe we’re asking the wrong question | Jane Rawson

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The overarching project of my life has been making myself safe. But what is the point if everyone else is drowning and burning and starving?

  • This is part of a series of essays by Australian writers responding to the challenges of 2020

I am descended from people who factor a flat tyre into a drive to the airport. I own a personal, portable water filter, just in case. I am someone who patrols her boundaries. I am a list writer, a timetable checker.

The overarching project of my life has been making myself safe. No alarms; no surprises. It has become legend in my family that, at age 11, I ruined a holiday by demanding we move out of our accommodation at the foot of what everyone told me was a dormant volcano, because I thought it was too dangerous. (The volcano did erupt, on my 35th birthday.)

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Downfall: BP worker sacked for Hitler meme wins $200,000 in compensation

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BP ordered to pay Western Australia oil refinery worker for lost wages, after his parody of bosses got him fired

An oil refinery worker who was sacked for creating a Hitler parody of his bosses has been awarded $200,000 in compensation.

The employee, a technician on a BP refinery in Western Australia, was sacked after he used an oft-parodied scene from the 2004 film Downfall by Oliver Hirschbiegel about the final days of Hitler and Nazi Germany to depict his bosses during a tense wage negotiation.

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Global report: coronavirus cases pass 20m as WHO points to ‘green shoots of hope’

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US considers blocking infected citizens returning; Australian outbreak trends down; Singapore economy plunges 43%

Nearly five months to the day since the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic, Covid-19 infections have passed 20 million cases. In acknowledging the milestone, the health body’s chief warned against despair, saying if the virus could be suppressed effectively, “we can safely open up societies”.

Global cases reached one million at the start of April. By 22 May, there were 5 million cases. That figure had doubled to 10 million cases by the end of June, and, seven weeks later, it had doubled again to 20 million infections.

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Australia’s state by state coronavirus lockdown rules and restrictions explained

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What are the restrictions within Victoria and the border closures with NSW and Queensland? How far can I travel, and how many people can I have over at my house? Untangle Australia’s Covid-19 laws and guidelines with our guide

Australians had been slowly emerging from Covid-19 lockdowns since the federal government announced a three-stage plan in May to ease restrictions across the country, but from 8 July the Melbourne metropolitan area and Mitchell shire immediately to the north returned to a stage three lockdown for six weeks.

After consistently high case numbers despite the lockdown, the Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, announced further restrictions for the state. From 2 August, metropolitan Melbourne entered a six-week stage four lockdown, while a stage three lockdown took effect across regional Victoria and Mitchell shire from 6 August.

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Global report: Covid cases worldwide near 20 million as Australia suffers deadliest day

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Cases in Britain rise over 1,000 a day for first time since June; one in every 65 Americans has tested positive; US health secretary praises Taiwan

Five months since the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus crisis a global pandemic, the number of Covid cases globally is nearing 20m, with almost 730,000 known deaths.

The current number of confirmed infections stands at 19,792,519, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, with total new cases daily averaging more than 250,000.

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Coronavirus live news: Greece ‘formally’ in second wave, says expert, as WHO warns Europe to react fast

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World Health Organization says it has received just 10% of funds it needs for Covid fight

India has registered a record 1,007 fatalities in the past 24 hours as new coronavirus infections surged by 62,064 cases, the Associated Press reports.

The health ministry said the total fatalities reached 44,386 on Monday. The number of confirmed cases reported so far are 2,215,074. At least 634,935 patients were still undergoing treatment.

Concern is growing that a resurgence of coronavirus in Europe will lead to a “second wave” of uncoordinated border restrictions that will undermine the open borders on which the European Union is founded.

In a letter to national governments, seen by the Associated Press, the European commission warns that “while we must ensure that the EU is ready for possible resurgences of Covid-19 cases ... we should at the same time avoid a second wave of uncoordinated actions at the internal borders of the EU.”

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Australia weather: towns evacuated amid flash flooding warnings for NSW south coast and ACT

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SES orders parts of Moruya, Nowra and Captains Flat to evacuate as kayaker in Canberra dies and 400 calls for help come from Sydney and Blue Mountains

Several New South Wales south coast communities were on high alert on Monday morning as river levels continued to rise and towns evacuated.

The body of a kayaker was found in swollen river waters in southern Canberra on Sunday. He became separated from a group on the Murrumbidgee River near Canberra about 2pm on Sunday, after his boat became stuck under a bridge.

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Coronavirus live news: US nears 5m cases as Australian border closures ramp up

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US approaches horrific milestone; border restrictions tightened in Australian state of New South Wales; Brazil passes 100,000 deaths

Coatsworth is asked about the fatality rate in Australia. He says he hasn’t seen the data in the last week or two but Australia has generally been better than much of the rest of the world.

The reasons include the already high standard of Australian health care and in particular intensive care units and staff.

“But we’re also learning more and more. We’re applying new treatments and [a medication] that’s demonstrating in a recovery trial to decrease mortality. We have at our disposal... and our specialists that are backed up by the Australia New Zealand Intensive Care Society and are discussing the clinical treatment of patient whose are gravely ill with Covid-19 and how you ventilate them is a challenge and the contact of proning which is where you ventilate someone on their tummy, rather than on their back, has proven to be critical. The timing you do that.

Dr Nick Coatsworth, deputy chief medical officer in Australia is giving a national briefing.

Nationally in Australia there are 295 dead from Covid-19, and 658 currently hospitalised with 51 in intensive care.

It is not going to be acceptable for any single country to have the vaccine and Australia is joining with a number of different countries around the world through the initiative to ensure that any vaccine that is developed is available.

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Young people who withdraw super may be $100,000 worse off in retirement, Labor says

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Opposition steps up attacks on coronavirus support measure that allows people in financial distress to withdraw up to $20,000

Young people will bear the brunt of the Covid-19 economic crisis, Labor has said, as it estimates a 25-year-old who withdraws $20,000 from superannuation may be left up to $100,000 worse off in retirement.

The opposition is stepping up its attack on the government’s handling of the early access to superannuation scheme, which allows people dealing with the adverse economic effects of Covid-19 to withdraw up to $10,000 this financial year. People were also able to access up to $10,000 last financial year.

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One in 12 Australians drinking alcohol every day during coronavirus outbreak, survey finds

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Alcohol and Drug Foundation says one in 10 people report consuming more than 10 standard drinks per week

A new Alcohol and Drug Foundation survey has found one in 12 Australians have been drinking every day since the coronavirus outbreak began.

The foundation quizzed more than 1,000 people, with a concerning number reporting they were drinking more than usual.

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From the wreck of the pandemic we can salvage and resurrect an inner life | Nyadol Nyuon

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Covid gives us an opportunity to weigh up what truly belongs and what can be left back in the life before the plague

  • This is part of a series of essays by Australian writers responding to the challenges of 2020

In early March I flew to New Zealand through the busy Tullamarine airport. I returned to a country in lockdown. I had been to speak at the New Zealand festival of the arts held in Wellington. Life was normal. We moved freely: going out for drinks, eating at various restaurants, hugging friends and shaking hands. We even went to a club to dance. It was packed as sweaty, dancing bodies pumped into each other. We casually spoke about the spread of the coronavirus as it began to emerge as a potentially serious public health issue but the consequences and impact of the disease felt distant. It was still happening far away. It was not yet an issue to worry about or to change one’s plans to accommodate. At that time, such a reaction would have appeared exaggerated. The events that followed over the next few days were unimaginable.

At the festival, I had presented to a full room of a few hundred people; 24 hours later, that felt like a bygone era. By the time I landed in Melbourne, restrictions were in place and large gatherings had been banned. I went home and began my 14 days of isolation. It was difficult to keep up with the pace of change. In Victoria, events progressed to a state of emergency. Back in New Zealand, the country went into a nationwide lockdown. The world became a different place within weeks.

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Australia’s sheep left without shearers as Covid halts travel from New Zealand

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Nation is facing shortage of shearers for its 68 million sheep as hundreds are barred from taking their usual trip across the Tasman Sea

It’s a tradition that stretches back decades. Every year, hundreds of New Zealanders fly in to Australia for the spring shearing season – a huge mobilisation of workers essential to the success of the nation’s wool industry.

In dusty sheds on outback farms they join up with local shearers and, between them, relieve five million sheep of their fleeces over eight weeks.

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Coronavirus Australia: Victoria reports 466 new cases and 12 deaths, including second man in his 30s

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Victorian premier Daniel Andrews says number of mystery Covid-19 cases has risen by 130 as nine new infections announced in NSW

A man in his 30s and six aged care residents are among 12 new Victorian Covid-19 deaths that have taken Australia’s coronavirus death toll to 278.

On Saturday, the Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, announced a further 466 cases of coronavirus in the state. Andrews said the number of cases attributed to no known source had risen by 130 to 2,584.

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Families at Melbourne nursing home say staff testing was delayed after coronavirus case

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Staff at Estia’s Keilor Downs aged care home were tested four days after the company was told a worker had tested positive to Covid-19

Private sector aged care giant Estia is battling a third Covid-19 outbreak in Melbourne after two staff members and a resident tested positive at a facility in Keilor Downs.

The ASX-listed Estia is one of Australia’s largest providers and has been among the hardest hit by the pandemic in Melbourne, with two of its Victorian sites linked to 238 cases and both among the five largest aged care outbreaks in the state.

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Coronavirus live update Australia: Victoria reports 11 deaths and 450 new Covid cases, with 11 in NSW – latest news

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Australian Defence Force personnel to doorknock close contacts of confirmed cases in Victoria as Western Australia delays easing of restrictions. Follow live

McGowan describes the WA border case as “our war” with Clive Palmer.

He says that WA is disappointed that the Commonwealth did not support their submission to have a fresh trial.

McGowan also announces that the national cabinet today agreed on “a code of practice for the regular testing of interstate freight drivers”.

He says that new arrangements will come into place next week which means “any truck driver entering WA will have to show evidence of having received a negative Covid-19 test result in the past seven days”.

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