Qld deputy premier and health minister says situation will be reviewed at the end of June ‘as we’ve said consistently’. Follow live
Speaking of awkward, Angus Taylor just took a dixer.
So that is a bit awkward, then.
Three new cases of Covid-19 reported were all from overseas travellers and are in quarantine; Queensland high court calls requests from lawyers to access border closure documents ‘a fishing expedition’. Follow live updates
Pat Dodson has spoken in the Senate on the issue of Indigenous deaths in custody:
Thirty years ago, the royal commission that I was part of made recommendations to the parliament - 339 recommendations.
That Commission had been set up by the government. And at that time, there were 99 deaths that we were concerned about in this nation to effect a national Royal Commission never got over 400 deaths since that Royal Commission, and we have 30 years that have passed that have not addressed the underlying issues that give rise to people being taken into custody and consequently die in custody.
Tony Burke’s answer to that same question:
Her politics feeds on outrage. It effectively – for all the talk of proud nationalism, that party has imported an American style of politics here.
I don’t want that style of politics here. I don’t particularly want to join the outrage, because that in fact elevates what she said. I would simply refer to it in the way that I guess One Nation wouldn’t want it referred to – that is importing foreign politics into Australia. We should be better than that. And most of us are.
Continue reading...ABS reports growth slowed to 1.4% through the year as industrial relations roundtables prepare an agenda to regrow the jobs lost during Covid-19. Follow live
Linda Burney and Mark Dreyfus has put out a statement, calling for clear targets to address the over-representation of First Nations people in Australian’s prison systems, and child removal.
Here is part of it:
I doubt we’ll be seeing ‘back solidly in the red’ mugs for sale anytime soon though.
Blackwater man who was wrongly believed to have died of Covid-19 at age 30 has been shown to have not had the disease. Follow live
Also worth paying attention to:
Related: Q+A: Matt Canavan grilled on climate change and family links to coal industry
The pandemic amplified many of the issues facing remote First Nations communitites. Today, Labor will question officials from the National Indigenous Australians Agency on its pandemic response & plans going forward. Watch at: https://t.co/Ngg6QzZtFn...
See more pic.twitter.com/vZorAaEDom
NSW pubs and museums reopen while Victoria restaurants and cafes can now serve meals for up to 20 people, as NSW says rail project linking Sydney’s second airport will create 14,000 jobs. Follow the latest news
The NSW government’s proposal to give public servants a one-off $1,000 stimulus payment if they agree to a 12-month pay freeze has been slammed by unions as insulting, AAP reports.
Treasurer Dominic Perrottet has been talking with union bosses about the proposal which would see non-executive frontline staff such as nurses, police officers, paramedics and teachers receive a one-off payment in return for accepting a pay pause.
Rugby Australia stood down 47 of its 142 fulltime staff on Monday morning, as it implements a restructure that will save the code $5.5m per year.
The cuts, which will also see 30 contractors and casual workers axed, comes after Rugby Australia reported a $9.4m loss in 2019.
We have delivered the news to staff this morning and told them that Rugby Australia values the contribution of each and every one of them, some of whom have given significant service to Rugby Australia and to the game over many years.
This is a difficult time for a lot of very passionate, hard-working Rugby people and we are committed to helping those people find their next opportunity, whether it be within the game or elsewhere.
Continue reading...Sydney aged care home reports 13th coronavirus-related death as three more residents test positive, while Tasmania to lift north-west lockdown. Follow live
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WA premier Mark McGowan is due to give an update at 2pm Perth time today, which is 4pm on the east coast.
So, working backwards, we can expect an update from the prime minister on today’s national cabinet meeting some time between now and 4pm.
I’m going to leave you for the day. Thanks for reading. Calla Wahlquist will take over from here.
Continue reading...Scott Morrison has tightened physical distancing restrictions, but how they are applied will be determined by each state. Find out what’s illegal, and what happens if you break the law
Since the pandemic was declared all Australian states have gone into various levels of lockdown.
Now that the country is cautiously optimistic that the curve has been flattened, the big question is how and when we will come out of isolation?
Continue reading...Picnics, boating, hiking, camping and group exercise are back for Western Australians as Queensland also prepares to relax rules. Follow live
That statement continued:
We thank Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck and the Chief Medical Officer Prof. Brendan Murphy for joining the aged care industry in constructive dialogue in the national webinar, as we work together to care for and support vulnerable older Australians.
However, we impressed upon them that it is incorrect to characterise the sector as having kept residents isolated, under lock and key, in their rooms. Nor are they secret places.
Australia’s leading aged care providers have banded together to make a statement in response to what the prime minister and chief health minister had to say last week about opening up centres to visits, or face applying to the commonwealth to close.
Almost 1000 aged care providers have signed up to the statement, saying that some facilities made the decision to stop visitation because it was the only way to protect residents, with the decisions being made with “the support of the majority of residents and their families”.
Pressures on aged care workers will further intensify from the major costs of controls and resources needed to continue protecting aged care residents and to allow the safe access for visitors that has been stipulated - but there has been little additional support from Government to achieve this.
The funding provided that equates to an average of $2 per resident per day is not enough for aged care operators to keep winning the fight to keep coronavirus out of aged care homes.
Continue reading...Brendan Murphy says he is ‘pretty confident’ most will be negative but it is necessary to monitor community transmission. Follow the latest updates
Night has fallen now across the entire continent.
Usually hundreds of thousands of Australians would be up before sunrise tomorrow to join ANZAC day dawn services and to honour those who serve and have served. But coronavirus means this year will be different.
While the day has had its elements of public ritual since 1916, much early Anzac Day commemoration was private rather than public, sometimes conducted at the gravesides of Australian soldiers buried in cemeteries in Britain and Australia. Women were prominent in these efforts, honouring the memories of men they might or might not have known by placing flowers on their tombs.
There are other echoes of the past. Anzac Day in 1919 was also disrupted by a major crisis in public health. In New South Wales, where the rate of infection from Spanish influenza was high and the number of deaths – approaching 1,000 by Anzac Day – was alarming, the government had banned public meetings.
Several key developments emerged from the national cabinet meeting earlier today.
Rules around aged care visits, hopes for a restart of community sport, clarification on jobkeeper payments and a repeat of medical advice for school classrooms all made for a busy day.
Related: Scott Morrison warns aged care homes to end strict coronavirus lockdowns or face new rules
Continue reading...New South Wales chief medical officer says 231 people are now being treated for Covid-19, with 20 in intensive care. Follow live
It has been floating around again for a while, but this morning Josh Frydenberg put company tax cuts firmly back on the table.
Business Council of Australia chief executive, Jennifer Westacott told Sky News’s Laura Jayes they were absolutely needed (but she would say that, wouldn’t she).
We’re trying to solve business investment, which was low before this terrible crisis. It’s business investment that drives productivity which drives higher wages. So that’s the problem, let’s frame that up first. Look I think it is important for us to put it back on the table but along with other tax reform. It’s not the only thing that needs to be done. It’s important that we look at the state taxes, the productivity sapping stamp duty taxes, payroll tax. It is interesting how much payroll tax has been deferred.
The whole question of the right configuration of the state taxes. Whether or not we bring forward those other income tax cuts. So it’s not just company taxes but it is important we have a competitive company tax rate. To the treasurer’s point, we’re not asking, in the Business Council, for us to have the lowest rate, we’re simply asking for a competitive rate, so that we can be a magnet for investment in this country.
In case you haven’t seen this as yet, or cried today, I am giving this another run, because we all need a bit of heartbreakingly lovely in our lives.
After noticing that Ken slept with a photo of his late wife every night, one of the carers at Thistleton Lodge presented him with this incredible gift... pic.twitter.com/Q1v8V8HUFS
Continue reading...Dan Tehan wants all schools to provide in-person teaching to children whose parents want it. Follow live
The NRL season will recommence in late May, but it’s still unclear in what form it will happen.
#BREAKING: The NRL has announced a competition restart date of May 28. #9News pic.twitter.com/e5uwbe0fAj
Liberal Senator Sarah Henderson is calling for road blocks on the Great Ocean Road to force people to stay home this long weekend. @Kieran_Gilbert
Continue reading...As the number of cases rises, so does the number of those who have died. Here is a state-by-state list of virus-related fatalities
The Australian death toll from Covid-19 related illnesses stands at 34, as of 4 April. This story will be updated as further deaths are confirmed and Australia’s coronavirus victims are identified.
Continue reading...Brendan Murphy says he is totally confident of infection rates in Australia because of our high rate of testing. Follow live updates
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We might leave it there for the night. Thanks so much for reading today.
Hopefully you’re enjoying your Friday night, despite these strange times.
The @YourAFAP union says all 220 @TigerairAU pilots have been made redundant effective today.
Continue reading...Victoria and Queensland register deaths as Western Australia flags border closure and federal government acts on childcare and industrial relations concerns. Follow live updates
The PM stresses that the “health advice we have is that there is no health reasons why children can’t go to school”.
Asked if taxes will increase to pay for its massive stimulus funding, Morrison does not address this directly.
Obviously there will be a heightened debt burden as a result of decisions we have had to take. They have been necessary decisions. Otherwise the calamity for Australian households economic will be disastrous. We have taken that decisions of government to step up and to make this commitment to provide people with an economic lifeline over the many months ahead. But you are right, we will have to then work hard on the other side to restore the economy. Now, that’s why we are being so careful not to have things that tie the economy and the budget down off into the future. We do need to snap back to the normal arrangements on the other side of this.
Morrison says schools have been planning for a “balance – a combination of distance learning” and, for those who can’t “provide a learning environment at home, for the children to be able to return to school”.
School will return after the holidays. They just won’t be holidays that most school students have known for a long time. And when they go back, it’s the learning that matters, and we hope to have an arrangement that can return as much to normal as possible.
But we have to accept that there will be, for some protracted period of time, this combination of distance learning, and for those who can’t do that at home, no child should be turned away.
Continue reading...We bring together all the Covid-19 confirmed cases, data and stats from NSW, Victoria, Queensland, SA, WA, Tasmania, ACT and NT to get a broad picture of the Australian outbreak and track the impact of government response
Due to the difference in reporting times between states, territories and the federal government, it can be difficult to get a current picture of how many confirmed cases of coronavirus there are in Australia.
Here, we’ve brought together all the figures in one place, along with comparisons with other countries.
Continue reading...A total fire ban remains in place across the capital territory as fires continue to burn, causing severe smoke and dust haze in NSW
A quick recap.
Looks like the forecast rain is heading over Canberra. We’ll wait to hear if this helps or hinders the firefighting efforts.
Rain heading through Canberra. Let's hope this brings some relief. No sign of the storm yet though. pic.twitter.com/YVJDd3HK3u
Continue reading...Huge fires to the south smother city with smoke amid weather forecast for heatwave and searing temperatures as Scott Morrison prepares to address National Press Club today. Follow live news and latest updates
From Tuesday night. A lot of ACT residents are comparing this fire to the devastating 2003 blaze.
Just a reminder of where we’re at. On Monday, a defence helicopter landed in the Namadgi national park, south of Canberra, and accidentally sparked what authorities have called the city’s “most serious” bushfire threat since the city’s devastating 2003 fires.
Tuesday saw dramatic images of the fire approaching Canberra’s southern suburbs, but conditions eased throughout the evening and the fire was downgraded from emergency level to watch and act just before midnight.
Continue reading...Six volunteer firefighters reportedly taken to hospital with ‘serious injuries’ in truck rollover, names of three US firefighters killed in C-130 crash released, and Sydney covered in thick smoke haze. Follow the latest news and live updates
Thank you to the 41 firefighters from across the US who have arrived today to assist in managing Victoria’s ongoing and significant fire threat. Following briefing and training sessions, they will join local crews fighting fires in East Gippsland. pic.twitter.com/GZgT0zFe5C
Agriculture Victoria’s count of the number of animals killed in the Victorian fires has reached 6,422, the Weekly Times reports. Most of the losses were in the north-east, mainly in the upper Murray, where 5,440 animals – including 3,292 beef cattle and 1,735 sheep – were killed.
Continue reading...Some retailers are giving inaccurate advice to shoppers in states where it is illegal to ride e-scooters on public roads or footpaths
Retailers are preparing for a Christmas boom in the sale of electric scooters, even though it is illegal to ride them on public roads or footpaths in several states.
Federal and state regulation has struggled to keep up with the technology, leaving consumers at risk of inadvertently breaking the law.
Continue reading...An independent inquiry has delivered its findings about the gynaecologist Emil Shawky Gayed after Guardian Australia revealed he was the subject of dozens of complaints from women about botched surgery and other practices at numerous hospitals in New South Wales and the ACT. Here are some of the cases uncovered so far – the list will be updated as more information is received or when more patients give permission
Continue reading...