Victoria’s case numbers have also come in and 5,137 new Covid-19 infections have been detected. That’s quite a jump from 3,767 yesterday.
Sadly, 13 lives have been lost overnight.
Continue reading...Category Archives: Scott Morrison
Rapid antigen tests double in price in Australia amid concerns of price-gouging
Reports cost of RAT kits soaring as federal government considers calling in consumer watchdog
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- Vaccine rollout and rates tracker; Cases and data tracker
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Any official crackdown on price-gouging of rapid antigen tests in Australia is unlikely, despite government suggestions it will get the consumer watchdog involved amid reports the kits have doubled in price as stock disappears from shelves.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has previously noted “price gouging is generally not illegal”, meaning its ability to respond is likely to be limited unless specific circumstances are involved.
Continue reading...Australia Covid news live update: NSW records 11,201 cases, Victoria 3,767; states consider shorter isolation time; Qld to change border testing requirements
NSW records three Covid-19 deaths as cases spiral; Queensland to allow rapid antigen test to cross border; chief health officers are reportedly considering cutting isolation periods to match the US and UK. Follow all the latest updates
- NSW scales back contact tracing as health system faces Omicron strain
- Covid hospitalisation rates: how is Australia’s health system coping?
- Omicron ‘not the same disease’ as earlier Covid waves, says UK scientist
- Vaccine rollout tracker; cases and data tracker
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NSW cases have jumped again, significantly this time, recording 11,201 cases today. Its the highest ever tally recorded by a state in a single day, and the first time a state has recorded over 10,000 cases in a day.
Sadly, three people have lost their lives overnight.
Continue reading...Airport chaos as Christmas flights cancelled over Covid surge – as it happened
Labor MP Jim Chalmers was up and about on breakfast television earlier today, expressing shock at NSW premier Dominic Perrottet’s slow limp to reintroducing mask mandates.
He said mask mandates were just “common sense” right now:
It’s a bit strange frankly that they held out for so long and in that period we probably lost a bit of ground when it came to tracing and tracking outbreaks of the virus, particularly the new strain.
It’s an interesting thought but it’s not a thought which I think should turn into practice. We have a universal health system ... we care for people who need that care. We should encourage people to get vaccinated, it’s the best thing we can do to protect our health, but I don’t think our health system should discriminate.
Continue reading...Australia Covid news live: Chant says roughly 80% of NSW cases are Omicron; WA to introduce mask mandate after community case
WA to introduce mask mandate after community case; SA records 484 new Covid cases; fires break out at Melbourne hotel housing refugees; NSW records 5,715 cases and one death; Victoria records 2,005 cases and 10 death; Queensland reports record 369 casess. Follow all the day’s news live
- Datablog: how much of the Omicron variant is there in Australia, and is it the dominant strain?
- Dominic Perrottet backflips on ‘personal responsibility’ mantra to reintroduce mask mandate in NSW
- Victoria reintroduces mask mandates as acting premier takes swipe at Scott Morrison
- Vaccine rollout and rates tracker; Cases and data tracker
- Victoria vaccination rate map; NSW vaccination rates map
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Covid-19 testing clinics are reducing their openings hours during the Christmas period despite “unprecedented demand” and reports of hours-long wait times in several states.
Guardian Australia analysis shows 77% of the 490 testing sites listed on the NSW Health website on Wednesday will either close or operate on reduced hours through the Christmas and new year period.
Novavax is still going through the approval process. I know they’re getting closer. We’re looking forward to get Novavax into the mix of available vaccines as well. It won’t be until the new year. I don’t know exactly when.
As soon as Novavax is ready to go, we’ll be delighted to get it out there. I know some people have been holding out for Novavax specifically. It will be part of our arsenal and we look forward to helping people access that vaccine if that’s what they want.
Continue reading...Australia Covid live update: AMA calls for mask mandate and density limits for Christmas; NSW reports record 3,057 cases, Victoria 1,245
AMA calls for mask mandate and density limits for Christmas; South Australia records 154 new Covid cases, Queensland 86; RACP calls on state and territory governments to reintroduce restrictions as PM says ‘we’re not going back to lockdowns’; Victoria records 1,245 cases; NSW records 3,057 cases; national cabinet to discuss vaccination timeframes and mask mandates – follow all the day’s news live
- NSW and Victoria to urge Scott Morrison to speed up vaccine booster schedule amid record Covid cases
- Doctors warn NSW premier ICU Covid patient numbers not only metric in battling Omicron
- Vaccine rollout and rates tracker; Cases and data tracker
- Victoria vaccination rate map; NSW vaccination rates map
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According to Seven News Scott Morrison is supportive of an indoor mask mandate in light of the Omicron variant spreading throughout Australia, but not further lockdowns.
Thousands of customers are still without power on Sydney’s northern beaches after the brief but cyclonic weekend storm that felled power lines, leaving a trail of destruction, reports AAP.
It’s a very difficult time of year to be without power, and we apologise for the delays. We are doing everything we can to turn the lights back on as soon as possible. Where we can, we are progressively turning power back on, and as always the safety of our customers and staff remains our number one priority.
Continue reading...Australia live news update: Victoria records 1,189 Covid cases, six deaths; NSW 804 cases, one death; Joyce opposes Assange extradition;
Victoria records 1,189 new Covid-19 cases and six deaths; NSW records 804 cases and one death; Barnaby Joyce says Julian Assange should not be extradited to the US; passengers on NSW rail network face another day of disruption as train union strikes – follow all the day’s news
- Australia to manufacture mRNA vaccines under deal with Moderna
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Here is the full statement for the Victorian government on the Moderna manufacturing facility that’s set to be operational by 2024.
Prime minister Scott Morrison has called on states and territories to ease their last remaining Covid-19 restrictions, as Western Australia announced plans to reopen its hard border to the rest of the nation, reports AAP’s Andrew Brown.
Australians kept their side of the deal, it is time for governments to now keep theirs; to step back and let Australians step forward...
To put Australians back in charge of their own lives, relying on the connecting points and relationships that exist between the state and the individual.
Australia is going to be connected and together again...
This will be welcome news for thousands of Western Australians looking forward to reuniting with family and friends after so long apart.
Continue reading...Australia to manufacture mRNA vaccines under deal with Moderna
New facility could produce 100m vaccines a year under deal between pharmaceutical company and federal and Victorian governments
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Australia may be manufacturing mRNA vaccines for Covid-19 and other diseases by 2024 under an in-principle agreement struck with pharmaceutical giant Moderna.
Scott Morrison will announce on Tuesday that under the deal a new sovereign vaccine manufacturing facility will be built in Victoria to produce pandemic and non-pandemic respiratory vaccines, including potential flu vaccines.
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Continue reading...Australia live news update: WA to ease hard border from 5 February; $1bn defence deal signed with South Korea
Mark McGowan announces reopening plan after WA hits 80% fully vaccinated; PM confirms international borders to reopen Wednesday for some visa holders; defence deal inked as Korean leader visits; Greg Hunt says telehealth to be made permanent; Victoria records 1,290 new Covid cases and two deaths; NSW records 536 new cases and no deaths; NT to ramp up Covid rules for some communities after 17 new cases; Queensland records one new local case, with 13 reported in SA. Follow all the day’s developments
- Western Australia to reopen border on 5 February after almost two years sealed off from the world
- Australia welcomes South Korean president with confirmation of border reopening
- Qld border reopening: thousands of stranded travellers make way to sunshine state
- Vaccine rollout and rates tracker; Cases and data tracker
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Time to chat about next year’s election, and the battle the treasurer is facing from an independent in his home seat.
Michael Rowland:
You are now facing, as we know, Monique Ryan in the seat of Kooyong. She’s a Royal Children’s hospital doctor. You’ve labelled people like she, an independent, as a front for Labor and the Greens. What evidence do you have for that?
Well, at the last election, I had an independent who said they were gonna vote for Labor. That’s a pretty clear indication. We’ve also seen plenty of cases where they’ve just mirrored the policies of our political opponents.
But what evidence do we have at this time?
This is a rinse-and-repeat, Michael. What we’ve seen, we’ve seen obviously a lot of funding going into these independents around the rest of the country, and it’s a democracy, so people can put their hand up.
Just on Omicron, you might have caught up with the news just in the last hour or so, Boris Johnson, the UK prime minister, made an address to the nation there. He’s declared a tidal wave of Omicron case is about to hit the UK.
He’s declared it a public health emergency, and has declared that all British adults over the age of 16 can get a booster shot by the end of the year. Taking that into account, are we being a bit too sanguine about Omicron here in Australia?
We saw the medical advice, and that saw a pause for two weeks of the reopening of the border to international students and to skilled workers.
That was a precautionary measure. But we will continue to listen and follow the health advice, and it has served us well to date.
Continue reading...Australia welcomes South Korean president with confirmation of border reopening
Scott Morrison is opening the door to South Korean and Japanese travellers from Wednesday and has spoken of closer defence ties with the signing of a $1bn defence contract
Australia’s international border will open to more travellers on Wednesday, as the prime minister confirmed that his government would end the “pause” triggered by the emergence of the Omicron Covid variant.
Scott Morrison, welcoming the South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, to Canberra on Monday, said Australia would open to travellers from South Korea and Japan and also international students and skilled workers more broadly.
Continue reading...Australia news live updates: Gladys Berejiklian rules out federal tilt; second woman killed in Queensland floods
Former NSW premier confirms she won’t run in federal election; second Queensland woman found dead in floodwaters. Follow all the day’s developments
- Experts warn against easing NSW Covid restrictions as La Niña and Omicron combine to cause jump in cases
- Australian children aged five to 11 to receive Pfizer Covid vaccine from 10 January
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By the way, we are expecting to hear from Scott Morrison pretty soon about the recently Atagi approvals for children’s vaccinations.
Berejiklian:
Well, I promised when the PM and others contacted me and urged me to give it consideration. I promised them and I did for a very short period of time and then obviously let them know that it’s not something I want to pursue and it is just a different direction.
I want my life to change.
Continue reading...China accuses Australia of ‘political posturing’ over diplomatic boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics
Scott Morrison says athletes will compete in next year’s Games because sport and politics should not mix
The prime minister, Scott Morrison, has confirmed Australian officials will not attend the Beijing Winter Olympics, joining the United States in a diplomatic boycott of next year’s Games and prompting accusations from Beijing of political posturing.
Morrison told reporters in Sydney it was “not surprising”, given the deterioration in the diplomatic relationship between Australia and China, that officials would not attend next year’s winter Games.
Continue reading...Australia live news update: NSW teachers’ strike closes nearly 400 public schools; Victoria pandemic bill becomes law
David Littleproud says ‘conversations are happening’ about Olympics boycott; NSW teachers’ strike closes nearly 400 public schools; three new Omicron cases detected in ACT, six Covid-19 infections overall; Victoria pandemic bill becomes law; ; Victoria records 1,185 cases and seven deaths; NSW records 260 cases and two deaths – follow all the day’s news
- Nationals warn George Christensen after he calls for embassy protests on US conspiracy show
- Victoria’s ombudsman finds Covid border permit system that stranded thousands was ‘inhumane’
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A suspected shark attack on Victoria’s Bellarine Peninsula has left two teens in hospital and shut a beach, reports Callum Godde from AAP.
Emergency services were called to Ocean Grove, south east of Geelong, just after 7pm on Monday.
Continue reading...Qld border to reopen 13 December, Palaszczuk says; SA premier advised to close border with NSW over Omicron – As it happened
Annastacia Palaszczuk brings forward Qld border reopening; Steven Marshall ‘very concerned’ by Omicron as SA records four Covid cases; Perth stripped of Ashes series finale; Victoria records 1,073 new cases and six deaths, NSW records 208 cases, ACT six; Katherine lockdown extended as NT records one case; Australia could be renewables ‘superpower’ but has wasted time, Chris Bowen says.
This blog is now closed
- Queensland to reopen border early as state nears 80% double vaccination
- Queensland border reopening: entry requirements explained as Covid restrictions lift
- Scott Morrison backs Gladys Berejiklian to run for federal seat of Warringah despite Icac cloud
- Plug pulled on Perth Test as contenders jostle to take Ashes series finale
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A New South Wales government plan to control feral horses in Kosciuszko national park will allow horses to remain in the only known habitat of one of Australia’s most imperilled freshwater fishes and risks pushing the species closer to extinction.
Conservationists say allowing horses to continue to roam around some sections of the park will put vulnerable wildlife and ecosystems at risk.
There are lot of reasons even though they don’t get as sick as adults, they have a pretty strong role in spreading it back to family members and of course that can include parents and also, of greater concern, the grandparents. The older you are, the impacts of getting seriously ill or worse with Covid is greater.
The other reason is just so kids can do what kids are meant to do – go to school, play with their friends, do sport, do exercise, do social things.
Continue reading...Dog noises, name calling, claims of abuse: a week of shame in Australian politics
Despite a review finding one in three parliamentary staffers have been sexually harassed, behaviour inside the building shows no sign of improvement
Allegations of abuse and accusations of widespread sexism. Bullying and harassment particularly of women. A cabinet minister stood aside pending an investigation into claims by a former staffer that their relationship was at times “abusive”. Even by the low standards of the Australian parliament, it was a week of horror in Canberra.
The final sitting week of parliament for the year began with a long-awaited report on sexual harassment and cultural issues within the parliament, which found one in three parliamentary staffers “have experienced some form of sexual harassment while working there”.
Continue reading...Australia politics live update: parliament sitting for final day of the year; Coles accused by FWO of underpaying staff
Fair Work Ombudsman accuses Coles of underpaying 7,800 staff; Victoria records 10 Covid deaths and 1,419 new cases, NSW 271 cases and zero deaths – follow all the day’s news
- Alan Tudge’s former media advisor Rachelle Miller alleges their affair was at times ‘abusive’
- Former parliament staff warn Scott Morrison to act on Jenkins review or face backlash from women
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If you want to really wrap your noggin around those mitochondrial donation laws and why they’re so important, here’s Full Story for you. Laura Murphy-Oates speaks to reporter Rafqa Touma about her family’s experience:
Two incredible women who have had an enormous influence on 2021 – Grace Tame and Brittany Higgins – have joined Fran Kelly on ABC radio.
It remains to be seen if there’s any actual change. That’s my opinion.
We know there are structural needs that need to be addressed. None of this is new information.”
It wasn’t about me, it was about maintaining power … I don’t think fundamentally anything has changed internally within the building policy-wise that would stop this happening to another woman.
Continue reading...Religious discrimination bill: moderate Liberals strike deal to protect gay students
Proposed amendments to Sex Discrimination Act may not be enough to see legislation pass lower house this week
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The Morrison government has struck a deal with some moderate Liberal MPs to support its contentious religious discrimination bill, agreeing to make immediate changes to protect gay students from discrimination in religious schools.
But the proposed amendments to the Sex Discrimination Act, which were negotiated between Queensland MP Angie Bell and the attorney general, Michaelia Cash, may not be enough to win over all moderate MPs and see the bill pass through the lower house this week.
Continue reading...Australia live news update: Jenkins report finds one in three face sexual harassment in parliament; fifth NSW case of Omicron Covid variant detected
Labor targets Coalition over quarantine facilities during question time; Fifth case of Omicron Covid variant detected in Sydney; Jenkins report reveals one in three parliament staffers experience sexual harassment; Victoria records 917 cases and six deaths; NSW records 179 cases and three deaths – follow all the day’s news live
- Victoria’s controversial pandemic laws to pass after crossbench MP secures amendments
- Westpac admits it broke law and agrees to pay $113m in penalties
- What does the new variant mean, and how worried should we be?
- Where has Omicron spread, and why are scientists so concerned?
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For those asking, there are five cases of the new Omicron confirmed in Australia – all are in quarantine.
There are four in Sydney (after two more were confirmed late yesterday) and one in the Northern Territory.
The corporate regulator has taken the unprecedented step of launching multiple legal actions at once against one of Australia’s big four banks.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has hit Westpac with six civil penalty proceedings in the federal court, which could draw a combined penalty of more than $100m.
Continue reading...Coalition’s proposed parliamentary calendar has just 10 sitting days in first half of 2022
Labor dubs schedule – which suggests a May election – ‘more of a slouch than a sitting calendar’ as government runs out of time to establish federal integrity commission
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Labor has criticised the Coalition for proposing a parliamentary sitting calendar for next year that includes just 10 sitting days before August if an election is called immediately after the budget.
The release of the sparse sitting calendar comes as the government runs out of time to fulfil an election promise to establish a federal integrity commission, amid ongoing divisions within the party about the best model for a new anti-corruption body.
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Continue reading...Australia politics live update: national cabinet to discuss Omicron response as Covid variant detected in NSW; ABC announces new RN Breakfast host
National cabinet meeting brought forward to discuss Omicron response; Patricia Karvelas announced as Fran Kelly’s replacement for RN Breakfast; radical plan to rehome racehorses; last sitting week of 2021. Follow all the news live
- Australia confirms first Omicron cases
- Victoria, Queensland fume over federal climate intervention
- Omicron: everything you need to know about new Covid variant
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Over on Sydney radio 2GB NSW police minister David Elliott said he met with with premier Dominic Perrottet and health minister Brad Hazzard on Sunday about what NSW would do:
I’m not panicking at the moment because it appears that this is going to be the new normal.
We need to prepare and ... make sure that we’re flexible and agile when it comes to variations and we need to be defensive and that defensive mechanism of course, is the vaccination.
So, we’re taking a risk-balanced approach at the moment and concentrating on those nine southern African countries.
We have increased our surveillance at the border, and after the border, we’re working very closely with our colleagues in New South Wales and Victoria, particularly, because they’re the ones that have had quarantine-free travel, as well as in the ACT, as to what is the best approach.
Continue reading...