Category Archives: Coronavirus

Covid-19 case numbers exploding across Australia as fourth wave takes off

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Chief health officers urge people to take up protective measures as Covid hospitalisations double in some states

The number of active Covid cases has exploded across the country as Australia enters its fourth wave, prompting renewed warnings to protect vulnerable aged care residents.

Jurisdictions collectively recorded more than 58,000 new cases of Covid in the past week, with some states reporting a doubling in the number of people hospitalised with the virus.

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Coalition complains of ‘witch-hunt’ during question time – as it happened

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Federal government paying contractor $900,000 for review of naval shipbuilding

The federal government is paying a contractor $900,000 to carry out a new review of naval shipbuilding issues with the findings due by January.

Australia has the expertise and capability. What we don’t have yet is the scale to deliver the graduates and skills in the quantities required …

I’m here to tell you today is that whatever submarine design ends up being chosen, we won’t be able to build and operate it locally unless we address the fundamental issue of Australia’s workforce capability gap.

Nuclear science should clearly be the first cab off the rank for this program, but this approach will also be necessary across the broader advanced capabilities of Aukus including in cyber and computing, engineering, space and quantum physics.

An Aukus pathways program, jointly developed with Defence, could feature a portfolio of tailored degree programs providing a pathway for students to gain qualifications in an Aukus-related field and then progress to a position in Defence working on Aukus programs.

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Victorians’ Covid contact tracing data sent to crime authority for potential use by Palantir

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Exclusive: Australian data security experts described the July 2020 move as ‘dubious’ and ‘outrageous’

Under pressure to control spiralling Covid cases in July 2020, the Victorian government sent contact tracing data to the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission in the hope a controversial data mining platform might help identify the source of mystery cases.

Data security experts described the move as “dubious” and “outrageous”.

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Amid warnings of a looming Covid wave, how do Australia’s vaccination rates stack up?

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With Australia consistently reporting more than 30,000 Covid cases a week, how does our vaccination rollout compare to similar countries?

Government health officials are warning of a new wave of Covid cases, predicting transmission will increase in coming weeks.

So what does the latest data show for the rollout of vaccinations in Australia, and how do we compare with other countries?

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Apple warns iPhone shipments will be delayed due to Covid restrictions at Foxconn plant

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Tech company says customers will experience longer wait times as the plant in China is operating at reduced capacity

Apple has said it expects fewer iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone Pro Max shipments than previously anticipated as Covid-19 restrictions temporarily disrupt production at an assembly facility in Zhengzhou, China.

“The facility is currently operating at significantly reduced capacity,” Apple said in a statement. “Customers will experience longer wait times to receive their new products.”

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China’s ‘unswerving’ zero-Covid rules see no let up

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Unexpected announcement quashes hopes of lifting lockdowns, quarantining and rigorous testing

Health officials in China on Saturday dashed hopes there would be a relaxation of the country’s strict Covid-19 restrictions. At a news conference, they insisted China would “unswervingly” stick to its zero-Covid policy which includes lockdowns, quarantining and rigorous testing aimed at stopping the spread of the coronavirus.

The announcement follows several days’ speculation that they were considering changing a disease containment policy that has disrupted economic growth and daily life, and is increasingly out of step with the rest of the world.

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Rumours of zero-Covid easing spread in China amid anger at restrictions

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Despite relatively low case numbers, there are reportedly about 200 lockdowns across the country

Waves of outrage and frustration over China’s lockdown measures this week have demonstrated widening cracks in the general compliance with the government’s zero-Covid policy.

Rising anger has been driven by the tragic death of a toddler, and highly public problematic lockdowns in the Henan capital, Zhengzhou. Officials were left scrambling to control the narrative, amid swirling rumours of imminent policy shifts and a former government health expert saying on Friday that “substantive changes will happen soon”.

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Australia’s richer areas more likely to have people working from home in pandemic, analysis finds

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Census data shows Sydney’s northern suburbs had highest WFH proportion, with lowest in regional areas such as Maryborough in Victoria and Taree in NSW

Areas with higher incomes in NSW and Victoria were more likely to have a higher percentage of people working from home during the pandemic, according to a Guardian Australia analysis of census data.

The data provides further evidence of how differently people in areas with different socioeconomic backgrounds experienced the pandemic.

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Proposed work-from-home tax changes would mean lower deductions or more paperwork

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If adopted, Australian Tax Office draft guidelines would cut 80c flat rate to 67c and affect tax returns from next July

People working from home would lose hundreds of dollars in tax deductions if new draft guidelines released by the Australian Tax Office are adopted.

Under the proposed changes, those working from home would not be able to claim expenses such as internet, electricity and mobile separately using the popular shortcut method, which sets out a flat rate for hours worked at home, rather than calculating the actual costs.

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Father of three-year-old blames China’s zero-Covid policy for son’s death

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Tuo Shilei said his son was delayed in receiving treatment due to strict lockdown conditions in city of Lanzhou

The father of a three-year-old boy who died from carbon monoxide poisoning in north-west China said strict Covid-19 policies “indirectly killed” his son by causing delays obtaining treatment.

The boy’s death on Tuesday sparked outrage on social media and is the latest incident to trigger blowback against China’s strict zero-Covid policy.

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Australia news live: Ed Husic says government must intervene in gas market; Pocock backs fossil fuels super profits tax

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Industry minister says gas companies are ‘not picking up the signals’. Follow all the day’s news live

Gas supply not a problem, ‘glut of greed is’, industry minister says

Husic:

This is not a shortage of supply problem; this is a glut of greed problem, that has to be basically short-circuited and common sense prevail.

The pricing mechanism is the one that I think needs to be seriously examined.

The LNG exporters are offering gas to the domestic market at prices they couldn’t reasonably expect on the international market.

We have the ACCC looking at that [code of conduct] and that code of conduct is to help better guide the way in which these contracts get negotiated … in terms of the other areas, we want to work through that internally.

If you look at what the treasurer has said over the last few days, he is examining those type of options and again that will be in the mix of things he thinks through.

I think the bigger focus long-term is the price mechanism.

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New Covid-19 wave to hit NSW within weeks, chief health officer says

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Exclusive: Kerry Chant expected to reiterate importance of vaccine boosters as Omicron subvariants BQ.1 and XBB tipped to become dominant

A new wave of Covid-19 infections is looming in New South Wales, the state’s chief health officer, Dr Kerry Chant, will warn on Thursday, with transmission of the virus predicted to increase in coming weeks.

It follows Victoria’s chief health officer, Prof Brett Sutton, making a similar announcement last week, with Omicron subvariants BQ.1 and XBB tipped to overtake BA.5 as the dominant variants throughout Australia.

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Supply fears as China lockdown hits world’s largest iPhone factory

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Foxconn plant in Zhengzhou, from which many workers have fled, now under seven-day Covid lockdown

Chinese authorities have announced a seven-day coronavirus lockdown in the area around the world’s largest iPhone factory, stoking concern that production will be severely curtailed ahead of the Christmas period.

Foxconn’s plant in Zhengzhou, which employs about 200,000 people, produces the majority of Apple’s new phones, including the new iPhone 14.

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Chinese city accused of ‘performative lockdown lifting’

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Residents claim Zhengzhou authorities are trying to avoid scrutiny of Covid lockdown’s severity

Authorities in Zhengzhou have been accused of “performative lockdown lifting” after they partially lifted restrictions amid growing pressure from residents and the reported arrival of state media.

An almost month-long lockdown in the Chinese city of about 12 million people had prompted complaints of arduous conditions, sometimes violent enforcement, inadequate medical care, and worsening mental health. But a sudden decision to ease restrictions on Tuesday was greeted by some residents with scepticism and anger.

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China iPhone factory quadruples bonuses to workers amid anger over Covid curbs

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Apple supplier Foxconn raises daily bonuses to $55 to ease discontent after strict Covid measures prompted some workers to flee the site

Apple supplier Foxconn said it has quadrupled bonuses on offer for workers at its Zhengzhou plant in central China as it seeks to quell discontent over Covid curbs and retain staff at the giant iPhone manufacturing site.

Daily bonuses for employees, who are part of a Foxconn unit responsible for making electronics including smartphones at the site, have been raised to 400 yuan ($55) a day for November from 100 yuan, according to the official WeChat account of Foxconn’s Zhengzhou plant.

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Visitors trapped in Shanghai’s Disney resort after lockdown announced

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Videos appear to show guests rushing to locked gates as strict Covid restrictions return across China

Visitors to Shanghai’s Disney resort were trapped inside for the second time in 12 months after authorities and operators announced a sudden lockdown as part of China’s strict pandemic response.

In a repeat of scenes from across Covid-zero China, viral videos on Monday appeared to show guests rushing to the locked gates of the theme park in an attempt to escape the lockdown. It followed extraordinary scenes on the weekend, with a mass escape of employees from a locked-down Foxconn factory in Zhengzhou, to walk up to hundreds of kilometres to their hometowns.

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China braces for wave of workers fleeing iPhone factory in Covid-hit Zhengzhou

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Cities near Foxconn plant draw up plans to isolate migrant workers who are returning to home towns

Cities in central China have hastily drawn up plans to isolate migrant workers fleeing to their home towns from the country’s largest iPhone factory, amid fears they will spread coronavirus after leaving the plant in Covid-hit Zhengzhou.

Videos shared on Chinese social media showed people who are allegedly workers at the Foxconn plant climbing over fences and carrying their belongings along a road. It was previously reported that a number of workers had been placed under quarantine because of an outbreak of the disease.

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Emotional debate over UK Covid memorial risks dividing bereaved

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Split over colour of heart symbol – and who it represents – and date of annual commemoration

An emotionally charged dispute over how best to memorialise Covid in the UK risks dividing people bereaved over the course of the pandemic.

A split has emerged over whether a red or yellow heart should become the long-term symbol of loss, and over the date of an annual commemoration. The crux of the dispute is a claim from some people who lost loved ones to Covid that their experience “needs to be treated differently” than those bereaved during Covid.

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China locks down part of Wuhan, nearly three years after first Covid case emerged

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More than 800,000 people locked down in site of world’s first Covid outbreak in 2019, as other Chinese cities seal up streets and homes

Chinese cities from Wuhan in central China to Xining in the north-west are doubling down on Covid-19 curbs, sealing up buildings, locking down districts and throwing millions into distress in a scramble to halt widening outbreaks.

China on Thursday reported a third straight day of more than 1,000 new Covid cases nationwide, a modest tally compared with the tens of thousands a day that sent Shanghai into a full-blown lockdown earlier this year but enough to trigger more curbs and restrictions across the country.

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Reports of teenager dying in Covid quarantine cause outcry in China

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Video of girl struggling to breathe is circulating online, with claims family’s pleas for help were ignored

Reports that a 16-year-old girl has died in a Covid quarantine centre after pleas from her family for medical help were ignored have caused anger in China, where ongoing tight pandemic controls have started to take their toll on a weary population.

Videos of the girl have spread across Chinese social media in the last 24 hours. The distressing footage, which the Guardian has not been able to independently verify, shows the teenager ill, struggling to breathe and convulsing in a bunk bed at what is purported to be a quarantine centre in Ruzhou, Henan province.

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