Category Archives: Coronavirus

Austrian doctors speak out after suicide of GP following Covid threats

Posted on by

Lisa-Maria Kellermayr was targeted by conspiracy theorists and anti-vaxxers before taking her own life

Austrian medical representatives have called for greater protection for doctors after a GP who faced months of violent threats from anti-vaccination activists and pandemic conspiracy theorists took her own life.

Lisa-Maria Kellermayr was found dead in her practice in the lakeside resort of Seewalchen am Attersee on Friday. Prosecutors told the media they found three suicide notes and were not planning to carry out an autopsy.

In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org.

Continue reading...

Politics live: ‘difficult day for Australians with a mortgage’, Chalmers says; east coast gas shortages in spotlight

Posted on by

The resources minister, Madeleine King, has taken the first step in reining in the big three LNG exporters by ‘triggering the trigger’

Labor unlikely to extend the fuel excise cut

Asked about the fuel excise in that same interview, Jim Chalmers said:

I’ve been really upfront with people, Charles, for some time now – before the election, during the election and after the election – and pointed out that extending that would cost some billions of dollars and the budget can’t afford that. We’ve inherited a budget which is absolutely heaving with a trillion dollars in Liberal party debt. And when interest rates are rising, it actually costs more and more to service that debt.

The fastest-growing area of government spending in the budget is actually servicing the debt that we’ve inherited because, as interest rates rise, it becomes more expensive to pay that back. So every dollar borrowed, whether it’s by our predecessors or by the new government costs more to pay back and we need to be conscious about that. We need to be responsible about that and upfront about that. And that’s what we’re being.

This isn’t about any one individual. This is about a difficult day for Australians with a mortgage, another difficult day I think everybody is bracing for the interest rate rise that the governor and the Reserve Bank board has flagged.

These decisions are taken independently by the Reserve Bank, by its board and by its governor. People are expecting this outcome today. But it won’t make it any easier.

Continue reading...

‘Put your masks on’: Monique Ryan gives Coalition dressing-down during question time

Posted on by

Former paediatric neurologist was speaking about the risk of long Covid when opposition MPs, most of whom were not wearing masks, interjected

Independent MP Monique Ryan, a former paediatric neurologist, has rebuked Coalition MPs for not wearing masks in the House of Representatives.

Ryan, who unseated Josh Frydenberg from his inner Melbourne seat of Kooyong at the May election, was heckled from the Coalition benches after she asked the health minister, Mark Butler, about how the government planned to manage the looming burden of long Covid.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

Australia politics live: Monique Ryan tells Coalition ‘put your masks on’ in question time; Greens say RBA interest rate hikes won’t solve inflation

Posted on by

The housing minister, Julie Collins, says Australia’s rate of homelessness is “unacceptable”, as she promises a greater leadership role from the federal government in the sector.

Australia today marks the beginning of Homelessness Week, with social agencies calling on governments nationwide to do more to address housing and rental affordability, as well as the underlying factors contributing to homelessness.

Our reforms aim to ensure every Australian has access to safe and affordable housing to improve social and economic outcomes for all Australians, including those at risk of, or experiencing, homelessness,” she said on Monday.

According to the 2016 Census, in Australia there are over 116,000 people experiencing homelessness, and this figure is unacceptable.”

We all need to be heading in the same direction.

We need to be ambitious ... we all need to be working together to solve the housing affordability issues we have.

What’s happened is the states and territories have been doing their own thing and I don’t think there’s been enough national leadership.

In its gas inquiry 2017-2025 interim report released on Monday, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said the east coast gas market is facing a gas shortfall of 56 petajoules in 2023.

This gap is about 10% of annual domestic demand, ‘signifying a substantial risk to Australia’s energy security’, the report says.

Continue reading...

New Zealand borders fully reopened as last Covid restrictions lifted

Posted on by

Cruise ships, international students and visitors from China and India among those who will be able to once again travel to New Zealand

New Zealand’s borders are fully open for the first time since they abruptly snapped shut to keep Covid-19 out in March 2020.

The prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, said the nation was “open for business” after the final stage of the phased reopening, which began in April, was completed on Sunday night.

Continue reading...

Biden under ‘strict isolation measures’ as he continues to test positive for Covid

Posted on by

President feels well, White House says, after he tests positive only days after he tested negative

Joe Biden continued to test positive for coronavirus on Sunday and will “continue his strict isolation measures” his physician said.

The US president feels well, the White House said. Biden tweeted about the economy and about regretting being unable to meet in person to commiserate with military veterans and their families visiting Capitol Hill in support of a long-awaited bipartisan bill that would expand healthcare access for those exposed to toxic burn pits.

Continue reading...

China’s factory activity shrinks amid Covid disruption

Posted on by

Sharpest contraction is in energy-intensive industries, such as petrol, coking coal and ferrous metals

China’s factory activity unexpectedly shrank in July as sporadic Covid outbreaks disrupted the sector and the slowing global economy weighed on demand.

The official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) fell to 49.0 in July from 50.2 in June, China’s National Bureau of Statistics said on Sunday. That was weaker than forecast, below the 50-point mark separating expansion from contraction.

Continue reading...

Indigenous leaders start planning next steps in reconciliation push – as it happened

Posted on by

PM: voice not ‘not a third chamber of the parliament’

Albanese is asked whether he believes the question being proposed is simple enough for Australians to understand what they’re voting for. Albanese says it is a “simple proposition which is consistent with good manners”.

It says where you are implementing a policy that affects a group, in this case the oldest continuous civilisation on the planet, something we should be proud about, you should consult, involve them.

This makes it very clear this doesn’t change in any way the primacy of our democratically elected parliament.

Where we have sought to impose things from Canberra, without that consultation, without their involvement, is where problems have arisen over the last 121 years.

Continue reading...

Australia nears 12,000 Covid deaths with hospitals ‘heaving’ under caseload

Posted on by

Health minister says real number of infections twice what is known, as one in 12 public hospital beds is filled by a Covid patient

Australia is getting closer to chalking up 12,000 Covid-related fatalities, as one in 12 public hospital beds across Australia is filled by someone with the virus.

The nation has recorded three straight days of 100-plus deaths related to the virus.

Continue reading...

Thailand’s gay-romance TV dramas help revive flagging tourism industry

Posted on by

The popularity of ‘boy-love’ series sends fans from home and abroad flocking to filming locations across the country

There is a table in Soontaree Thiprat’s Phuket cafe that is always fully booked. Most of her customers at the Dibuk restaurant want to sit in the corner, at the spot with the red tablecloth and purple flower.

It is the table where the male student characters Teh and Oh-aew, played by the actors Putthipong “Billkin” Assaratanakul and Krit “PP” Amnuaydechkorn, would sit together and flirt in I Told Sunset About You and its sequel, I Promised You the Moon, a romantic Thai series that has proved hugely popular in its home country and abroad.

Continue reading...

Coalition offers qualified support for Indigenous voice as PM reveals referendum wording – as it happened

Posted on by

Anthony Albanese announces draft wording of referendum question in Garma festival speech. This blog is now closed

AFP says reports of human trafficking and slavery reach highest ever level

Reports of human trafficking and slavery to the AFP have increased to their “highest ever reported”, according to new data released today.

This is the first time in Australia’s history where the uptake of a unified training and awareness-raising protocol to combat human trafficking and slavery will be delivered across all frontline agencies and jurisdictions.

This represents a critical step to addressing the scourge of human trafficking in the Australian community and it’s a job the AFP and our partners will work together to combat.

Dr Khorshid was elected AMA president during the first peak of the pandemic and quickly became the voice of reason, of calm and of urgency when needed – lobbying government, and fronting the media, along with hard-working vice-president Dr Chris Moy, to send clear messages about the pandemic.

His leadership was particularly critical during the early stages when there was no vaccine, and the focus was on implementing effective public health measures to ensure the safety of the community and healthcare workers.

Continue reading...

BA owner IAG returns to profit for first time since start of Covid pandemic

Posted on by

Airline group says demand is strong despite ‘historic challenges’ at Heathrow and elsewhere

British Airways has returned to profit for the first time since the start of the pandemic, with its owner International Airlines Group saying demand was strong despite “historic challenges” still facing the industry.

IAG said that there was no sign of bookings tailing off in the autumn and beyond – in the face of pessimistic forecasts from its main airport base, Heathrow – and that demand for the most lucrative transatlantic routes was continuing to grow.

Continue reading...

US to hold push for Covid boosters until fall in order to better protect against BA.5

Posted on by

Pfizer and Moderna expected to roll out reformulated boosters, likely to be authorized for anyone 12 and older, in September

Instead of expanding eligibility for a fourth Covid-19 booster shot now, the Biden administration will push this fall to get Americans to take another booster vaccination that is predicted to better protect against the Omicron BA.5 subvariant of the coronavirus.

Pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Moderna are expected to start rolling out the reformulated boosters, which are expected to be authorized for anyone 12 and older, in September.

Continue reading...

Brexit realism? The NHS? Some of the key issues ignored by Sunak and Truss

Posted on by

Tory leadership candidates have clashed bitterly but many pressing matters have been overlooked

Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss have clashed vehemently over tax and spending, immigration and the UK’s stance on China in their acrimonious battle to become prime minister – but have had little to say about many other pressing issues. Here are some largely overlooked key issues of the contest so far.

Continue reading...

Taxpayers left with £421m bill after one in 12 firms default on Covid loans

Posted on by

About 8% of borrowers – 130,000 firms – have so far failed to repay government-backed emergency loans

Taxpayers have been left to foot a £421m bill to cover soured Covid debts, after one in 12 businesses defaulted on state-backed emergency loans distributed at the height of the pandemic, official figures reveal.

In the first set of figures detailing the performance of government-backed loans offered to struggling firms during the outbreak, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said about 8% of 1.6m borrowers – roughly 130,000 – failed to repay their debts as of March this year.

Continue reading...

NSW issued 501 fines to children under 15 in past year for not wearing or carrying mask

Posted on by

Redfern Legal Centre says $20,000 in fines issued is ‘unjust’ and ‘sets children up for failure’

About 500 children aged under 15 were fined a total of $20,000 for not wearing or carrying a mask in New South Wales in the past 12 months, including 34 who remain in an unpaid work and development scheme to reduce their debts.

The state government has faced sustained criticism for its pursuit of children over Covid rule breaches, particularly given the confusing and shifting nature of public health orders and the disproportionate impact Covid fines are having on the most disadvantaged.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning

Continue reading...

UK scientists take ‘promising’ step towards single Covid and cold vaccine

Posted on by

Francis Crick Institute in London says area of spike protein of Sars-CoV-2 could form basis of jab against variants and common cold

Scientists have made a “promising” advance towards developing a universal coronavirus vaccine to tackle Covid-19 and the common cold.

Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute in London have discovered that a specific area of the spike protein of Sars-CoV-2 – the virus that causes Covid-19 – is a good target for a pan-coronavirus jab that could offer protection against all the Covid-19 variants and common colds.

Continue reading...

Outrage in Brazil as Jair Bolsonaro avoids five charges related to Covid response

Posted on by

Senators call for investigation into top prosecutor after charges against president shelved

Brazilian senators are calling for an investigation into one of the country’s top prosecutors after she shelved several charges against the president, Jair Bolsonaro, over his mishandling of the Covid-19 pandemic.

A damning congressional inquiry had recommended that Bolsonaro be charged with nine offences, including crimes against humanity and charlatanism, for promoting false treatments such as hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin.

Continue reading...

Australia politics live: Pauline Hanson under fire for welcome to country walkout; Kylea Tink and Stephen Bates make first speeches to parliament

Posted on by

AAP has a preview of today’s inflation figures, which are going to be horrible:

Australia could be about to record its worst inflation outcome in more than 31 years, paving the way for higher mortgage and lending rates.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics will release the consumer price index data for the June quarter – when the price of a supermarket iceberg lettuce hit $10 – on Wednesday.

The financial market consensus is for a headline annual inflation rate of 6.2% – the highest since the December quarter of 1990.

That would be more than the 5.1% rate logged in the March quarter, which was the fastest pace of annual price growth in 21 years.

“Since then, inflation has likely broadened and deepened,” St George chief economist Besa Deda said.

The quarterly outcome is forecast at 1.8%, which would be slightly lower than the 2.1% recorded in the previous quarter.

But the range of economists’ forecasts for the quarterly number is wide – between 1.6% and 2.8% – signalling uncertainty about how deeply entrenched price pressures have become since March.

While the main drivers of inflation in the June quarter will again be fuel and food costs, housing and building costs are also likely to be strong – perhaps as high as 20% year-on-year, according to JP Morgan economists.

Other factors are adding to the pressure, particularly in the housing sector, where rents are rising and demand for new homes and related construction services and products remains strong.

It is the first question time today. In case you missed it, here is Murph’s analysis on the plan so far:

Continue reading...