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Watch live: NSW and Victoria’s COVID-19 update
By Broede Carmody
NSW and Victorian authorities are providing COVID-19 updates.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian will provide the state’s daily update at 11am AEST alongside Health Minister Brad Hazzard and NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant. Joining them are Deputy Premier John Barilaro, Treasurer Dominic Perrottet and NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Michael Willing.
And from 11.15am AEST, Victoria’s Health Minister Martin Foley and Chief Health Officer Dr Brett Sutton provide the state’s COVID update.
NSW’s press conference
Victoria’s press conference
New rules in Greater Sydney, western Sydney year 12s to be vaccinated
By Mary Ward
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has announced a number of tweaks to restrictions in Greater Sydney, as its lockdown is extended until August 28.
Here’s a recap:
- Non-essential workers in the local government areas of Parramatta, Campbelltown and Georges River in Sydney’s west and south will join those in Fairfield, Cumberland, Canterbury-Bankstown, Liverpool and Blacktown in being unable to leave their local area for work.
- Workers leaving Canterbury-Bankstown, south-west of Sydney’s CBD, for work will need to be tested every three days. This requirement has been eased in nearby Fairfield, where only aged care and healthcare workers need to be tested every three days. Aged care and healthcare workers in Cumberland will also need to be tested every three days.
- Construction will resume on Saturday, but not in the above eight local government areas of concern.
- Tradespeople, including domestic cleaners, who have zero contact with clients will also be able to resume work.
- Year 12s will return to face-to-face learning on August 16, and a vaccination program will begin for students in the eight areas of concern, redirecting Pfizer vaccines from regional NSW. Rapid antigen testing will be used when students return. All other students will continue to learn from home.
- People in Greater Sydney may only shop within a 10-kilometre radius of their place of residence if the item is available locally.
- A singles bubble will be introduced for people who live alone.
The Premier said rules around funerals needed to remain in place, noting a recent funeral held contrary to the health order at Pendle Hill, in Sydney’s west, resulted in 45 of 50 attendees testing positive.
NSW records 177 new cases of COVID-19
By Mary Ward
NSW has reported 177 new local COVID-19 cases, a record daily case total for Sydney’s current outbreak.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian has confirmed Greater Sydney’s lockdown will be extended to August 28.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian arriving for today’s press conference.Credit:Nick Moir
“It was fairly obvious, given the way the numbers were going in the last few days, it would have not been possible for us to get out of lockdown tomorrow or Friday,” the Premier said at this morning’s press conference.
New restrictions in place for the next four weeks include restricting shopping to a 10-kilometre radius from a person’s place of residence if the item is available locally.
Non-essential workers in the local government areas of Parramatta, Campbelltown and Georges River will not be allowed to leave their areas for work from midnight tonight, bringing the number of western and southern Sydney councils under that restriction to eight.
The source of infection of 103 of today’s cases is under investigation. At least 68 were in the community while infectious, including 46 who were infectious in the community for all of their infectious period.
The new cases come after the state reported 172 new local cases yesterday.
Vaccine hesitancy down due to lockdowns
By Michael Fowler
Lockdowns in New South Wales and Victoria have drastically reduced coronavirus vaccine hesitancy across the country at least in the short-term, according to new research from the University of Melbourne.
The fortnightly Vaccine Hesitancy Report Card found hesitancy sunk from 33 per cent of the adult population at the end of May to 21.5 per cent on July 23, with hesitancy currently lowest among NSW residents at 14.6 per cent.
“Hesitancy” here refers to those either unsure about or unwilling to get a vaccine.
A Melbourne GP administering a COVID-19 vaccine earlier this year. Credit:Justin McManus
The survey of 1200 people across Australia found 9.7 of adults fall in the crucial middle zone of being unsure about getting vaccinated, down from 15 per cent in late May. This demographic is most likely to be persuaded by government policy and messaging.
The proportion of adults simply unwilling to get vaccinated has also reduced, to 11.8 per cent nationwide compared to 18 per cent at the end of May. Again, this rate is lowest in NSW at 7.6 per cent.
Despite the outbreaks in Sydney and Melbourne, the age bracket of 18 to 44 illustrated the highest rate of vaccine hesitancy at 28.8 per cent, while Queensland was the highest among states and territories at 30.9 per cent.
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton admitted yesterday that in the context of the Delta variant, a vaccination rate of 80 per cent across the country appeared increasingly necessary before Australian society could be fully protected against COVID-19 and safely enjoy freedoms such as re-opening international borders.
These latest results indicate 78.5 per cent of Australians would happily get vaccinated immediately if supply was available from the federal government.
You can view the full data set, which is led by Professor Anthony Scott and updated fortnightly, here.
As many as 300,000 jobs to go as Sydney lockdown bites
By Jennifer Duke
The nation’s biggest bank is warning the Sydney lockdown will cause 300,000 job losses over the next few months.
A Commonwealth Bank research note released this morning warns the unemployment rate will peak at 5.6 per cent in October as a result of the measures put in place by the NSW Government to limit the spread of coronavirus and has flagged more federal government stimulus as the most likely outcome.
Police guard an apartment block in Blacktown, in Sydney’s west, where residents have been put into 14 days quarantine. Credit:Janie Barrett
CBA head of economics Gareth Aird is predicting total spending in NSW to contract by 9 per cent in the third quarter of 2021, resulting in GDP shrinking by 2.7 per cent over the same period.
“A deep contraction in GDP over Q3 21 is now a fait accompli. It is the inevitable consequence of shutting down large parts of the economy,” Mr Aird said.
However, he said outcomes nationally would vary with the NSW lockdown creating a “two-speed” situation whereby the most populous state’s economy would contract over the quarter while the rest of the country would expand modestly.
“Substantial policy support will once again be needed to ensure that the economic rebound is swift when restrictions are eased.”
Qld to keep Victorian, South Australian travellers out despite lockdowns ending
By Matt Dennien
Queensland will maintain its border closures with Victoria and South Australia for the time being after the southern states lifted lockdown orders but kept a range of other restrictions in place.
But Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said those eligible to enter Queensland, including returning residents and others with exemptions, would be able to quarantine at home if this was deemed suitable.
Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath. Credit:Matt Dennien
“Based on the decisions made by the Victorian government and the South Australian government yesterday to lift their lockdown but to continue to have a very high level of restrictions in those states ... we will continue to declare Victoria and South Australia as hot spots which will mean that there are only certain eligible people to come to Queensland,” Ms D’Ath said.
The state Health Minister added the border restrictions would be reviewed again as the southern states alter their own management of the recent outbreaks.
More than a million Victorian students return to the classroom
By Adam Carey
More than a million Victorian students are back in the classroom this morning after an enforced 12-day absence.
Their eagerness to return was palpable at Resurrection Catholic Primary School, where the courtyards were alive with hundreds of excited children half an hour before bell time.
Rehab Chege with her two daughters arriving for school earlier this morning in Melbourne’s north-western suburbs. Credit:Jason South
Mother Rahab Chege dropped off her two daughters Carol, 7, and Genevieve, 5, before work.
An essential worker in the health sector, Ms Chege had continued to go into work each day while her husband, who is in IT, supervised the two children at home.
While at home the two girls used learning packs the teachers personally delivered to about 500 students who attend the school in Kings Park in Melbourne’s west.
“They have done really well,” Ms Chege said. “The teachers told us during lockdown, this is what you need to catch up on with your child.”
New community case for Queensland as 19 cargo ship crew members test positive
By Matt Dennien
Queensland has reported one new community case of COVID-19 and 19 infections in a cargo ship which has entered the state’s waters.
Health Minister Yvette D’Ath said new, locally acquired case is a man who lives in Western Australia but left quarantine on July 17 and all his tests across those 14 days were negative.
He had been staying at the Roma Street City Backpackers in Brisbane before becoming unwell and getting tested on Monday. He is deemed to have been infectious in the community since July 22 with contact tracing now under way.
Chief health officer Jeannette Young said nineteen members of the bulk carrier Sanyu entered Torres Strait waters from the Philippines on Monday, asking for a pilot and disclosing there were “a lot of sick people” on the ship.
Maritime Safety Queensland is now working with the ship, expected to arrive near Weipa today, to maintain safety before crew members can be brought to COVID-19 facilities in Brisbane.
Dr Young said the situations marked the 13th incursion of the virus into the state in six weeks and urged residents to stay vigilant, get tested if symptomatic, and vaccinated it available.
“It doesn’t matter where you are in the state because as we can see, the backpackers, when we follow up with all of them, could have gone anywhere in the state,” Dr Young said.
Watch: Qld’s COVID-19 update
By Broede Carmody
Queensland’s Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young and Health Minister Yvette D’Ath are due to provide the state’s coronavirus update from 9.30am AEST.
There were no new cases in the Sunshine State yesterday but authorities remain on high alert after a NSW man crossed the border despite being a close contact of a coronavirus case.
Watch live below.
A sense of normalcy returns as cafes welcome regulars back in Melbourne
By David Estcourt
Melburnians exited lockdown on Wednesday with trepidation, but optimism, with many taking the opportunity to sit down for breakfast as cafes threw their doors open to welcome back their regulars.
The eased restrictions allowed Northcote local Christopher Ong and three-year-old daughter Ava to share a croissant at High Street cafe Bicycle Thieves before they started their day.
Christopher Ong and daughter Ava, 3, enjoy a coffee at Northcote cafe Bicycle Thieves as Melbourne emerges from its latest lockdown.Credit:Chris Hopkins
“Now that lockdown’s over it’s almost like daddy-daughter time. We spend half an hour in the morning colouring before she goes to school,” he said.
“During lockdown we would go to the park, just walk around, it gets freezing, it’s wet and it’s cold, so this is good. I just hope that one day it can be somewhat permanent.”
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2021-07-28 01:08:50Z
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