Australia news LIVE NSW records 1480 new local COVID-19 cases nine deaths as state hits 75 per cent first-dose vaccination target Victoria records 221 new cases
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Good afternoon, Megan Gorrey here. I’m taking over the blog from Broede Carmody to steer you through the rest of the day’s developments. If you are just joining us now, here’s what you might have missed:
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian at today’s press conference. Credit:James Brickwood
Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre vaccination site at Boondall.Credit:Matt Dennien
A war of words has broken out between Peter Dutton and Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath about whether she tried to contact him about the return of Aussie Diggers into hotel quarantine. Queensland authorities rubbished claims Diggers sent to rescue refugees in Afghanistan had been stranded overseas due to delays approving hotel quarantine, saying their return was never in doubt. Ms D’Ath said she had tried to call Defence Minister Peter Dutton about the issue on Wednesday morning and sent him a text, but had not heard back. In response, Mr Dutton tweeted: “Yvette D’Ath’s comment this morning that she called and or texted me is untrue. I have not had any contact from her.â€
Australians will have access to an international vaccine passport from next month.Credit:James Brickwood
Health Minister Greg Hunt did not accept an invitation for a detailed initial meeting with Pfizer’s top executives about progress on a coronavirus vaccine, as other countries were already on track to signing deals for millions of doses.
The pharmaceutical company eventually had its first meeting with representatives from Mr Hunt’s office two weeks after the United States and United Kingdom had already signed deals for a combined 130 million doses.
Health Minister Greg Hunt last month rejected Labor’s claims the government was too slow to engage with Pfizer executives.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
Earlier today, we reported documents from June and early July last year released under Freedom of Information laws showed the company was eager to have a high-level meeting “at the earliest opportunityâ€, but received a response from the Department of Health days later offering a meeting with a first assistant secretary instead.
A spokesman for Health Minister Greg Hunt rejected the interpretation that the government was slow to act, saying the Department of Health began working with Pfizer shortly after the pandemic began.
“The Department has been actively engaged with Pfizer since very early in the pandemic,†he said. “These discussions have been extensive and cooperative.â€
You can catch up on the story here.
A judge will decide whether to allow the lawyer of former special forces soldier Ben Roberts-Smith to cross-examine his ex-wife over whether she gave her friend access to his email account.
Mr Roberts-Smith, who is suing The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Canberra Times for defamation over articles that he says wrongly portray him as a murderer and war criminal, is also taking action against his former wife, Emma Roberts, to find out if she gave confidential information to the newspapers’ lawyers.
The defamation trial is scheduled to resume in November, depending on COVID-19 lockdowns and state border closures.
Ben Roberts-Smith outside the Federal Court in Sydney earlier this year.Credit:Nick Moir
Mr Roberts-Smith’s barrister, Arthur Moses, SC, told the Federal Court on Tuesday that telecommunications records indicate an email address used by the former soldier to correspond with his lawyers was accessed by Danielle Scott, a close friend of Ms Roberts, on at least 101 occasions.
Ms Roberts signed an affidavit on August 20 swearing that she did not give Ms Scott access to the account.
“Now regrettably, we say that those passages of that affidavit are a false construct,†Mr Moses said.
But Ms Roberts’ lawyer, Jason Murakami, said the inference Mr Moses was making was “purely speculative†and there was no evidence that Ms Roberts had given her friend the password.
Read the full story here.
Sydneysiders have queued at pop-up Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination clinics that have opened for residents aged 16 to 59 years in the city’s inner west and inner east amid rising case numbers in those areas.
Walk-in clinics have opened at the Peter Forsyth Auditorium at Glebe, Marrickville PCYC and Wests Ashfield.
The pop-up Pfizer vaccination hub for 16 to 59-year-olds at the Peter Forsyth Auditorium, Glebe.Credit:James Brickwood
Premier Gladys Berejiklian voiced concern about the slow vaccination uptake in some inner suburbs of Sydney, particularly in Glebe, Waterloo, Redfern and Marrickville, as NSW recorded 1480 new local cases of COVID-19.
Of those cases, 233 were from Sydney local health district, and 119 were from the south-eastern Sydney local health district.
Health authorities raised concerns about the number of cases in suburbs including Glebe, Waterloo and Marrickville. Credit:James Brickwood
“While parts of western Sydney and south-western Sydney are demonstrating outstanding results, there are other parts of Greater Sydney where we’d like vaccination rates to go up,†Ms Berejiklian said on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the Sydney Local Health District said residents “no longer need to be from a local government area of concernâ€, as it urged people to get vaccinated now.
“Please make a booking now. We have six sites running this week. If you can’t make an appointment online, our staff can help you when you arrive.â€
Victorian health authorities have identified several new COVID-19 exposure sites across the state.
Among them are several new tier-1 or close contact sites, including a neighbourhood learning centre and an auto body repair shop, both in Melbourne’s north. The new tier-1 sites are:
The remainder of the new sites are tier-2 or casual contact sites. They are:
A full list of Victorian exposure sites can be found here.
Kiwis stuck in NSW will have an opportunity to get back to New Zealand, if they meet the criteria.
New Zealand’s Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment announced on Wednesday a second “red†flight would depart Sydney for Auckland next Wednesday for people who fit the emergency requirements.
An announcement on the future of quarantine-free travel with Australia is expected later this month.Credit:Bloomberg
People will have until 3pm AEST on Saturday, September 11, to apply for the flight via the government’s Managed Isolation and Quarantine website.
The ministry said everyone who was eligible was encouraged to take up this opportunity to return to New Zealand.
Travellers must not have been at a location of interest in the previous 14 days and must present proof of a negative pre-departure COVID-19 test at check-in taken within 72 hours of departure. They would be required to enter into managed isolation for 14 days on arrival at their own cost.
The first managed flight organised by the government arrived on September 5 with 93 people on board. This additional flight would allow more people in urgent situations to come home, the ministry said.
“With emergency allocations suspended for people in Australia since July, this brings Australia back in line with the rest of the world, where people have continued to have access to emergency allocations,†Brigadier Rose King, who is the Joint Head of Managed Isolation and Quarantine, said in a statement.
The emergency criteria applied to New Zealanders who needed access to time-critical medical treatment, who were in a location where there was a serious risk to their safety or where they were unable to legally remain, or those travelling to visit a close relative who was terminally ill or who had died.
The ministry said the flight wasn’t open to the general public, and people were advised not to contact airlines directly.
An announcement on the future of quarantine-free travel with Australia is expected later this month.
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About 200 police officers will be deployed to regional Victoria from midnight on Thursday to ensure people in metropolitan Melbourne aren’t travelling to those areas as they come out of lockdown.
The lockdown in regional Victoria, except for in Greater Shepparton, will lift at 11.59pm on Thursday, with restaurants and cafes able to throw their doors open and up to 25 per cent of people allowed to return to workplaces among the new freedoms.
Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Rick Nugent said on Wednesday: “With the easing of restrictions, some people in greater Melbourne may be tempted to interact with regional areas for all sorts of reasons, whether that’s visiting a café ... a pub or restaurant, or some other reason.“
He said 200 police would be deployed to take part in “Operation Guardianâ€, patrolling major arterial roads into regional Victoria as well as backroads.The operation would include booze busses, random checkpoints, roving patrols, and the use of automatic number plate recognition technology.
Mr Nugent warned if people from metropolitan did try to visit the regions, they would be hit with a $5452 fine for breaching the Chief Health Officer’s directions.
“It has been really difficult during … multiple lockdowns, [and] the community has been outstanding and its support and abiding by the directions,†Mr Nugent said.
“Having said that, we still come across people that choose to ignore those rules, and I’m just imploring people, please abide by the rules, stay in metropolitan Melbourne. Don’t spread the [virus] with the regional areas.â€
NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet has denied his push for all Sydney suburbs to be opened up together puts him at odds with Premier Gladys Berejiklian.
Mr Perrottet said he didn’t want to see a “tale of two cities†as restrictions begin to lift when the state reaches 70 per cent vaccination rates. His remarks have gained support from mayors of some council areas “of concernâ€.
NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet.Credit:Nick Moir
“We should all as a city right across Sydney come out together … we should be treating everyone equally,†he told radio station 2GB earlier today.
“I know there’s been discussion around trials and alike as we lead up to that date, but people in Western Sydney have made enormous sacrifices as we all have across our state.â€
The NSW Treasurer said he didn’t think he’d said anything contrary to what the Premier had said.
The mayor of the City of Canterbury Bankstown, Khal Asfour, said lifting restrictions equally across all local government areas would put “an end to the great divide†created by differing rules in parts of Sydney.
He said Ms Berejiklian was “headed for a showdown if she doesn’t open up the city to allâ€.
Cumberland City Council mayor Steve Christou also welcomed Mr Perrottet’s remarks. He issued a statement saying: “Finally, someone in the state government has started speaking sense!
“I wholeheartedly agree with Treasurer Dominic Perrottet’s position that western and southwest Sydney should reopen at the same time as the rest of the city to avoid a ‘two-speed recovery’.â€
We reported earlier on a war of words that erupted between Defence Minister Peter Dutton and Queensland Health Minister Yvette D’Ath about whether she tried to contact him to discuss the return of Aussie Diggers to hotel quarantine.
Queensland’s authorities rubbished claims soldiers sent to rescue refugees in Afghanistan were stranded in Dubai because the Palaszczuk government had not approved a special hotel quarantine exemption for them.
Yvette D’Ath showed journalists her phone to show she had texted Peter Dutton, but she had the wrong number.Credit:Tim Arvier, Nine News
Ms D’Ath said Diggers returning to the state would be permitted to quarantine in their own bubble.
On Wednesday morning, she accused the federal government of playing “cheap politics†over the issue and said she attempted to call Mr Dutton and sent him a text, but had not heard back.
In a swift response, Mr Dutton tweeted: “Yvette D’Ath’s comment this morning that she called and or texted me is untrue. I have not had any contact from her.â€
Ms D’Ath returned fire, showing journalists her phone history and saying: “Called Peter Dutton at 8.19 ... sent Peter Dutton a text at 8.21 - can he please call me - I’ve had no response.â€
However, minutes later, it was revealed the phone number Ms D’Ath had for Mr Dutton was incorrect.
The two ministers have now spoken, using the correct phone numbers.
You can catch up on the full story here.
A talented soccer player who was injured in a one-punch attack on the weekend is fighting for his life in a Perth hospital while his distraught parents are stranded in the United Kingdom due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.
British expat Danny Hodgson was on his way home on Saturday night after celebrations for an end-of-season game when he was struck to the back of his head, knocking him to the ground and leaving him unconscious.
Danny Hodgson is in an induced coma in Royal Perth Hospital after being coward hit. Credit:Facebook
The 25-year-old, originally from Cumbria in England’s north-west, was rushed to Royal Perth Hospital with severe head injuries and had emergency surgery for bleeding to the brain and a brain fracture.
His mother Nicola Hodgson said her son took a turn for the worse due to more severe brain hemorrhaging and was rushed to theatre again on Sunday for more intrusive brain surgery that lasted for four hours.
He is now in an induced coma, which Mrs Hodgson was told he could remain in for days or even weeks.
Mrs Hodgson and her husband Peter are desperate to be by their son’s bedside but have struggled to find a flight out of the UK to Perth due to Australia’s closed borders and limited number of passenger arrivals allowed in.
Mrs Hodgson took to social media in an effort to get public support and help in finding a way to be with her beloved eldest son who has a “heart of goldâ€.
Read the full story here.
Several patients are isolating after a person with coronavirus was treated in the emergency department of Melbourne’s St Vincent’s Hospital yesterday.
A spokesman for the hospital, in the inner city suburb of Fitzroy, said the patient tested positive for coronavirus upon arrival and was treated as a suspected COVID-19 patient as soon as they entered the hospital.
St Vincent’s Hospital in the inner Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy.Credit:Scott McNaughton
“All appropriate COVID-safe controls were in place, including staff in full personal protective equipment, and as a result no staff members required furloughing as a result,†he said.
The spokesman said in line with Victorian Department of Health protocols, the patient was transferred to Royal Melbourne Hospital last night for ongoing care.
The Age and the Herald have been told five patients were potentially exposed to the virus due to being in the emergency department at the same time as the positive case. All are in quarantine for 14 days as a precaution.
“During the triage and assessment of patients in our busy emergency department, it is always possible that individuals may come in contact with others who are later diagnosed with COVID,†he said.
“We recognise this risk and as a matter of safety for staff and other patients we isolate all patients who may have had contact with a COVID case during their period of assessment in our emergency department.â€
Patients and staff at The Alfred hospital’s emergency department have also been forced into isolation after it was deemed a Tier 1 exposure site.
Anyone who attended the emergency department’s waiting room on September 6 between 5.37pm and 11.55pm must get tested and isolate for 14 days regardless of the result.
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