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| Coronavirus Australia update: Victoria expands Covid-19 testing as Melbourne at risk of second lockdown – live news | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Melbourne Showgrounds to open Wednesday to Keilor Downs students, teachers and parents and to general public from Thursday. Follow live | Melbourne Showgrounds to open Wednesday to Keilor Downs students, teachers and parents and to general public from Thursday. Follow live |
| Victorian chief medical officer, professor Brett Sutton, will give an update on his state’s coronavirus cases at 9.30am | |
| In world diplomacy news, Australia has decided to stick up for the International Criminal Court, despite the Trump administration | |
| It doesn’t look like the jobseeker payment will be returning to the old $40 a day rate when the Covid-supplement ends in September. But no one knows for sure. And no one knows what the new rate will be. A lot of attention has focused on people who are new to the payment, which is expected to grow once jobkeeper ends in September, and time is called on the ‘zombie businesses’ which won’t be re-opening. | |
| The Australian Council of Social Services has polled people on jobseeker, and found for many, it’s meant a complete change of life: | |
| The overwhelming majority of people who completed the survey had been receiving one of these social security payments before the Coronavirus Supplement was brought in. | |
| • 94% said the removal of the supplement would have a significant or extreme impact on their ability to cover the cost of essentials. • 93% said they were now able to afford fresh fruit and vegetables. • 83% reported eating healthier and more regularly. Prior to the supplement, 74% of respondents skipped meals. Of those who skipped meals, 28% skipped 1 meal a day or more • 69% said they were now able to pay for essential medical and health treatments. • 75% said they were able to pay their bills. • 65% said it was easier to pay rent or move to safer accommodation. | |
| We know there have been delays and reports of clinics running out of tests in Victoria, but the government is still pushing for as many people to be tested as possible. | |
| Greg Hunt has released this statement: | |
| Almost 90 clinics have now been established across Victoria to test people with cold and flu symptoms for COVID-19, influenza and pneumonia. | |
| The Australian Government is encouraging all Victorians with such symptoms, especially those living in one of the six identified coronavirus hotspots, to be tested at a GP-led Respiratory Clinic (GPRC) or Victorian Government-run fever clinic. | |
| The 27 GPRCs in Victoria, together with 60 fever clinics run by Department of Health and Human Services Victoria, are doing a great job in minimising the spread of coronavirus across the state, helping to reduce pressure on emergency departments and making it faster and easier for all Victorians to access free coronavirus testing. | |
| As at 23 June 2020, GPRCs had serviced Victorians from 548 postcodes, covering 97.7 percent of the state geographically. They have assessed more than 43,000 people, and conducted approximately 37,600 tests for coronavirus. GPRCs have conducted 24,576 tests in Victorian coronavirus hotspots alone (65 per cent of all tests conducted in Victoria). | |
| It is more important than ever for us all to work together to slow the spread and get tested if we are experiencing any symptoms. This is particularly the case for residents in areas marked as coronavirus hotspots: Hume, Casey, Brimbank, Moreland, Cardinia and Darebin – or anyone who has visited these areas recently. | |
| Victorians can access free services at their nearest testing clinic, with extended hours in certain areas, walk-through clinics and drive-through clinics making the process of getting tested as accessible as possible. | |
| For more information on where to find your nearest coronavirus testing clinic, please visit health.gov.au, DHHS Victoria or your state or territory health department website. | |
| Will NSW consider putting it’s borders up against Victoria? | Will NSW consider putting it’s borders up against Victoria? |
| NSW and Victoria remained open during the pandemic, and Gladys Berejiklian was pushing for Queensland to re-open its borders for some time. | NSW and Victoria remained open during the pandemic, and Gladys Berejiklian was pushing for Queensland to re-open its borders for some time. |
| Now, with things getting worse in Victoria, Berejiklian says: | Now, with things getting worse in Victoria, Berejiklian says: |
| Which is not exactly ruling it out. | Which is not exactly ruling it out. |
| And in case that wasn’t clear, the NSW premier repeats it: | And in case that wasn’t clear, the NSW premier repeats it: |
| Gladys Berejiklian is not taking a step back from her warning to NSW tourism businesses to avoid taking bookings from Melbourne Covid hotspot travellers - and is warning her residents to stay away as well. | Gladys Berejiklian is not taking a step back from her warning to NSW tourism businesses to avoid taking bookings from Melbourne Covid hotspot travellers - and is warning her residents to stay away as well. |
| Speaking to the ABC about the Victorian case spike, Berejiklian said: | Speaking to the ABC about the Victorian case spike, Berejiklian said: |
| Josh Frydenberg has been doing the interview rounds this morning: | Josh Frydenberg has been doing the interview rounds this morning: |
| And how worried is the treasurer, who lives and represents Kooyong, about the Victorian Covid situation? | |
| What about the arts and entertainment sectors? What can they expect? | |
| Josh Frydenberg: | Josh Frydenberg: |
| The ratings agency Moody’s has reconfirmed Australia’s AAA credit rating, which has made Josh Frydenberg happy. | |
| An AAA credit rating makes it easy for governments to borrow funds from international banks – better interest rates and repayment terms. In a sense, they know we’re good for it. | |
| So what does that mean for programs like jobkeeper, if anything? | So what does that mean for programs like jobkeeper, if anything? |
| Frydenberg, speaking to ABC News Breakfast this morning, wouldn’t say: | Frydenberg, speaking to ABC News Breakfast this morning, wouldn’t say: |
| Murph has taken a look at what Anthony Albanese plans on addressing at his press club speech today – bipartisanship on energy policy. | |
| An estimated 125,000 public school students in Australia have no internet access at home, according to a new report that attempts to measure the “digital inclusion gap”. | |
| Releasing the report this morning, the Australian Education Union said the Covid-19 pandemic had “exposed the long-term systemic inequality that already exists for Australian students, particularly those from vulnerable backgrounds”. | |
| The AEU commissioned the researcher Barbara Preston to delve into the problem, after teachers heard persistent reports of students who were unable to properly take part in remote learning at home during the pandemic because of poor quality or non-existent access to the internet. | |
| The report’s findings include: | |
| About 125,000 public school students lived in dwellings that were reported to have no internet access in 2016, when the last census was done. | |
| While the rollout of the national broadband network continued after the 2016 census, there has also been an increase in the percentage of Australian children living in poverty – so the NBN would tend not to be affordable by those living in poverty, and not a priority for many living close to poverty or in unstable housing. | |
| The percentage of students without internet access at home was 5% among public school students in 2016, compared with 2% among Catholic students and 2% among independent students – so public school students were more than twice as likely as either Catholic or independent school students to have no internet access. | |
| Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students were much more likely to have no internet access at home - 21% compared with 5% for all public school students. | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students were much more likely to have no internet access at home - 21% compared with 5% for all public school students. |
| About 9% of students with low family incomes had no internet access at home, while only 1% of students with high family incomes did not have access. | About 9% of students with low family incomes had no internet access at home, while only 1% of students with high family incomes did not have access. |
| About 4% of public school students in major cities had no internet access at home, compared with 12% in remote areas and 32% in very remote areas. | About 4% of public school students in major cities had no internet access at home, compared with 12% in remote areas and 32% in very remote areas. |
| The AEU’s federal president, Correna Haythorpe, said the report “must be a wake-up call for the federal government about the urgent need to close the persistent long-term gap in internet access, affordability of IT hardware and software”. | The AEU’s federal president, Correna Haythorpe, said the report “must be a wake-up call for the federal government about the urgent need to close the persistent long-term gap in internet access, affordability of IT hardware and software”. |
| She called on the government to launch a digital equity audit. | She called on the government to launch a digital equity audit. |
| As we learnt yesterday, Victorian authorities are seriously considering a second lockdown – one that could be statewide – if social distancing recommendations are not followed. | As we learnt yesterday, Victorian authorities are seriously considering a second lockdown – one that could be statewide – if social distancing recommendations are not followed. |
| At the same time, health authorities are reviewing procedures for staff at Melbourne’s quarantine hotels after two outbreaks stemmed from security staff working at them. | At the same time, health authorities are reviewing procedures for staff at Melbourne’s quarantine hotels after two outbreaks stemmed from security staff working at them. |
| Victoria is now Australia’s most-watched state when it comes to the Covid-19 pandemic, with more than 133 cases linked to the most latest outbreaks. | Victoria is now Australia’s most-watched state when it comes to the Covid-19 pandemic, with more than 133 cases linked to the most latest outbreaks. |
| Gladys Berejiklian, who had been pushing for states like Queensland to open its borders, has warned NSW tourism operators to turn away any visitors from Victoria’s hotspots and South Australia has increased the police presence at the border it shares with Victoria, as well as ordering Victorians to get online approval before they try to enter the state. | Gladys Berejiklian, who had been pushing for states like Queensland to open its borders, has warned NSW tourism operators to turn away any visitors from Victoria’s hotspots and South Australia has increased the police presence at the border it shares with Victoria, as well as ordering Victorians to get online approval before they try to enter the state. |
| We’ll have more on that, and everything else as it happens today. Anthony Albanese is due to give an address to the National Press Club which we’ll also cover, as well as other general political news. | We’ll have more on that, and everything else as it happens today. Anthony Albanese is due to give an address to the National Press Club which we’ll also cover, as well as other general political news. |
| You have Amy Remeikis with you for the bulk of the day. | You have Amy Remeikis with you for the bulk of the day. |