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| Australian politics live: Victoria reports five new Covid cases as Melbourne goes on high alert | Australian politics live: Victoria reports five new Covid cases as Melbourne goes on high alert |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| A school student in Melbourne’s north tested positive to coronavirus, putting the suburbs of Dallas, Roxburgh Park, Broadmeadows, Preston and West Heidelberg on high alert. Follow live | A school student in Melbourne’s north tested positive to coronavirus, putting the suburbs of Dallas, Roxburgh Park, Broadmeadows, Preston and West Heidelberg on high alert. Follow live |
| The five people who tested positive for Covid in the last 24 hours were five of almost 18,5000 people who went and got tests for the virus. | |
| That is a huge testing figure – well done Victoria. | |
| The ABC has to pay Foxtel to access women’s sports games, the government has paid Foxtel $40m to broadcast. | |
| That agreement is also commercial-in-confidence. | |
| But I haven’t seen the good senator release an all bells ringing tweet about that. | |
| The ACT has had its Covid-free streak broken by a returning diplomat – but they are in quarantine. | |
| This seems like it was a million years ago. | |
| Time has no meaning in 2020. It’s not linear. More like drops of acid rain falling all around us. | |
| The final hearing of the aged care royal commission has heard some absolutely heartbreaking and shocking figures. | |
| Peter Rozen QC, the counsel assisting the commission said that almost half of the more than 10,000 public submissions the inquiry received, half had references to substandard care (via AAP). The Coalition has been in power since 2013. | |
| The report continued: | |
| But yeah, what about the tweets? | |
| Kristina Keneally was ordered to ask questions about the National Archives or not at all. | Kristina Keneally was ordered to ask questions about the National Archives or not at all. |
| She’s found a way to make her point, by asking director general David Fricker if cabinet minutes are archived and when they might be available (answer: after 20 years). | |
| Keneally then asked Liberal senator Jonathon Duniam whether the Australian public will therefore have to wait a minimum of 20 years “to find out about cabinet disdain for the aged care royal commission”. There is outcry from Liberal senators, and Keneally loses the call again. | Keneally then asked Liberal senator Jonathon Duniam whether the Australian public will therefore have to wait a minimum of 20 years “to find out about cabinet disdain for the aged care royal commission”. There is outcry from Liberal senators, and Keneally loses the call again. |
| Amanda Stoker is now asking Fricker whether the government had warned him that releasing the Palace Letters to everyone at the same time (not first to Jenny Hocking) was unfair. | Amanda Stoker is now asking Fricker whether the government had warned him that releasing the Palace Letters to everyone at the same time (not first to Jenny Hocking) was unfair. |
| Fricker said Hocking was unable to come to Canberra but sent a research assistant who had “first hands” on the original documents. Fricker said there was “never a view” the public release should not happen because it was unfair. | Fricker said Hocking was unable to come to Canberra but sent a research assistant who had “first hands” on the original documents. Fricker said there was “never a view” the public release should not happen because it was unfair. |
| In New South Wales, Gladys Berejiklian is demanding Queensland and Western Australia pay back NSW for their residents’ hotel quarantine bill. | |
| Berejiklian wants $35m from Queensland and about $8m from WA. | Berejiklian wants $35m from Queensland and about $8m from WA. |
| She says that since they closed their borders and are not taking in as many returned travellers, they can pay what it cost NSW to take in their residents. | She says that since they closed their borders and are not taking in as many returned travellers, they can pay what it cost NSW to take in their residents. |
| National cabinet is going brilliantly. | National cabinet is going brilliantly. |
| NSW Health looks like it has reconciled a mystery case from earlier in the month: | NSW Health looks like it has reconciled a mystery case from earlier in the month: |
| The counsel assisting the aged care royal commission have made 124 recommendations. | The counsel assisting the aged care royal commission have made 124 recommendations. |
| You can find them here. | |
| There will be a final report handed down in February. | There will be a final report handed down in February. |
| Queensland has recorded no new cases of Covid. | Queensland has recorded no new cases of Covid. |
| So that is five in Victoria and seven in NSW – but six are in hotel quarantine. | |
| The royal commission into aged care, in its final hearing, has heard there are reports of 50 sexual assaults a week against residents. | The royal commission into aged care, in its final hearing, has heard there are reports of 50 sexual assaults a week against residents. |
| Take that in for a moment. | Take that in for a moment. |
| Then think back to what the government senators chose to raise with the attorney general department this morning. | |
| David Fricker, the director general of the National Archives, has revealed the commonwealth spent $1.04m in legal fees blocking Jenny Hocking’s application to access the palace letters. | |
| The National Archives lost in the high court, resulting in the release of the palace Letters on 14 July. | |
| Fricker revealed that in addition to Jenny Hocking, there were other applicants who had asked for the palace letters. | |
| Independent senator Rex Patrick is pissed that Hocking found out about the upcoming release from the media. Fricker replied that the National Archives did inform Hocking and the other applicants before the media. | Independent senator Rex Patrick is pissed that Hocking found out about the upcoming release from the media. Fricker replied that the National Archives did inform Hocking and the other applicants before the media. |
| It’s 11.30 for Daniel Andrews today. | It’s 11.30 for Daniel Andrews today. |
| Meanwhile, back in legal affairs estimates, where it has moved on to the national archives we have learnt that the legal fees to fight releasing the palace letters topped $1m. | Meanwhile, back in legal affairs estimates, where it has moved on to the national archives we have learnt that the legal fees to fight releasing the palace letters topped $1m. |
| Meanwhile, valuable archive information is disintegrating because there are not the resources to digitise it and there are almost 20,000 outstanding requests to access information contained in the National Archives. | Meanwhile, valuable archive information is disintegrating because there are not the resources to digitise it and there are almost 20,000 outstanding requests to access information contained in the National Archives. |
| Heading overseas for the moment – the FBI has sent out an alert to voters accusing Iran and Russia of attempting to meddle in the coming election. | Heading overseas for the moment – the FBI has sent out an alert to voters accusing Iran and Russia of attempting to meddle in the coming election. |
| Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe said: | Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe said: |
| After a private ‘meeting’ (debate) Labor has lost the call, and Amanda Stoker and Sarah Henderson’s questions and assertions in the committee about a public servant, during a session they called over “new information” they had just learned about, and ended at 10.10am, go unchallenged. | After a private ‘meeting’ (debate) Labor has lost the call, and Amanda Stoker and Sarah Henderson’s questions and assertions in the committee about a public servant, during a session they called over “new information” they had just learned about, and ended at 10.10am, go unchallenged. |
| Australia Post is facing questions from Labor as to whether postal services have deteriorated as a result of changes made after the coronavirus pandemic began. | Australia Post is facing questions from Labor as to whether postal services have deteriorated as a result of changes made after the coronavirus pandemic began. |
| Under the ‘Alternating Delivery Model’ (ADM) announced in May, about 2,000 motorbike posties were set to trade bikes for vans or move into warehouses to cope with the increased load or parcels, with the frequency of letter deliveries also being cut. | Under the ‘Alternating Delivery Model’ (ADM) announced in May, about 2,000 motorbike posties were set to trade bikes for vans or move into warehouses to cope with the increased load or parcels, with the frequency of letter deliveries also being cut. |
| Labor’s Kim Carr has asked about a survey of nearly 400 posties, conducted by the Victorian postal union, with 93% of respondents saying the model had degraded service quality, and 71% saying they were unable to take all their breaks to complete their delivery round, as per a report in The New Daily. | Labor’s Kim Carr has asked about a survey of nearly 400 posties, conducted by the Victorian postal union, with 93% of respondents saying the model had degraded service quality, and 71% saying they were unable to take all their breaks to complete their delivery round, as per a report in The New Daily. |
| Rod Barnes, of Australia Post, said he would look into the reports, but indicated the data and information he had available to him did not back up the claims. He said it would be unacceptable if posties felt the need to speed up as a result of the volume of work, but every postie had a scanner and GPS positioning device that would allow these claims to be checked. | Rod Barnes, of Australia Post, said he would look into the reports, but indicated the data and information he had available to him did not back up the claims. He said it would be unacceptable if posties felt the need to speed up as a result of the volume of work, but every postie had a scanner and GPS positioning device that would allow these claims to be checked. |
| “I do take those safety reports seriously and I will look into those.” | “I do take those safety reports seriously and I will look into those.” |
| Barnes said that half of posties in Victoria were having to start each day three or three and a half hours later than their colleagues, which impacted productivity. Australia Post understood this was not popular with posties. But Barnes said the decision not to have everyone starting at the same time each day was driven by Covid-safety needs. “It is simply not safe for us to do so.” | Barnes said that half of posties in Victoria were having to start each day three or three and a half hours later than their colleagues, which impacted productivity. Australia Post understood this was not popular with posties. But Barnes said the decision not to have everyone starting at the same time each day was driven by Covid-safety needs. “It is simply not safe for us to do so.” |