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Daniel Andrews is speaking after Victoria records no coronavirus cases and NSW one
Coronavirus Australia live update: Daniel Andrews says 'now is the time to open up' after Victoria records no Covid cases
(32 minutes later)
Melbourne lockdown extended as authorities monitor outbreak in city’s north, while Treasury chief faces questions at Senate estimates. Follow all the latest updates
From midnight tomorrow night Melbourne businesses will be able to start reopening as restrictions ease. Follow all the latest updates
Asked about how confident he is in Victoria’s contact tracing team, Daniel Andrews says:
On the question of why there is a delay in announcing the in-home rules, Daniel Andrews says:
Daniel Andrews says the delay in announcing the at-home rules (you’ll be able to visit each other from midnight tomorrow, but you won’t find out how until tomorrow morning) is because they are working on a “simple” model, which is also effective.
Q: What does it mean to you to be able to say zero cases?
Daniel Andrews:
For those who can’t see, Daniel Andrews is wearing the North Face jacket.
Q: Can I confirm you are saying we can finally get on the beers?
Daniel Andrews:
(pause)
Q: Is this quite emotional for you?
Andrews:
I’ve said it before – but Daniel Andrews is very, very emotional in this press conference.
There is a lot of pressure being released here.
Andrews:
The rest of Australia has no idea how Victorians feel or what they went through.
The federal Victorian MPs and the journalists have also had a dose of normality to their lives - travel was allowed for work.
For the vast majority of Victorians and in particular those in Melbourne, this has been something those of us on the outside can never truly understand.
I am so happy for you Victoria. And proud. And to those in Melbourne who went through an even longer lockdown, I salute you. What you went through - and why - is not something we will forget.
Daniel Andrews on the longer roadmap:
The metro-regional border will be scrapped at 11.59pm on November 8.
The 25km limit will be scrapped at the same time.
Victoria’s ‘ring of steel’ will be pulled down
A clearly emotional Daniel Andrews finally gets to give some good news – 116 days after the second wave gripped his state.
Melbourne, take a bow - you did it. From tomorrow - all retail opens. Hospitality reopens. Beauty reopens. You can leave your house.
Melbourne, take a bow - you did it. From tomorrow - all retail opens. Hospitality reopens. Beauty reopens. You can leave your house.
Daniel Andrews:
Daniel Andrews:
I don’t know what it feels like in the room - but Daniel Andrews is either losing his voice, or he is a glass case of emotion. He sounds very emotional as he speaks today:
I don’t know what it feels like in the room - but Daniel Andrews is either losing his voice, or he is a glass case of emotion. He sounds very emotional as he speaks today:
He has good news:
The Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, has good news:
Question time ends.
Question time ends.
Just in time.
Just in time.
Question time resumes.
Question time resumes.
But attention is turning to Victoria.
But attention is turning to Victoria.
There are a lot of MPs checking their phones
There are a lot of MPs checking their phones
Chris Bowen and Bill Shorten have used the division downtime to release this statement:
Chris Bowen and Bill Shorten have used the division downtime to release this statement:
For those interested, Daniel Hurst was working yesterday and saw the Tony Burke interview on Sky.
For those interested, Daniel Hurst was working yesterday and saw the Tony Burke interview on Sky.
It included this interesting tidbit:
It included this interesting tidbit:
Tony Burke gets in to try again: “The culture comes from the top, they treat taxpayer money like it is their own” – and Christian Porter once again gags debate.
Tony Burke gets in to try again: “The culture comes from the top, they treat taxpayer money like it is their own” – and Christian Porter once again gags debate.
The count is going the government way.
Meanwhile, Daniel Andrews should be speaking very soon.
Leave is denied, so the Labor leader tries again (and gets out the line designed just for the TV coverage):
Debate is gagged and the House divides. (Labor will lose.)
Anthony Albanese interrupts the question to move to suspend standing orders, to discuss this motion (there is almost half the alphabet here, so stay with me):
That the House - notes the Morrison government is weighed down by scandal and integrity issues, including
(a) the corrupt sports rorts scheme with colour-coded spreadsheets,
(b) airport reports in which the government paid $30 million for a piece of land worth $3 million,
(c) stacking the Administrative Appeals Tribunal with Liberal mates,
(d) paying a Liberal party mate and former Crosby Textor pollster more than $1 million for taxpayer-funded research, recommending Peter Crone for a contract,
(g) Australia Post spending $20,000 on Cartier watches,
(h) reports the assistant treasurer used taxpayer-funded staff to branch-stack,
and
(i) the minister for energy being involved in too many scandals to count.
(2) therefore condemns the prime minister for treating taxpayers’ money as though it is his own.
David Littleproud just proved it was possible to talk about policy important to regional and rural electorates and represent the National party without sounding like a wet sponge. And without a forced homily, or attacking the opposition.
No one is after personality here. Just competence. It is possible.
Anthony Albanese to Scott Morrison:
Morrison:
There is a bunch of Richmond talk.
Moving on.
Anthony Albanese to Scott Morrison:
My question is to the prime minister: is the reason why the Morrison government hasn’t introduced legislation for a national integrity commission because of the corrupt sports rorts scheme, the Leppington Triangle land scandal, stacking the AAT with Liberal mates, the Liberal mate paid more than $1 million for market research, wasting $20,000 on Cartier watches, and the minister for energy’s involvement in countless scandals – too many to mention?
Morrison:
*This from someone who has posted about buying an inflatable shark for Christmas.
Labor’s Louise Pratt is probing what sort of assumptions the attorney general’s department has made about how many insolvent companies are going to need taxpayers to pick up their unpaid wages bill.
The estimate is that there will be claims for 34,000 employees this financial year, requiring taxpayers to fork out $468m. But these estimates were done in April and are already out of date, because stimulus measures have saved many businesses from insolvency.
By this stage in the financial year, the department expected 9,000 claims but has received only 1,400.
Last year, $162m was paid out for unpaid wages at a rate of 1,031 claims a month. That is down to 469 claims a month this year.
Labor’s Murray Watt says there is a “tidal wave coming” but the government is “delaying the inevitable” with changes that make it “virtually impossible” for companies to go insolvent.
One also shudders to think what happens when jobkeeper runs out.
Labor’s Tony Sheldon is querying why migrant workers don’t get access to the fair entitlement guarantee (the unpaid wages safety net), as recommended by the migrant workers’ taskforce.
They’re considering it, apparently.
Some mirth from defence estimates:
During an exchange about the cost and timing of the future frigate program, an official refers in passing to the step “design productionisation”, prompting Penny Wong to remark with a smile:
“No I didn’t make that up,” the official replies.
(Wikipedia describes productionisation as “the process of turning a prototype of a design into a version that can be more easily mass-produced”.)
Peter Dutton thanks a member of his own government for his interest in what the government is doing.
