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You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2021/dec/24/australia-covid-news-live-mask-mandate-restrictions-sydney-melbourne-morrison-politics-corona-omicron-queensland-hospital-perth-antigen-booster-christmas
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| Australia Covid news live update: airport chaos with Christmas flights cancelled; SA brings boosters forward as 688 new cases confirmed | Australia Covid news live update: airport chaos with Christmas flights cancelled; SA brings boosters forward as 688 new cases confirmed |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Follow all the day’s news | Follow all the day’s news |
| In non-Covid news, a federal minister has blocked six research projects from receiving funding in the latest round of grants announced by the Australian Research Council. The winning Discovery Projects for next year were finally revealed in a Christmas Eve announcement. | |
| A report published on the ARC website said there were 3096 applications for funding commencing in 2022 - and 587 of those had been approved for funding totalling $259m over five years, for a success rate of 19%. | |
| The outcomes report included this nugget: “Of the unsuccessful applications in 2022, 51 were found not to meet eligibility requirements and 6 were recommended to, but not funded by the Minister.” | |
| A spokesperson for the acting education minister, Stuart Robert, said the minister had approved 587 of the 593 Discovery Projects the ARC recommended, but did not accept the following six: | |
| Playing Conditions: How Climate Shaped the Elizabethan Theatre | |
| National Forgetting and Local Remembering: Memory Politics in Modern China | |
| China stories under Xi Jinping: popular narratives | |
| Finding friendship in early English literature | |
| Cultural Production of Religion by Science Fiction and Fantasy novels | |
| New Possibilities: Student Climate Action and Democratic Renewal | |
| Robert’s spokesperson said the minister “believes those rejected do not demonstrate value for taxpayers’ money nor contribute to the national interest”. | |
| “After going through a peer review process, it is clear to the Minister the application of the National Interest Test is not working in every case. This test should ensure taxpayer-funded Australian Government research funding is directed to areas of national importance and delivers public value. It’s why in his Letter of Expectation the Minister asked the ARC to strengthen the test.” | |
| Is your Christmas cheer evaporating? Are you doomscrolling yourself into a complete funk? Try putting the phone down, making an eggnog and getting into some tasty online content from Australian arts companies to help inoculate yourself against the onset of festive season blues. | |
| These gorgeous shows are streaming right now. | |
| From AAP: | From AAP: |
| Record sales are expected on Boxing Day as bargain-conscious shoppers shrug off coronavirus concerns to indulge in shopping, both in store and through their browsers. | Record sales are expected on Boxing Day as bargain-conscious shoppers shrug off coronavirus concerns to indulge in shopping, both in store and through their browsers. |
| Shoppers have been tipped to spend $4bn – more than last year – in stores and online, based on Commonwealth Bank data. | |
| Australian Retailers Association chief executive Paul Zahra predicted an online record. | Australian Retailers Association chief executive Paul Zahra predicted an online record. |
| “The big difference this year will be an even heightened level in online shopping because some people want to avoid crowds,” he said. | “The big difference this year will be an even heightened level in online shopping because some people want to avoid crowds,” he said. |
| “We still expect crowds but people will be more organised. There will be less browsing.” | “We still expect crowds but people will be more organised. There will be less browsing.” |
| Zahra said he expected total sales to exceed last year because people could or would not spend their money on overseas travel during the Covid-19 pandemic. | |
| More than 80 domestic flights around the country have been cancelled after airline staff have had to isolate. | More than 80 domestic flights around the country have been cancelled after airline staff have had to isolate. |
| Absolutely devastating for those trying to see family – and the staff having to isolate. I’ll bring you more on this as I have it. | Absolutely devastating for those trying to see family – and the staff having to isolate. I’ll bring you more on this as I have it. |
| “We have to find a way to live and love, otherwise, we’ll all go insane.” | “We have to find a way to live and love, otherwise, we’ll all go insane.” |
| Brigid Delaney says goodbye to 2021 and helps us process this cooker of a year. A must-read today, I reckon. | Brigid Delaney says goodbye to 2021 and helps us process this cooker of a year. A must-read today, I reckon. |
| From AAP: | From AAP: |
| An 83-year-old man has died after a light plane crashed on Christmas Eve on a beach in central Queensland. | An 83-year-old man has died after a light plane crashed on Christmas Eve on a beach in central Queensland. |
| Paramedics and a rescue helicopter were dispatched following the crash just after 8am on Friday at Ball Bay, about 50km north of Mackay. | Paramedics and a rescue helicopter were dispatched following the crash just after 8am on Friday at Ball Bay, about 50km north of Mackay. |
| Police confirmed the man, a passenger on the plane, died at the scene. | Police confirmed the man, a passenger on the plane, died at the scene. |
| The pilot was airlifted to hospital with minor injuries. | The pilot was airlifted to hospital with minor injuries. |
| Queensland police’s forensic crash unit is working together with the Australian Transport Safety bureau to investigate the cause of the crash. | Queensland police’s forensic crash unit is working together with the Australian Transport Safety bureau to investigate the cause of the crash. |
| The incident follows the death of four people in a light plane crash north of Brisbane less than a week ago. | The incident follows the death of four people in a light plane crash north of Brisbane less than a week ago. |
| Professor Angela Webster, an epidemiologist from the University of Sydney’s School of Public Health was just on the ABC. | Professor Angela Webster, an epidemiologist from the University of Sydney’s School of Public Health was just on the ABC. |
| She was asked if we are all going to have to get boosters for the rest of our lives. | She was asked if we are all going to have to get boosters for the rest of our lives. |
| I think it’s an interesting question – to which she gave an insightful answer. Here it is: | I think it’s an interesting question – to which she gave an insightful answer. Here it is: |
| “I don’t think that’s the case. What we need to try and do globally is make sure that everybody has had access to vaccination so we can dampen the amount of infection that is circulating. | “I don’t think that’s the case. What we need to try and do globally is make sure that everybody has had access to vaccination so we can dampen the amount of infection that is circulating. |
| “We know that coronavirus will mutate into new strains when it has a lot of opportunity, when it has a lot of infection around – that’s how the changes take place and that’s how we got Delta and Omicron. | “We know that coronavirus will mutate into new strains when it has a lot of opportunity, when it has a lot of infection around – that’s how the changes take place and that’s how we got Delta and Omicron. |
| “There will be other variants that may become threats, or may not. And it’s likely that over time we will need to tweak the vaccinations, which is quite easy to do, and roll out slightly different versions like we see with seasonal flu vaccines. | “There will be other variants that may become threats, or may not. And it’s likely that over time we will need to tweak the vaccinations, which is quite easy to do, and roll out slightly different versions like we see with seasonal flu vaccines. |
| “I imagine we may reach a situation when coronavirus is less pandemic and more endemic, in the background rather than sweeping around the world as it is at the moment, when we will see we need boosters perhaps yearly to adjust to any different strains that are emerging.” | “I imagine we may reach a situation when coronavirus is less pandemic and more endemic, in the background rather than sweeping around the world as it is at the moment, when we will see we need boosters perhaps yearly to adjust to any different strains that are emerging.” |
| Good afternoon everyone! This is Cait Kelly and I will be with you until the evening. | Good afternoon everyone! This is Cait Kelly and I will be with you until the evening. |
| I want to first up just bring you some Christmas joy with this gem: | I want to first up just bring you some Christmas joy with this gem: |
| With that, I will pass the blog on to the highly capable Cait Kelly who will keep you entertained and informed this afternoon. A very Merry Christmas Eve for those who celebrate – I’m off to play Paul Kelly’s album on repeat. | With that, I will pass the blog on to the highly capable Cait Kelly who will keep you entertained and informed this afternoon. A very Merry Christmas Eve for those who celebrate – I’m off to play Paul Kelly’s album on repeat. |
| So case numbers are in for NSW, Victoria, Tasmania, Queensland, The ACT and South Australia. We are still waiting on the Northern Territory and Western Australia (WA detected a case in a Queensland backpacker yesterday). | So case numbers are in for NSW, Victoria, Tasmania, Queensland, The ACT and South Australia. We are still waiting on the Northern Territory and Western Australia (WA detected a case in a Queensland backpacker yesterday). |