Australia news LIVE NSW records 818 new local COVID-19 cases three deaths Victoria records 71 new cases states and territories tighten restrictions
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Thank you for following along on our daily blog. We’ll keep it up and running for any major news updates tonight, but if you’re just tuning in here’s a quick recap of what has happened today:
Public transport routes, several sites in Shepparton, a Pascoe Vale milk bar and a college in Melbourne’s north have been listed as new tier-1 exposure sites.
The new sites, including many classified as tier 2, were added on Monday evening and bring the total to more than 660 across the state.
New tier-1 exposure sites are:
Those who visit a tier-1 exposure site at the times detailed need to get tested for COVID-19 and isolate for 14 days.
The new tier 2 sites are:
A new tier-2 exposure site has also popped up in the regional Victoria town of Mansfield, near the state’s alpine region.
Oatbank Produce was visited by a positive COVID case on August 19 between 9am and 10am.
Those who attend tier-2 sites must get tested immediately and isolate until they return a negative result.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian also appeared on ABC’s 7.30 program tonight, telling host Leigh Sales it was “completely unrealistic†to reach zero COVID-19 cases.
I don’t know any state or nation on the planet who abides by those rules. It is just not possible. We can’t pretend we are extra special or very different from other places.
“We are seeing us able to maintain the virus to an extent whilst we get the vaccination rates up, but to suggest that living with Delta means zero cases is completely unrealistic, doesn’t happen anywhere in the world.
The Premier was pressed on how many cases and deaths NSW would tolerate when the state opens up, but could not provide any numbers.
“It will depend on where the cases are up to, it will depend on which proportion of demographics are vaccinated,†she said.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says the 74 deaths attributed to NSW’s current outbreak is “a very low number†compared with those that occurred before vaccines were available.
She has warned case numbers and deaths will grow when the state emerges from lockdown.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian appears on Nine’s A Current Affair.Credit:Nine
We have to be confronted by the fact that we are going to see case numbers go up, I don’t like to use this comparison [but], every year, we lose between six and 800 people in NSW alone because of the flu.
When we get to 70 per cent double vaccination, we have to be confronted by the fact we will see more cases, but what we also will see [is] a lower rate of hospitalisation because the more people that are vaccinated, especially vulnerable people, it means the chance of getting the disease severely is greatly reduced if you are fully vaccinated.
In NSW, as horrible as it is, we have lost around 70 people in the last couple of months. Seventy out of thousands of cases is a very low number, compared to what other states experienced last year because of no vaccine.
Ms Berejiklian also said on A Current Affair that Australians could not live like hermits forever, while continuing to resist admitting she made a mistake by not locking down eastern Sydney suburbs when the outbreak began.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian says there will be “at least one thing†fully vaccinated people can do that they can’t do now when NSW reaches 6 million vaccine doses.
But the Premier has not revealed what changes to restrictions authorities are considering.
“We know that the harsh lockdowns in NSW are affecting every single citizen, so for us to be able to give them something they can do, which they couldn’t previously do, is an important opportunity,†she said on A Current Affair on Monday night.
“We have said that you need to be fully vaccinated to be able to conduct whatever it is our health experts will be advising me about.â€
NSW has passed 5.9 million vaccinations and is on track to reach 6 million doses on Tuesday.
Ms Berejiklian said life would return to normal once 80 per cent of the adult population was vaccinated.
Thank you for following along on our daily blog. We’ll keep it up and running for any major news updates tonight, but if you’re just tuning in here’s a quick recap of what has happened today:
Victoria’s Chief Health Officer has downgraded the travel zoning of local government areas in Northern Territory and Queensland from 11.59pm on Monday.
At midnight tonight, Cairns and Yarrabah will be considered “green zones†under Victoria’s travel permit system, meaning there are no restrictions on those entering the state from those localities. Travellers will still need to obtain a travel permit, however.
Those two Queensland LGAs are retrospectively “orange zones†from 12.01am on August 11 until midnight tonight, meaning previous red zone arrivals between those dates may leave isolation if they have already received a negative test result.
Northern Territory “red zones†in the Greater Darwin and Katherine LGAs will become “orange zones†from midnight.
If you are entering Victoria and have been in these two areas of the NT after 11:59pm on 23 August, you will be required to isolate, get tested within 72 hours and stay isolated until you receive a negative result.
When asked about the lower rate of vaccination in WA compared with other parts of Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the higher rates of vaccination in NSW were being driven by Sydney’s lockdown, saying there was a “very urgent imperative thereâ€.
“In the west, I understand that people may feel, ‘Oh, well, it’s all a long way away from me, I’m not likely to get it.’
“Well, you can, Delta can move quickly, and it can disrupt your life, it can cost you your life. So it’s very important that people get vaccinated for those reasons,†he said.
“But I get it, that a place that doesn’t really see much COVID-19, they can feel like the system is giving them their inoculation. It won’t. Western Australia is not a good enough vaccine.
“It’s not as good as the vaccine of AstraZeneca and Pfizer. Those things can inoculate you against COVID-19. Borders and other things like this can’t.â€
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said Afghans in Australia on temporary protection visas will not be given a pathway to permanent residency or citizenship because of implications for the people smuggling trade.
Asked during an interview with Perth radio station 6PR tonight about potentially permanent arrangements for asylum seekers, Mr Morrison replied, “That won’t be happening, and I’ll tell you why: They are here. They’re not in Afghanistan. So they have been removed from that situation.
“They’re on a temporary visa, and we’re very clear about the policy. Anybody who came here illegally by boat would not have a pathway to permanent residency ... there are 14,000 people sitting up in Indonesia right now, all ready to buy product from a people smuggler. And I’m not going to give them a ticket.â€
Asked about whether those people would be sent back to Afghanistan, the Prime Minister responded, “That’s not what I said. I said they will not be provided a pathway to permanent residency or permanent residence or citizenship.â€
Queenslanders who participated in protests at the NSW border on Sunday calling for more freedoms, could ironically now be facing harsher lockdown measures.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said she was “disappointed†by the protests, which saw hundreds of people demonstrate, with a small cohort of those overwhelming police officers monitoring the event and crossing the border.
Protesters marched down the Esplanade at Coolangatta before congregating at the NSW border on SundayCredit:Tony Moore
Ms Palaszczuk said those people would now be subject to the same strict lockdown measures as people living in NSW.
“We are seeing an escalation of the Delta strain in NSW and of course we are concerned that will creep further north,†she said.
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Ten puppies were among 15 dogs shot dead by a rural NSW council as part of its response to stop the spread of COVID-19 in an incident now being investigated by the RSPCA.
Bourke Shire Council, in the state’s north-west, said its pound’s holding pens were at capacity, two dogs were aggressive towards staff and one another, and the regular rehomer was twice unavailable before it made the decision to destroy the dogs last week.
The response followed widespread outrage at the news the animals had been shot to comply with COVID-19 restrictions, after the Office of Local Government said the decision had been made to prevent volunteers at a Cobar-based animal shelter from travelling to pick up the animals.
In a statement, the council said the relevant staff had animal welfare certificates, that the organisation had unsuccessfully tried other actions, and the dogs had been in the pound well past the time required under the Companion Animal Act.
Read the full story here
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