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Today's main stories
Here is a wrap of the main coronavirus stories from today's papers:
Exam halls cleaned, hand sanitiser at the ready as HSC week begins
By Natassia Chrysanthos
Exam halls have been cleaned, tubs of hand sanitiser ordered and alternative venues are ready as the state's schools prepare for an HSC exam period like none other from Tuesday.
Some students have been operating in "bubbles", limiting contact with the outside world to avoid risk of coronavirus transmission while they knuckle down for the final few days of preparations.
NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell said she is confident all measures are in place to ensure the written exam period runs smoothly for the 76,000 students sitting HSC tests.
"There’s been so much work happening behind the scenes, and that gives me a lot of confidence that no matter what might happen in the next few weeks ... everyone's ready and prepared," she said.
The NSW Education Standards Authority has hired extra exam supervisors and the Education Department has helped schools scope out alternative venues in case a student tests positive.
Schools have been advised to limit exam rooms to 75 students and restrict mingling before and after tests. The HSC starts five days later than usual to help recover some of the teaching time that may have been lost during remote learning.
Read more about the start of the HSC here.
Andrews offers 'small doses of hope' to state craving more
By Chip Le Grand and Erin Pearson
Top epidemiologists and business groups are critical of what they say is the Andrews government’s overly cautious approach to easing restrictions, given the state’s single-digit infections.
Deakin University epidemiologist Catherine Bennett, writing in The Age with three fellow epidemiologists, described the latest steps out of lockdown as "very conservative" and "containing inherent inequities" and questioned why some industries remained shuttered.
"There is as yet little understanding of the broader impacts of public health decisions, including mental health, economic and financial strain," the epidemiologists wrote in an opinion article.
Daniel Andrews announcing the relaxation of some restrictions on Sunday.Credit:Getty
Business groups, including the Business Council of Australia, the Australian Industry Group and Restaurant & Catering Australia expressed frustration at the delay until November 2 of a reopening of most businesses, although the Australian Retailers Association said a timeline would come as relief.
Premier Daniel Andrews on Sunday sought to provide a more certain path out of lockdown, dumping the previous case number targets and announcing some key easing of restrictions, including no limit on time outdoors, a 25-kilometre travel bubble rather than the previous five kilometres and outdoor gatherings of up to 10 people from two households.
Business groups expressed disappointment at the limited changes announced on Sunday, warning more businesses would fail.
Business Council of Australia chief executive Jennifer Westacott said: “This is an inexplicable and unacceptable delay for Victorians and small businesses who are hanging on by a day, not a week."
Read more about the reaction to Sunday's announcement here.
Melbourne's best-in-nation social distancing crushed the virus
By Liam Mannix
The extraordinary compliance of Melburnians has crushed the city's COVID-19 epidemic, leading to calls from epidemiologists for authorities to trust people enough to remove restrictions a little faster.
Professor James McCaw, one of the scientists charged with tracking Melbourne’s social distancing for the federal government, said only now has the city’s resolve to stick to the rules begun to waver.
“Victorians are the most compliant with the rules, of anywhere in Australia. Our rules are the toughest and we’re the most compliant,” he said.
However, scientists did not back calls from the state Opposition Leader Michael O'Brien and other political and business leaders to give Victorians the same freedoms enjoyed in New South Wales, where daily case numbers have been higher in the past week.
Victoria has recorded 55 new cases in the last seven days – fewer than NSW, which has recorded 61. However, almost half of NSW's cases were from overseas travellers. All of Victoria’s cases are local.
Read more here.
Twitter removes 'misleading' post by Trump COVID-19 adviser
By Doina Chiacu
Twitter has removed a "misleading" tweet downplaying the efficacy of masks posted by a top coronavirus adviser to President Donald Trump, while US cases surged before the November 3 election.
As the Trump administration fends off accusations that its mixed messaging on wearing masks hampered the fight against the coronavirus, Dr Scott Atlas continued to minimise the importance of masks with a Twitter post on Saturday, local time, saying, "Masks work? NO."
US President Donald Trump.Credit:AP
Twitter removed the tweet on Sunday, saying it violated its misleading information policy on COVID-19, which targets statements that have been confirmed to be false or misleading by subject-matter experts.
The White House had no immediate comment on the decision.
Atlas has downplayed the wearing of masks, a coronavirus containment measure that has been widely endorsed by health experts but not enthusiastically promoted by the President.
Read the rest of this story here.
Reuters
Good morning
Welcome to today's live blog, Simone Fox Koob here to carry you through the morning with all the latest COVID-19 developments.
It was a big day in Victoria on Sunday, as Premier Daniel Andrews announced a number of welcome changes to restrictions.
They came into force at 11.59pm last night.
Here are they key changes:
- There is now no time-limit on leaving your house. The two-hour limit has been removed.
- The distance you can legally travel from your house has been increased from 5km to 25km.
- Up to 10 people - from two households - can now legally gather outdoors.
Now open:
- Hairdressers
- Golf
- Tennis
- Skate parks
- Real estate auctions, with a maximum of 10 people allowed
- Outdoor pools, with a maximum of 30 swimmers
- Indoor hydrotherapy pools
However, for the most part, retail will remain closed for at least another week.
In other news from Sunday, Mr Andrews slammed acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge over fears up to 55 Kiwi travellers slipped into Victoria.
Then, it emerged that 25 New Zealand travellers had arrived in Perth, leading the WA Premier Mark McGowan to call for federal support.
In NSW, there were five new cases of COVID-19, including four in hotel quarantine.
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2020-10-18 20:10:00Z
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