Summary
- Victoria has recorded three new coronavirus cases and no new deaths on Thursday. One additional 'mystery case' has been confirmed.
- A primary school student at Malek Fahd Islamic School in western Sydney has tested positive for coronavirus.
- The interim report into Victoria's hotel quarantine system by the Board of Inquiry will be delivered on Friday, November 6 and the final report on December 21. The final report has been delayed so evidence from an extra sitting of the inquiry earlier this month can be examined.
- There will be fresh lockdowns in Germany and France, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron have announced.
- The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide has surpassed 44 million, Johns Hopkins University data shows, and there have been 1.17 million deaths from the virus.
Latest updates
Victorian hotel inquiry seeks additional time to deliver final report
By Paul Sakkal
The inquiry probing Victoria's hotel quarantine program has requested almost two months of additional time to hand down its final report, which will now be delivered just days before Christmas.
An interim report will be handed to the government on November 6, which was the original date for the final report. The inquiry said it would now deliver a final report with a full set of recommendations and findings on December 21.
Additional affidavits and documents have been requested since its final sittings. This included additional answers from Premier Daniel Andrews, emails from Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton and phone records from key players.
Victoria's hotel quarantine inquiry hearings, chaired by Justice Jennifer Coate, resume on Monday.Credit:James Ross-Pool
In a statement, the inquiry chaired by former judge Jennifer Coate said more time was needed to examine evidence more inquiries may be made.
The interim report will contain recommendations on a proposed new quarantine program, paving the way for international travellers to begin arriving in Victoria.
"This unfortunate delay is due to the provision of additional material which occurred after the conclusion of closing submissions on 28 September 2020, as detailed at the extraordinary sitting on 20 October 2020," the statement said.
"As a result of this additional material, the Board has issued several further notices to produce and requests for affidavits. Several documents and affidavits are presently outstanding and may lead to further enquiries."
Interim report on Victoria's hotel quarantine system to be released next Friday
The interim report into Victoria's hotel quarantine system will be delivered on Friday, November 6.
The final report will be released on December 21, according to a statement from the Board of Inquiry.
No contact records, no safe distance: Fears Melbourne businesses are flouting COVID-safe rules
By Rachael Dexter and Anna Prytz
Melbourne shoppers were shocked some businesses did not take their contact details while patrons at one pub were seen sitting shoulder-to-shoulder in a small outdoor area on the first day retail and hospitality reopened their doors.
Readers have told The Age they visited hairdressers, nail salons and cafes that did not take the contact details of walk-in customers across the city on Wednesday.
The Age observed patrons at one inner-northern pub sitting at neighbouring tables in a small footpath area, with the backs of their chairs touching.
Victorian businesses, including hospitality and beauty services, are required to take the contact details of any person who visits the premises for more than 15 minutes.
However, most retail shops including clothing and homeware stores are not required to keep customer records.
Katey Randall, who works for a company that helps businesses become COVID-compliant, said she had visited a hairdresser and beauty salon in a private capacity on Wednesday morning and had not been asked to provide any details for contact tracing.
"I think it’s one thing that should be highlighted [to the government]. Where’s the contact tracing? What do you make of this?" she said.
Calls for hand sanitiser standards after many didn't make grade
By Mary Ward
Consumer organisation CHOICE is calling for the federal government to implement a national standard for hand sanitiser packaging after it found nearly half did not list key information on their labels.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration recommends hand sanitisers with an alcohol percentage of 60 per cent or higher for reducing the risk of spreading coronavirus – this percentage means the product should smell like alcohol.
Products which use the World Health Organisation hand sanitiser formula should have a content of 80 per cent ethanol or 75 per cent isopropyl alcohol.
The survey found about two thirds of Australians didn't know that hand sanitisers needed to contain alcohol to be effective at killing germs.Credit:Christian Stokes
The CHOICE survey found 66 per cent of Australians either didn't know hand sanitisers needed to contain alcohol to be effective (36 per cent) or incorrectly believed they did not (30 per cent). Nearly half (49 per cent) of those surveyed incorrectly believed hand sanitisers were required to contain a certain alcohol content by law.
Analysing the labels for 30 supermarket hand sanitisers, it also found 47 per cent of brands did not list their alcohol content on the label.
In a petition launched today, the organisation is calling on the federal government to implement a national labelling standard which would allow only products effective against viruses to use the term "hand sanitiser" as well as funding for regular spot checks products on the market.
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NSW sewage testing 'doesn't seem' to show large numbers of undetected cases
By Mary Ward
NSW Deputy Chief Health Officer Jeremy McAnulty has provided some more information about the rationale behind the state's sewage tracing system, stressing the coronavirus fragments found at a western Sydney plant do not necessarily mean the area has large numbers of undetected infections.
Earlier this week, virus fragments detected at a sewage treatment plant at Glenfield prompted alerts for residents in a number of suburbs to be alert for symptoms. On Wednesday, it was announced the sewage testing program was being expanded, with smaller catchments to be tested for more precise results.
Asked if he thought it was possible lots of Sydneysiders had the virus without knowing, Dr McAnulty told Today "that doesn't seem to be the case".
"This sewage surveillance system has been a real boom to help us understand where the virus might be," he explained, adding it was largely being used as an indication as to where testing efforts should be focused.
"It is still experimental but we are using it more and more to get a better idea of where cases may be and, while there may be false negatives or false positives out of that sewage, it gives us an indication of where to do the testing."
How have mystery cases been tracking in Victoria?
There have been four mystery cases (infections that cannot be traced to a known outbreak) confirmed in Melbourne over the past fortnight, one more than yesterday.
The new mystery case that was confirmed is one of the seven cases that were confirmed by the health department on Sunday. The postcode where this case was recorded will likely be released later this afternoon.
Here is how mystery cases have tracked in Victoria since the start of this month:
The health department is currently investigating the infection source of three cases, and these could end up being classed as mystery cases if authorities cannot determine how any of these three people contracted the virus.
The 14-day average has fallen to 2.4, down from 2.7 yesterday:
Three new coronavirus cases confirmed in Victoria
Three new coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Victoria, and there have been no new deaths from the virus since yesterday.
The 14-day average has fallen to 2.4, but there has been one additional mystery case confirmed over the past fortnight.
High-risk locations for coronavirus in Victoria
Here is the full list of recent public exposure sites in Victoria, places that were visited by someone who may have been infectious with the virus:
Have you been to a business not following COVID-safe rules?
We were inundated with responses from our Melbourne readers yesterday saying they had been to businesses not taking contact details, or following social distancing rules when retail and hospitality was allowed to welcome customers back for the first time.
The Age observed patrons at one inner-north pub sitting at different tables in a small outdoor area on the footpath, with the backs of their chairs touching each other. What has been your experience since Melbourne reopened for business yesterday?
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2020-10-28 22:51:00Z
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