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Latest lockdown costs Victoria more than $1.1 billion in lost taxes, fees and charges
By Noel Towell
Victoria’s latest COVID-19 lockdowns are set to plunge public finances billions of dollars further into deficit this year and force the government to ramp up its already all-time-high debt.
The shutdowns are set to cost the state more than $1.1 billion in taxes, fees and charges that would have been paid by businesses forced to shut their doors, according to analysis by RMIT economist David Hayward, while the state government says its direct spending to prop up the economy since June is more than $4.2 billion.
Victoria’s latest lockdown is bad news for the September quarter reporting period.Credit:Eddie Jim
The figures indicate a budget deficit in 2022 of up to $16 billion and debt out to $107 billion, big increases on the $11.4 billion and $102 billion, respectively projected in May when Treasurer Tim Pallas handed down his budget, based on the hope that future lockdowns would be “short term” and “localised”.
But the latest shutdown has ruined the September quarter reporting period, slashing expectations of payroll tax, gambling tax and other tax and levy receipts.
The prolonged lockdown of the nation’s two biggest cities, and the subsequent slump in non-food retailing, is likely to hit the Commonwealth’s GST take, making life harder still for Victorian and NSW treasurers next year when they will have a share of a smaller national GST pie to bolster their books.
Unvaccinated nurses bring heart procedures to halt in Sydney hospital
By Lucy Carroll and Mary Ward
A dozen of NSW’s top cardiologists were forced into isolation and multiple urgent heart procedures cancelled after two unvaccinated nurses worked while infectious with COVID-19 at a major Sydney hospital.
Critical procedures, including angiograms, pacemakers, stent and valve replacements, were called off at St Vincent’s Hospital in Darlinghurst last week after the nurses worked shifts across at least four cardiac wards.
St Vincent’s Hospital in Darlinghurst.Credit:James Brickwood
One senior interventional cardiologist at St Vincent’s, who could not be named because they were not authorised to speak publicly about the issue, said cardiac procedures were brought to a standstill and wait times for operations such as pacemaker surgery had “blown out” with dozens of patients facing weeks-long delays.
“We normally run four cardiac cath labs every day but because of [the exposures] we are now down to running only one theatre, and only for half a day with reduced staff,” they said.
The hospital’s cardiac “cath labs” were closed for at least four days for deep cleaning, with about 30 doctors and nurses identified as close contacts, some plunged into two-week isolation, the doctor said.
One doctor at the hospital said there was concern about “a small group of nurses [at the hospital] who have not wanted to be vaccinated”.
“There is a view among some people that staff members still isolating shouldn’t come back to work until they have a first dose,” the cardiologist said.
“Patients have a right and an expectation that everything that can be done to reduce the risk of COVID-19 is being done.”
A vaccine mandate for healthcare workers comes into effect in NSW on September 30.
PM says hotel quarantine ‘has a use by date’
By Daniella White
Prime Minister Scott Morrison says Australia’s hotel quarantine system has “a use by date on it”.
Mr Morrison said the scheme should end when states have their home quarantine arrangements in place.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
“That’s what NSW government is going right now and South Australia is doing right now,” he said on 2GB radio, in a reference to pilot programs in those states.
“In the national plan I set out back in early July, it actually requires this once you get to the high levels of vaccination.”
Mr Morrison was also asked about the landmark deal with the US and UK to build nuclear-powered submarines in Australia.
He said the deal was the most significant agreement Australia had struck with its allies since the ANZUS agreement 70 years ago.
“The world is changing, it’s as simple as that,” he said.
“There’s a lot more contested space, there’s a lot more competition and economies are changing. We’re doing this to ensure our region is stable and safe.“
He said there has always been an “open invitation” to restart dialogue with China.
“All countries take positions in our national interests and we have, and certainly China does.”
Australia unmoved by China’s ‘outbursts’ on submarine pact: Defence Minister
By Matthew Knott
Peter Dutton says “outbursts” and “propaganda” from China about Australia’s development of nuclear-powered submarines will not deter the country from deepening defence ties with America, as the Defence Minister flagged a significant expansion of the US military presence in Australia.
Mr Dutton and Foreign Minister Marise Payne met with their US counterparts in Washington for the annual Australia–US Ministerial (AUSMIN) consultations a day after the launch of the landmark AUKUS security partnership between the US, UK and Australia.
Peter Dutton and Marise Payne in Washington.Credit:AP
The partnership will result in Australia acquiring its first fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, using technology from the US and UK.
“We are a proud democracy in our region, we stand with our neighbours in the Indo-Pacific to ensure enduring peace and this collaboration makes it a safer region,” Mr Dutton said.
“That’s the reality. No amount of propaganda can dismiss the facts.”
Outdoor alcohol ban to stay as Victoria eases ‘picnic’ restrictions from Saturday
By Paul Sakkal, Michael Fowler and Craig Butt
Melburnians technically will not be allowed to drink alcohol during the picnics permitted by eased COVID-19 restrictions, but the government has indicated police will not take a heavy-handed approach to enforcing the new rules.
From Saturday, up to five fully vaccinated adults or two non-vaccinated people will be able to meet outdoors for recreation after the state reached its target of 70 per cent of people aged 16 and above receiving the first dose of a coronavirus vaccine.
However, the earlier-than-expected loosening of lockdown rules came with tough new restrictions for the construction industry, which will be subject to mandatory vaccinations from September 23 and a ban on workers moving between metropolitan and regional areas.
The new eased rules will come into effect at 11.59pm on Friday. As expected, they include an extension of the travel limit to 10 kilometres, the reopening of skate parks and outdoor gyms and an increase in permitted exercise time to four hours.
Golf and tennis will also still be banned and the curfew will remain in place.
The change comes ahead of the state’s road map announcement on Sunday that will detail milestones for rule easing throughout October and November.
‘Live as we should’: NSW Premier wants families reunited when vaccination targets are met
By Sarah McPhee
In an interview with SBS World News last night, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian was asked about the lifting of interstate borders.
She urged her fellow leaders to stick to the targets set out in the national plan, which ties the easing of restrictions to vaccination milestones of 70 and 80 per cent of people aged 16 and over.
SBS World News presenter Janice Petersen interviews NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Thursday night.Credit:SBS
“We need to work together as Australians because we can’t stop families within our country from reuniting; we can’t stop Australians from coming home,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“These are the realities, we have to have a compassionate approach. We also have to accept that whether we like it or not, we need to live with the virus and we need to prepare ourselves for that.
“The national plan has a deadline, [it] gives us a benchmark for what is a safe way to reopen.”
The Premier said it was for the good of the nation, its citizens and “those Aussies who are waiting to come home and be reunited”.
“I get messages every day from people who haven’t seen loved ones for a long time and we want to change that,” she said.
“We want to make sure we create a safe way that we can live with the virus but also live as we should, and that’s with the ones we love the most.”
NSW is expected to report 50 per cent double dose vaccination of the population aged 16 and over later today, with the figure currently at 49.6 per cent, and reach the targets of 70 and 80 per cent in October.
National cabinet to discuss home quarantine, mandatory COVID-19 jabs for health workers
By Rachel Clun and Michaela Whitbourn
Australia is second only to New Zealand for the lowest number of coronavirus deaths per capita in the OECD – a sign the country’s public health measures have worked to protect the population, Health Minister Greg Hunt says.
By Thursday evening, more than 70 per cent of the eligible population aged 16 and over would have had a first dose. Once 70 per cent of that population is fully vaccinated, the country can move into the next phase of the national recovery plan that will see fewer restrictions and increased caps on international arrivals.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
National cabinet will meet today and is expected to discuss the expansion of the home quarantine program, which is regarded as a key plank of the plan to resume international travel, and mandating COVID-19 vaccination for all healthcare workers (not just aged care staff).
States including NSW, WA and Tasmania have already made immunisation a work requirement for healthcare workers, and Victoria has plans to follow.
Analysis by the federal government shows Australia has the second-lowest cumulative rate of COVID-19 deaths in the OECD, with just 0.75 deaths per 100,000 people.
In contrast, between February 24 and September 14, the US recorded nearly 308,000 coronavirus deaths or 93 per 100,000 people, while the UK has recorded 89.4 deaths per 100,000.
France fuming over Australia’s nuclear submarine deal
By Latika Bourke and Michaela Whitbourn
China is not the only country reacting angrily to the new AUKUS defence pact, under which Australia will tear up a multibillion-dollar deal with a French submarine maker and acquire its first fleet of nuclear-powered submarines using highly prized technology shared by the US and UK.
Unsurprisingly, France is also unimpressed with the deal.
Latika Bourke reports:
In June, Prime Minister Scott Morrison was secretly negotiating a deal to acquire US nuclear submarine technology with US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson at the G7 in Cornwall, while at the same time telling French President Emmanuel Macron that the submarine deal was back on track.
On Thursday morning, the trio shocked France in announcing the new AUKUS defence alliance which would involve it acquiring nuclear submarines.
Morrison did not convey the news directly to Macron before making the public announcement. Macron is due to raise the issue at dinner with outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian was furious and hit the airwaves.
“It is really a stab in the back. We built a relationship of trust with Australia, and this trust was betrayed and I’m angry today, with a lot of bitterness, about this breach [of contract],” he told France Info radio.
AUKUS defence pact ‘gravely undermines regional peace and stability’: China
By Chris Barrett
Singapore: China has declared the new defence pact between Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom “gravely undermines regional peace and stability” while branding Australia’s acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines a damaging setback to global non-proliferation efforts.
Chinese government spokesman Zhao Lijian also rejected Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s suggestion he had extended an “open invitation” to President Xi Jinping to reopen talks between the two countries, saying he was not aware of that.
Xi Jinping at the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing in June.Credit:AP
The announcement of a new trilateral security partnership between Australia, the US and the UK was accompanied by a dramatic ramping up of Australia’s defences as it looks to secure itself against a rising China.
Along with the planned acquisition of nuclear submarines, Morrison said Australia wanted to enhance its arsenal with long-range US Tomahawk missiles.
The historic new AUKUS alliance was slammed by Zhao in a press briefing in Beijing late on Thursday.
The morning’s headlines at a glance
By Michaela Whitbourn
Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of the day’s events. I am Michaela Whitbourn and I’ll be anchoring the blog for the first half of the day. Here’s what you need to know from the past 24 hours in news:
- China has reacted angrily to the announcement of a defence pact between Australia, the US and the UK, the AUKUS alliance, under which Australia will acquire its first fleet of nuclear-powered submarines. The deal is aimed implicitly at countering China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific and includes a commitment to work together on cyber defences, artificial intelligence, missile capabilities and supply chains.
The new submarines will not be in operation for years.Credit:General Dynamics
- Prime Minister Scott Morrison described AUKUS as a “forever partnership”. It is regarded as Australia’s most significant strategic move in decades, and brings with it risks and rewards.
- Federal Opposition leader Anthony Albanese backed the alliance but took aim at the Coalition for wasting billions by scrapping a previous deal with a French submarine maker. He said the proposal would not see new submarines in the water until 2040. But chief political correspondent David Crowe writes that the government will consider whether the first vessels could be built overseas, instead of Adelaide, in order to deploy some of the fleet as soon as possible in the 2030s.
The Moderna vaccine will arrive on Australian shores today.Credit:AP
- National cabinet will meet today to discuss a raft of COVID-19 measures, including home quarantine for Australians returning from overseas, and mandatory vaccinations for all healthcare workers (not just aged care staff, as previously mandated). Home quarantine is regarded as a key plank of the plan to resume international travel for Australians. States including NSW, WA and Tasmania have already made immunisation a work requirement for healthcare workers, and Victoria has plans to follow.
- The first shipment of one million Moderna COVID-19 vaccines is expected to arrive in Australia tonight and will be distributed to pharmacies. The Moderna vaccine is similar to the Pfizer jab and, is also approved for use in 12 to 15-year-olds.
NSW Minister for Health Brad Hazzard at the COVID-19 briefing on Thursday morning.Credit:Rhett Wyman
- NSW recorded 1351 new COVID-19 cases and 12 deaths yesterday. Authorities are cautiously optimistic the state may have reached a peak in the current outbreak but have warned even one event can result in a spike in numbers. Ten of the 12 people who died, who were aged between their 40s and their 90s, were unvaccinated. Just over 80 per cent of the NSW population aged 16 and over has received a first dose of a coronavirus vaccine and 48.5 per cent are fully vaccinated.
- Lismore and Albury in regional NSW returned to lockdown at 6pm yesterday for an initial seven days after new COVID-19 cases were recorded. Another 12 local government areas in the state’s regions left lockdown at 1pm after COVID-19 case numbers stabilised. Those LGAs are: Bega Valley, Blayney, Bogan, Cabonne, Dungog, Forbes, Muswellbrook, Narrabri, Parkes, Singleton, Snowy Monaro and the Upper Hunter.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews.Credit:Paul Jeffers
- Victoria recorded 514 new COVID-19 cases in the community, its highest daily total during the current outbreak.
- While the case numbers grow, Victoria’s lockdown restrictions will be eased slightly on Saturday (11.59pm on Friday) to permit small, outdoor social gatherings. Unvaccinated people or people who have had one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine can gather in a group of two for outdoor recreation. Groups of five from no more two households can socialise outdoors if everyone aged over 18 is fully vaccinated. The five-kilometre movement restriction will be expanded to 10 kilometres. The changes come as the state is on the cusp of hitting the 70 per cent first-dose vaccination target for people aged 16 and over.
- Indoor gyms and pools can open in regional Victoria with density limits from 11.59pm on Friday.
- Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced yesterday that construction workers must get vaccinated if they want to keep working. Those workers will need to show evidence to their employer that they have had a first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine by 11.59pm on Thursday, September 23. Limited exemptions apply.
ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
- The ACT recorded 15 new COVID-19 cases in the community yesterday, bringing the total number of cases in the current cluster to 556 (but 315 people have recovered so far). Nine people are in hospital with the virus.
- Queensland recorded one new cases of COVID-19 yesterday, in a school student at St Thomas More College. The pupil was in home quarantine and was not infectious in the community. Authorities believe a cluster linked to the school is under control.
Making history: SpaceX’s Inspiration4 launches, carrying an all-civilian crew into orbit.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX blasted American billionaire Jared Isaacman into orbit yesterday alongside his two contest winners and a health care worker who survived childhood cancer, the Associated Press reports. It is the first chartered passenger flight for SpaceX and a big step in space tourism by a private company, the first time in 60 years of human spaceflight that no professional astronaut is aboard an orbit-bound rocket. The spacecraft is expected to orbit Earth for three days.
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2021-09-16 21:40:01Z
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