Covid 19 -

[russellw]

Data valid as at 00:00 GMT May 7th, 2021.

Note: As not all Australian States report at the same time, the data below is based on the previous full day reporting.

9 new cases for Australia and no deaths so the CMR is 3.044%.

1 new cases and 0 deaths for NZ so CMR is 0.987% and active cases 26.

The UK had a lower 2,490 cases yesterday and 15 deaths.

Just under 48k new cases in the USA yesterday and 989 deaths sees CMR at 1.780%. Note that the USA is actually minus one day due to time differences.

Other notable points:
Global cases pass 157M, the last 1M in 1 day;

Bahrain (1,706); and
Nepal (9,023);

... recorded new daily highs; those in blue for the second consecutive day and those in red for a third or more consecutive day.

No countries move above the 90th percentile for their 10 day average while Tunisia drops below.

[Tickford.]

The shambolic handling of repatriating Australian citizens from India reveals the government's priorities

The media release from the Prime Minister announcing the resumption of repatriation flights from India to Australia hit journalists' inboxes just before midday on Friday.

And within seven words, it was clear just how "back on track" was the debacle which this week saw Australia not just close its borders to its own citizens, but threatened them with jail if they came home.

"Government chartered repatriation flights to the Centre for National Resilience at Howard Springs for Australians returning from India will resume on May 15," the statement began.

The Centre for National Resilience? Who knew? Most people just thought it was a quarantine centre set up by the federal government.

The important bit of getting this life-and-death piece of policy had been sorted out, it seemed. Getting a jazzy name for it. A bit like that ritzy social media post featuring the defence force contribution to the bushfires that was produced by the PM's office and produced when things were at the most sticky for him over bushfires.


It's about priorities and political opportunity

It's about priorities. And depressingly, the priorities in this episode tell us much about the priorities of this government.

What it tells us is that, whatever the underlying principles or quality of a policy, the government rarely considers telling taxpayers about it from the starting point of "we need to know", but instead see it too often through the prism of a political opportunity, or political badging.

India's COVID-19 pandemic has reached catastrophic levels. COVID in India looks like our worst pandemic nightmares.

Not entirely surprisingly, the number and proportion of Australians coming from India carrying the disease started to rise, given new variants were emerging that seemed even more contagious in one of the most populous countries on earth.

Australian authorities became alarmed at the risks this posed to people here if the virus escaped quarantine, particularly when it seemed some people were only showing signs of infection after the normal 14 day quarantine period had elapsed.

The decision was made to stop direct flights from India and, then, when it became clear that systems were not in place to track people who might fly from India via another hub, to put penalties in place to deter them.

To do this, Health Minister Greg Hunt made a declaration under the COVID-19 Human Biosecurity Emergency powers granted in March last year.

Technically, it was the Biosecurity (Human Biosecurity Emergency) (Human Coronavirus with Pandemic Potential) (Emergency Requirements— High Risk Country Travel Pause) Determination 2021.

Section 477 of the Biosecurity Act sets out jail terms and fines for people who breach determinations like this one, which is actually the eighth such determination Hunt has made.

Previous ones – also subject to the terms of this Act — have covered everything from banning cruise ships, to stopping Australians going overseas, to visiting remote Indigenous communities.

It's just that no one has really mentioned the whole "going to jail" thing much before.


Shambolic handling of information

Chief medical officer Paul Kelly wrote to Hunt late on Friday "to provide advice to assist your considerations to make a determination under section 477 of the Biosecurity Act 2015 (the Act) to make it an offence for a person, including Australian citizens and permanent residents, to enter Australia if they have been in India in the preceding 14 days.

"I note that such a determination, if made, would be the first time that such a determination has been used to prevent Australian citizens and permanent residents entering Australia".

The Prime Minister this week tried to defend the government's shambolic handling of information about its actions by arguing that it was the media that was responsible for emphasising the jail terms, not the government.

That would be fine, except for the fact that the whole point of making the determination was presumably to deter people from trying to sneak back into the country via a different travel hub.

And there was also the fact that Hunt mentioned jail terms in his press release, issued at midnight last Friday night.

The information flow from the government from that late night media release onwards has appeared as chaotic as the government's handling of the issue.

Fair enough to impose a ban if you think you need to temporarily pause the arrival of people from a country suffering the worst of the global pandemic because the quarantine system will be overrun.

But given you are dealing with Australian citizens who are being refused the right to come home (which we are told apparently doesn't actually exist by the way), you would think you might outline what you are doing to fix things during the pause.

What are you doing to help people stranded in India, for example? What are you putting in place to facilitate their arrival after the pause? Are you increasing quarantine capacity?

As news of the ban erupted over the weekend amid outrage and increasing questions about the legality of the move, and accusations of racism, the PM was nowhere to be seen. Any of his ministers who did appear looked flummoxed by the questions. The High Commissioner to India Barry O'Farrell also didn't appear for several days.


A really, really bad idea

And it only seemed to become a real emergency when the usual Coalition media cheer squad and the government's own backbench started to say it was in fact a really, really bad idea.

Despite this, government sources were still "briefing out" that the move was running hotly in the government's favour among voters.

Which apparently is a thing when you are trying to shape a policy to deal with a pandemic.

By Friday, the government was announcing repatriation flights would start at the end of the pre-determined pause.

But the Prime Minister was also saying that people testing positive for COVID would be left in India. The protest from the government is that this has always been the policy, whether for Indians or anyone else, and that this is standard practice around the world.

Given the scale of the problem in India, and the sense from events of the past week that the government has abandoned Indian Australians, or at least failed to put systems in place to help them, this will create new pressure points and questions about its capacity to run things.

The federal government only had two jobs: quarantine and vaccines.

It shunted quarantine to the states but in the last week seems to have stuffed it up anyway. And four million of us were not vaccinated by the end of March.

Determining who comes to Australia, and the circumstances in which they come, just doesn't seem to work for the Coalition as it once did.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-...nity/100125094

[FairmontGS]

No new Zs for NSW...

[pottery beige]

Originally Posted by Tickford.

<snip>

wow...

[tweeked]

Originally Posted by Tickford.

The shambolic handling of repatriating Australian citizens from India reveals the government's priorities

The media release from the Prime Minister announcing the resumption of repatriation flights from India to Australia hit journalists' inboxes just before midday on Friday.

And within seven words, it was clear just how "back on track" was the debacle which this week saw Australia not just close its borders to its own citizens, but threatened them with jail if they came home.

"Government chartered repatriation flights to the Centre for National Resilience at Howard Springs for Australians returning from India will resume on May 15," the statement began.

The Centre for National Resilience? Who knew? Most people just thought it was a quarantine centre set up by the federal government.

The important bit of getting this life-and-death piece of policy had been sorted out, it seemed. Getting a jazzy name for it. A bit like that ritzy social media post featuring the defence force contribution to the bushfires that was produced by the PM's office and produced when things were at the most sticky for him over bushfires.


It's about priorities and political opportunity

It's about priorities. And depressingly, the priorities in this episode tell us much about the priorities of this government.

What it tells us is that, whatever the underlying principles or quality of a policy, the government rarely considers telling taxpayers about it from the starting point of "we need to know", but instead see it too often through the prism of a political opportunity, or political badging.

India's COVID-19 pandemic has reached catastrophic levels. COVID in India looks like our worst pandemic nightmares.

Not entirely surprisingly, the number and proportion of Australians coming from India carrying the disease started to rise, given new variants were emerging that seemed even more contagious in one of the most populous countries on earth.

Australian authorities became alarmed at the risks this posed to people here if the virus escaped quarantine, particularly when it seemed some people were only showing signs of infection after the normal 14 day quarantine period had elapsed.

The decision was made to stop direct flights from India and, then, when it became clear that systems were not in place to track people who might fly from India via another hub, to put penalties in place to deter them.

To do this, Health Minister Greg Hunt made a declaration under the COVID-19 Human Biosecurity Emergency powers granted in March last year.

Technically, it was the Biosecurity (Human Biosecurity Emergency) (Human Coronavirus with Pandemic Potential) (Emergency Requirements— High Risk Country Travel Pause) Determination 2021.

Section 477 of the Biosecurity Act sets out jail terms and fines for people who breach determinations like this one, which is actually the eighth such determination Hunt has made.

Previous ones – also subject to the terms of this Act — have covered everything from banning cruise ships, to stopping Australians going overseas, to visiting remote Indigenous communities.

It's just that no one has really mentioned the whole "going to jail" thing much before.


Shambolic handling of information

Chief medical officer Paul Kelly wrote to Hunt late on Friday "to provide advice to assist your considerations to make a determination under section 477 of the Biosecurity Act 2015 (the Act) to make it an offence for a person, including Australian citizens and permanent residents, to enter Australia if they have been in India in the preceding 14 days.

"I note that such a determination, if made, would be the first time that such a determination has been used to prevent Australian citizens and permanent residents entering Australia".

The Prime Minister this week tried to defend the government's shambolic handling of information about its actions by arguing that it was the media that was responsible for emphasising the jail terms, not the government.

That would be fine, except for the fact that the whole point of making the determination was presumably to deter people from trying to sneak back into the country via a different travel hub.

And there was also the fact that Hunt mentioned jail terms in his press release, issued at midnight last Friday night.

The information flow from the government from that late night media release onwards has appeared as chaotic as the government's handling of the issue.

Fair enough to impose a ban if you think you need to temporarily pause the arrival of people from a country suffering the worst of the global pandemic because the quarantine system will be overrun.

But given you are dealing with Australian citizens who are being refused the right to come home (which we are told apparently doesn't actually exist by the way), you would think you might outline what you are doing to fix things during the pause.

What are you doing to help people stranded in India, for example? What are you putting in place to facilitate their arrival after the pause? Are you increasing quarantine capacity?

As news of the ban erupted over the weekend amid outrage and increasing questions about the legality of the move, and accusations of racism, the PM was nowhere to be seen. Any of his ministers who did appear looked flummoxed by the questions. The High Commissioner to India Barry O'Farrell also didn't appear for several days.


A really, really bad idea

And it only seemed to become a real emergency when the usual Coalition media cheer squad and the government's own backbench started to say it was in fact a really, really bad idea.

Despite this, government sources were still "briefing out" that the move was running hotly in the government's favour among voters.

Which apparently is a thing when you are trying to shape a policy to deal with a pandemic.

By Friday, the government was announcing repatriation flights would start at the end of the pre-determined pause.

But the Prime Minister was also saying that people testing positive for COVID would be left in India. The protest from the government is that this has always been the policy, whether for Indians or anyone else, and that this is standard practice around the world.

Given the scale of the problem in India, and the sense from events of the past week that the government has abandoned Indian Australians, or at least failed to put systems in place to help them, this will create new pressure points and questions about its capacity to run things.

The federal government only had two jobs: quarantine and vaccines.

It shunted quarantine to the states but in the last week seems to have stuffed it up anyway. And four million of us were not vaccinated by the end of March.

Determining who comes to Australia, and the circumstances in which they come, just doesn't seem to work for the Coalition as it once did.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-...nity/100125094

Geeze you can find some over the top garbage. Confirmation bias is your default search engine. Seriously, this is not even trying to look like journalism, it is a political statement.

[T3rminator]

Laura Tingle does seem to have a thing for the PM, but we've got a real a problem if we can't trust the ABC. Hashtag defund the ABC

Originally Posted by Citroënbender

Further, if one takes a wild leap into historical conjecture and asks “Where did they get this notion?” - a quick review of the Northern Beaches outbreak suggests they might have quietly come to such conclusion but found it unpalatable to speak thus.

Think you might be onto something here Citro. Already making the concession only 48 hours after the first case, which is quite baffling given the (global) gold standard team at the helm.

No new COVID-19 cases as Premier warns missing link may not be found

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/...07-p57pph.html

[FairmontGS]

Originally Posted by tweeked

Geeze you can find some over the top garbage. Confirmation bias is your default search engine. Seriously, this is not even trying to look like journalism, it is a political statement.

Originally Posted by T3rminator

Laura Tingle does seem to have a thing for the PM, but we've got a real a problem if we can't trust the ABC. Hashtag defund the ABC

Beat me to it. It's a Tingle article and she hates ScoMo with a vengeance. Always pays to check the author before embarking on the read.

Don't defund the ABC - just get rid of some of the people that have taken refuge there. It's a fine institution.

[lumen8]

Originally Posted by Yellow_Festiva

Doubt it. I'm sure soon enough the travel restrictions will be challenged legally.

Time will tell.

Sent from my SM-G973F using Tapatalk

Well they are being challenged right now, not just the India case, but another one which seeks to drop restrictions on us heading out.

They are clear in their intentions, which is to not make it a come and go free for all, but rather enable Australians to leave if they want to, legally, knowing full well they might not be able to get back easily.

Article about it...

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-...nged/100121648

That one by Liberty Works kicked off just this past Thursday.

[buggerlugs]

Originally Posted by FairmontGS

No new Zs for NSW...

image

Pretty sure they just said on the radio no new cases for all the country today. Would that be a first ?

[Yellow_Festiva]

Originally Posted by lumen8

Well they are being challenged right now, not just the India case, but another one which seeks to drop restrictions on us heading out.



They are clear in their intentions, which is to not make it a come and go free for all, but rather enable Australians to leave if they want to, legally, knowing full well they might not be able to get back easily.



Article about it...



https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-...nged/100121648



That one by Liberty Works kicked off just this past Thursday.

Well, there you go.

The population is happy to have some of their rights removed from them within reason.

Once it becomes unreasonable... well... "see you in court"...

Sent from my SM-G973F using Tapatalk

[Burnout]

Originally Posted by FairmontGS

Beat me to it. It's a Tingle article and she hates ScoMo with a vengeance. Always pays to check the author before embarking on the read.

Don't defund the ABC - just get rid of some of the people that have taken refuge there. It's a fine institution.

"Go Woke - Go Broke"

[FairmontGS]

Originally Posted by buggerlugs

Pretty sure they just said on the radio no new cases for all the country today. Would that be a first ?

Dunno. I only report on the GSS.

[russellw]

Originally Posted by buggerlugs

Pretty sure they just said on the radio no new cases for all the country today. Would that be a first ?

It would be (for a long time) if it were true but Victoria (at least) had 1 case recorded for today.

[Work Horse]

Originally Posted by FairmontGS

Beat me to it. It's a Tingle article and she hates ScoMo with a vengeance. Always pays to check the author before embarking on the read.

Don't defund the ABC - just get rid of some of the people that have taken refuge there. It's a fine institution.

More balanced in depth analysis here;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thDl2IKal_s

This guy has been all over it from the beginning!

[DJR-351]

Originally Posted by russellw

It would be (for a long time) if it were true but Victoria (at least) had 1 case recorded for today.

Are you sure Russ, I heard the same on the ABC Radio, and according to this website in the last 24hrs up until 9pm tonight there has been zero locally acquired cases anywhere in Australia. 🤔

https://www.health.gov.au/news/healt...d-case-numbers

[CoupeKing]

As I mentioned before, probably over a year ago, a mate of mine has a business on Acland St, St Kilda.

Pre covid lie, it was busy - he pays four thousand dollars per week in rent (yes , per week). That's how busy it is, or was.

It was an area heavy in tourists.

Way over 20% of businesses have shut their door in that area, and it's climbing.

[Work Horse]

Originally Posted by CoupeKing

As I mentioned before, probably over a year ago, a mate of mine has a business on Acland St, St Kilda.

Pre covid lie, it was busy - he pays four thousand dollars per week in rent (yes , per week). That's how busy it is, or was.

It was an area heavy in tourists.

Way over 20% of businesses have shut their door in that area, and it's climbing.

Not true Coupe the area was a **** hole long before covid.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-...evival/8552278

[Citroënbender]

Out in retail this evening, mask compliance very low. Aldi less than 50% of patrons, Colesworths maybe 60%. Almost nobody burnin’ doin’ the QR dance. Aldi prefabricated potato salad was flying off the shelf, I guess mothers must like it.

[JasonACT]

I've got a front-loader washing machine. It's 24 years old. Guys at work question me about how I get a 24yo to do my laundry. I just keep quiet. I've always bought OMO Front Loader powder though. Mostly from 'worths. Whenever I did though, it was 50% off, so $5 per KG - usually in a 2KG box. Recently though, there was no discount offered, so $20 a box... Went to Aldi and bought their $5 for 2KG box. Starting to buy more from Aldi now, all good stuff.

[mostly_broncos]

Originally Posted by FairmontGS

Michael Slater takes aim at Scott Morrison over India COVID travel ban, but is criticised for being a "spoiled prat"



https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-...-ban/100119572

View from outside , preventing cricket players from returning is all upside.

Easily the most dismal boring sport imaginable , here in the US most now find baseball games at 3 1/2 hours unwatchable. On the excitement scale cricket makes baseball seem like skydiving

[DJR-351]

Originally Posted by russellw

It would be (for a long time) if it were true but Victoria (at least) had 1 case recorded for today.

Sorry Russ, just realised the distinction no new "Locally Acquired" wasn't posted, which is what i heard reported on the radio, overseas acquired still coming in......

[FairmontGS]

It's behind a paywall but you get the gist... Inevitable decision

Australia to stay shut indefinitely: Morrison
Scott Morrison says he sees ‘no appetite’ among Australians to open the international border, not convinced on the reliability of vaccines.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/sub...s&mode=premium

[Citroënbender]

I can see an humanitarian appeal to the UN coming, funded by Russia.

[zilo]

Originally Posted by FairmontGS

Don't defund the ABC - just get rid of some of the people that have taken refuge there. It's a fine institution.

Yeah..they're the feminists, you only have to see the way they blame men for everything on The Drum.

[zilo]

I had to shake my head at the poor sob story article about the poor indian family that has been separated from their child for 12 months now due to Covid travel restrictions.

Can someone explain to me how a mother and father can be separated from their 19 month old baby for the last 12 months and the baby has to be cared for by relatives in india?

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-05-...d-19/100125054

What a crock of crap.

[lumen8]

Originally Posted by FairmontGS

It's behind a paywall but you get the gist... Inevitable decision

Australia to stay shut indefinitely: Morrison
Scott Morrison says he sees ‘no appetite’ among Australians to open the international border, not convinced on the reliability of vaccines.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/sub...s&mode=premium

How many Qantas tickets can the leprechaun sell now Both him and the flight center boss have been saying there would be travel by the end of the year... I guess they are desperate to sell tickets.

But govt says no, and now theyve made it official.

Qantus will need more handouts I guess.

I dont remember asking or voting for a zero case policy, but if morrison says thats what I want, it must be what I want.

[CoupeKing]

Originally Posted by Work Horse

Not true Coupe the area was a **** hole long before covid.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-...evival/8552278

You wouldn't be saying that if you owned properties down there.

Plus the article was published in 2017.

[russellw]

Data valid as at 00:00 GMT May 8th, 2021.

Note: As not all Australian States report at the same time, the data below is based on the previous full day reporting.

13 new cases for Australia and no deaths so the CMR is 3.043%.

6 new cases and 0 deaths for NZ so CMR is 0.985% and active cases 25.

The UK had a lower 2,047 cases yesterday and 5 deaths.

Just under 50k new cases in the USA yesterday and 804 deaths sees CMR at 1.780%. Note that the USA is actually minus one day due to time differences.

Other notable points: (weekend reporting)
Global cases pass 158M, the last 1M in 1 day;
Asia passes 43M cases;
India passes 22M cases - just over half the Asian total;
South America passes 700k deaths;

Only -
Trinidad & Tobago (402);

... recorded new daily highs; those in blue for the second consecutive day and those in red for a third or more consecutive day.

No countries move above the 90th percentile for their 10 day average while Croatia drops below.

[FairmontGS]

Originally Posted by lumen8

How many Qantas tickets can the leprechaun sell now Both him and the flight center boss have been saying there would be travel by the end of the year... I guess they are desperate to sell tickets.

But govt says no, and now theyve made it official.

Qantus will need more handouts I guess.

I dont remember asking or voting for a zero case policy, but if morrison says thats what I want, it must be what I want.

Alan baby pivots quickly - all the A380s were sent to the boneyard last year and won't be back. The 787s will be used between Auckland and Perth and Singapore and back to Sydney/Melbourne. He will have been well briefed by ScoMo and Josh.

Expect support measures in the budget. Australia needs its national carrier.

[Citroënbender]

Australia needs its national carrier.

What percent of it do we own, again?

The vibe I’m picking up from general chatter is that a home quarantine breacher possibly dined at XOPP. My earlier use of the expression “unpalatable” was deliberate in light of this prospective double meaning… Now Greater Sydney has a further week of watered down restrictions that were - per observation - substantially ignored anyway.