COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Melbourne heading in right direction but lockdown extension likely

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Original article by Michael Fowler
The Age – Page: Online : 11-Aug-21

Victoria has recorded 20 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours; only five had been self-isolating while they were infectious, while 10 of the new cases have been linked to a shopping centre in Caroline Springs. Meanwhile, the state government is expected to extend Melbourne’s current lockdown beyond the scheduled end date of 12 August, amid concern about rising case numbers in the western suburbs. University of South Australia epidemiologist Adrian Esterman contends that the restrictions should not be relaxed until daily case numbers are in single digits. He says the four-day average of the current outbreak is still rising and is unlikely to peak for another 2-3 days.

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UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Movement in the Adelaide CBD bounces back after short lockdown while movement in the Sydney CBD continues to trail other cities

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 11-Aug-21

A special analysis of movement data in Australia’s Capital City CBDs since the COVID-19 pandemic began shows that movement in the Adelaide CBD bounced back quickly following its short lockdown in July, while movement remains low in both the Sydney CBD and Melbourne CBD – both in lockdown. The average 7-day movement level in the Adelaide CBD was at 40% of pre-pandemic averages in early August, up by 25% points from a low of 15% in late July. The entire State of South Australia was locked down from July 21-27 to deal with the State’s first outbreak of COVID-19 so far this year. The average movement level in the Sydney CBD was at only 10% of pre-pandemic levels in early August and well below other cities. Greater Sydney has now entered its seventh week of lockdown since the city was first locked down on June 26. The city of Melbourne was still recovering from its fifth lockdown in late July, with average movement levels in the Melbourne CBD at only 20% of pre-pandemic levels in early August. The State of Victoria was in lockdown from July 16-27 and exited lockdown only briefly before returning to lockdown just a week later. The Perth CBD has regained its spot as Australia’s most ‘COVID-normal’ city with average movement levels at 55% of pre-pandemic averages in early August. This is the highest they’ve been since early June and the first time Perth has sat atop the rankings since late January when the city entered its second lockdown. Just behind in second place is the Hobart CBD with movement levels at 47% of pre-pandemic averages in early August and the Brisbane CBD at 46% of pre-pandemic averages before last week’s short lockdown. These results do not include the impact of the most recent lockdowns in Victoria or SE Queensland. Roy Morgan has partnered with leading technology innovator UberMedia to aggregate data from tens of thousands of mobile devices to assess the movements of Australians as we deal with the restrictions imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED, UBERMEDIA

NSW in Covid limbo

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Original article by Alexandra Smith, Lucy Cormack, Mary Ward
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 11-Aug-21

New South Wales has recorded 356 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours; at least 97 of these people were active in the community while they were infectious. The state’s toll from the current outbreak has risen to 32 following another three deaths. A fourth person has died after he contracted the coronavirus while overseas and tested positive in hotel quarantine. Meanwhile, Premier Gladys Berejiklian has rejected calls for stricter lockdown measures, such as a curfew or a ‘ring of steel’ around Sydney, and flagged the possibility that restrictions could be eased at the end of August if the state achieves its vaccination targets. However, chief health officer Kerry Chant says it is too soon to be thinking about easing restrictions, emphasising the need to reduce daily case numbers.

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NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, NEW SOUTH WALES. MINISTRY OF HEALTH

Live music industry prepares for a quiet, sad summer

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Original article by Kelly Burke
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 9-Aug-21

The UK recently announced a Stg750 million government-backed insurance scheme to help provide the live music and entertainment sector with a financial buffer against future lockdowns, and the federal government is being urged to do the same for the Australian live music sector. Annabelle Herd, who is the CEO of ARIA and PPCA, claims it will be a "quiet and sad summer" for the live music sector if a scheme similar to the one in the UK is not put in place. It was stated that recently that over 28,000 live events have been cancelled since 1 July, leading to losses of over $84 million.

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AUSTRALIAN RECORDING INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION LIMITED, PPCA

Huge AstraZeneca stockpile open to the young

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Original article by Richard Ferguson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 9-Aug-21

New figures show that New South Wales and Victoria have access to a combined stockpile of more than one million unused doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine. The huge stockpile has been attributed to weak demand for the vaccine, which has been linked to a rare blood clotting disorder. The Victorian government has advised that it will make 200,000 doses of the vaccine available to people aged 18-39, with Premier Daniel Andrews stating that mass vaccination is the only way out of the pandemic. Meanwhile, the NSW government plans to inoculate some 24,000 Year 12 students in designated hotspot areas, while the Therapeutic Goods Administration is expected to approve the Moderna vaccine within weeks.

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ASTRAZENECA PLC, VICTORIA. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. THERAPEUTIC GOODS ADMINISTRATION, MODERNA INCORPORATED

Inconsistent YouTube rules challenged by Sky

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Original article by Sophie Elsworth
The Australian – Page: 21 : 9-Aug-21

Sky News Australia CEO Paul Whittaker has asked YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki for a clearer explanation as to why 21 of Sky’s videos were removed from its platform and why it was banned from uploading content for seven days. Whittaker contends that YouTube’s policies on COVID-19 are "internally inconsistent and incapable of compliance", while he has asked for an explanation of remarks made by YouTube to other media groups as to why Sky was suspended. YouTube was apparently quoted as saying it was suspended for "content that denies the existence of COVID-19". Whittaker says Sky absolutely rejects that suggestion.

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SKY NEWS, YOUTUBE INCORPORATED

It’s a tricky path trying to steer between the prevailing greed and hysteria

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Original article by Terry McCrann
Sunday Herald Sun – Page: 50 & 51 : 8-Aug-21

Data from Roy Morgan shows that 28,000 Australians lost their jobs in July, amid the fifth lockdown in Victoria and the ongoing lockdown in New South Wales. Roy Morgan estimates that 1.4 million Australians were unemployed in July, while an addition 1.33 million were under-employed. These figures do not take into account the full impact of the NSW lockdown and the latest lockdowns in Victoria and Queensland. Meanwhile, official jobs data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics for July will not be available for another two weeks, and will cover only the first two weeks of the month. The big question is whether state governments will continue to impose job-destroying lockdowns if the vaccination target of 70-80 per cent of Australians is reached and the nation is still recording new COVID-19 cases and deaths.

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ROY MORGAN LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Unions slam compulsory vaccine push

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Original article by Glenda Korporaal, Jared Lynch
The Australian – Page: 15 & 19 : 6-Aug-21

The question as to whether employers can mandate that staff must be vaccinated against COVID-19 has come under renewed scrutiny after SPC’s move to enforce a ‘no jab, no job’ policy. The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union’s national president Andrew Dettmer has criticised the fruit and vegetable processor’s lack of consultation, as well as its unrealistic deadline of six weeks for staff to get their first dose at a time when vaccine supplies are limited. Lawyers have also questioned the validity of mandatory staff vaccinations. Many Australian companies are actively encouraging their staff to get vaccinated, with some offering incentives such as paid leave.

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SPC AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURING WORKERS’ UNION

Almost 70 per cent of new Covid cases in Sydney under the age of 40

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Original article by Alexandra Smith, Lucy Cormack, Mary Ward
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 6-Aug-21

New South Wales has recorded 262 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours; at least 72 of them were active in the community while they were infectious, while 67 per cent of the new cases are among people under the age of 40. The state’s death toll from COVID-19 has risen by five, and Premier Gladys Berejiklian notes that none of the 21 deaths so far in the current outbreak had been fully vaccinated. Meanwhile, the state government has imposed a seven-day lockdown of eight local government areas across the Hunter region after a number of cases were detected in Newcastle.

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NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET

Sixth death linked to AstraZeneca clotting

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Original article by Rachel Clun, Mary Ward, Lucy Carroll
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 6-Aug-21

The Therapeutic Goods Administration has advised that a 34-year-old woman in New South Wales has died from a rare blood clotting disorder just over a week after receiving AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine. It is Australia’s sixth confirmed death from thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome, which has been linked to the AstraZeneca jab. There have now been 93 confirmed cases of TTS nationwide. One Australian has also died from immune thrombocytopenia after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. THERAPEUTIC GOODS ADMINISTRATION