It came after 79,214 tests were conducted in the past 24 hours. More the 63 per cent of the state’s population aged 16 years and older has been fully vaccinated, almost reaching its 70 per cent target to begin easing restrictions.On Friday, it was announced that fully vaccinated people in NSW red zones would soon be able to enter Victoria without facing two weeks of quarantine, despite there being 2179 new cases of community transmission and six deaths recorded.Travellers entering the state from red zones would need a negative Covid-19 test 72 hours before their arrival.Those who aren’t fully vaccinated will also need to return a negative test no more than 72 hours prior to their arrival but will need to be retested on day 13 and complete 14 days of quarantine.“People who are fully vaccinated have a right to reduced requirements because they present reduced risk,” Health Minister Martin Foley said.Victoria’s Covid response commander Jeroen Weimar said authorities were expecting significantly high numbers in the coming days and weeks.He said the numbers this week were “worrying”. Mr Weimar’s comments came as the state recorded two straight days of soaring case numbers past the 2000 mark on Thursday and Friday.“We know with a high attack rate of coronavirus, of the Delta strain, within households we expect to see significantly more numbers coming out of those new households in the coming days and weeks.”319 CASES: NSW NSW has recorded 319 new locally transmitted cases of Covid-19 on Saturday. There were also two deaths reported and two new overseas acquired infections.About 66,311 people underwent testing in the past 24 hours. Currently, 652 people are in hospital with 138 of them in intensive care.Daily case numbers continue to gradually fall as the state recorded 399 new local cases and four deaths on Friday. There was also one returned traveller in hotel quarantine that tested positive. More than 78 per cent of NSW residents aged 16 and over are now fully vaccinated and more than 91 per cent have had at least one dose. Yesterday, Premier Dominic Perrottet said he expected the state would reach its 80 per cent target over the weekend.“We set out a road map which from Monday will provide a removal of a number restrictions that have been put in place,” he said. As of Monday, home visitations would increase from 10 people to 20 with outdoor gatherings increasing from 30 to 50 people. Standing while drinking in pubs will also be allowed and there will be no limit on guest numbers for wedding and funerals.KYRIGOS’ BORDER SLURTennis star Nick Kyrgios has taken a dig at Australia’s international border closures after Qantas announced it will bring forward the restart of its international flights.The airliner announced it will operate up to five return flights a week from Sydney to London and up to four return flights a week from Sydney to Los Angeles with its Boeing 787 Dreamliners from 1 November. More flights will be added to meet demand, if needed. Flights to London will operate via Darwin until at least April 2022.That’s two weeks earlier than planned after the Federal and NSW governments confirmed borders will now reopen on that date.Kyrgios, 26, took to social media to criticise the government-imposed restrictions.“Thanks guys! Australia has been behind for the past year,” he tweeted followed by an emoji of folded hands and a flushed face, adding “freedom has nothing to do with Covid”.Twitter users were fast to react to the post. “Boy have you changed your tune from the early days, lecturing tennis players on irresponsibility during Covid. Fallen down the rabbit hole much?,” one user responded, in an apparent reference to Kyrgios taking a dig at Novak Djokovic in January when the Serbian player wrote to the Australian Open organisers asking for an easing of quarantine restrictions.Another responded: “Travel and the spread of an airborne virus are pretty heavily connected.”The initial flights announced by Qantas are limited to Australian citizens, permanent residents and their immediate families and parents in line with Australian Government requirements.Flights to other destinations including Singapore, Fiji and Vancouver are still scheduled to commence from December 18, with other destinations to restart in the new year – however, in light of the shift to remove quarantine requirements for fully vaccinated travellers arriving in New South Wales, the Qantas Group is looking at bringing forward some additional destinations from Sydney if possible. Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said: “Bringing forward the reopening of Australia to the world and removing quarantine requirements for fully vaccinated travellers entering New South Wales is a massive step towards life as we knew it.“In just a little over two weeks, Australians around the world can fly into Sydney and people from around Australia can leave on trips they’ve been waiting almost two years to take. We hope other states will do the same once they reach the 80 per cent target.”INTERNATIONAL BORDERS WILL REOPEN TO AUSSIES FIRSTScott Morrison said he is “very pleased” NSW will lift quarantine caps for vaccinated international travellers from November 1.“It enables us to be in a position to lift caps for returning Australian citizens, residents and their families from the first of November into New South Wales,” he said on Friday afternoon.“What this also means is we will be allowing Australians, permanent residents and citizens and their families to leave Australia from wherever they live in Australia and return.”The prime minister said capped arrangements in other states will continue because of the vaccination levels in those states and territories.Mr Morrison said the National Security Committee agreed on Tuesday the definition of “immediate family” would be extended to include parents of Australian residents and citizens.“I know that will be very welcome news to Australians right across the country who were hoping to be reunited with their family members, their parents who are overseas,” he said.“In New South Wales’s case, it means those family members will be able to come into Sydney if they are vaccinated and not have to quarantine under the arrangement that the premier has announced today. That is a welcome step forward.”The PM made clear the opening to international travel will be for Australian residents, permanent citizens and their immediate family first, followed by skilled migrants, students and tourists.“We are not opening up to everyone coming back to Australia at the moment. I want to be clear about that. We will take this forward in a staged way as we have done in all these things,” he said.NSW SCRAPS HOTEL QUARANTINE FOR VAXXEDHotel quarantine will be scrapped for people entering NSW, including those coming from overseas, from November 1.People will only be required to take a Covid-19 test before boarding a flight and show proof of full vaccination, NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet has confirmed.“For double vaccinated people around the world, Sydney, NSW, is open for business,” he said.“We want people back. We are leading the nation out of the pandemic.“Hotel quarantine will be a thing of the past. This is a significant day for our state.”NSW could achieve the magic 80 per cent double dose vaccination target as early as Friday.Recent numbers revealed 78.81 per cent of eligible residents have had both doses of the Covid vaccine, while 91.66 per cent have had their first dose – as of Thursday evening.This means the state is on track to surpass 80 per cent later in the day, and if that’s the case, more freedoms will be unlocked from Monday.If the 80 per cent target isn’t hit on Friday, it will still be passed on Saturday.Despite hitting the target, regional travel is still off the cards until November 1.NSW Deputy Premier Paul Toole revealed the controversial change on Friday morning which has sparked fury among vaccinated residents hoping to be reunited with family and friends.“I know it’s frustrating and I know it’s not an easy decision being made, but we have a responsibility to keep our regional communities safe,” Mr Toole said.“We achieved that target of 80 per cent vaccination quicker than we thought. We thought it would still be a couple of weeks away.”The Premier said he had worked closely with the NSW government to ensure the right protocols were in place to keep people safe.But the cap for arrivals is just 210 a week.NSW is on the edge of achieving the magic 80 per cent double-dose target that would mean more freedoms kick in for fully vaccinated residents from Monday.But a backflip on allowing Sydneysiders to travel to the regions has sparked fury.The state government’s crisis cabinet met on Thursday and pushed the travel date back to November 1 to allow regions with lagging vaccination uptake to catch up. Allowing city dwellers to visit the regions was originally promised when the state achieved the 70 per cent milestone, which was then pushed back to 80 per cent.Mr Perrottet argued that the government did not expect NSW to hit the target so soon.He was probed about why people in the Hunter Region, which has some of the highest case numbers, were still allowed to travel across NSW but Sydneysiders couldn’t.“It is not a precise science,” Mr Perrottet said.“You could go through every single LGA, and you could go through every single town centre, what we have done is make a decision based on where vaccination rates are. We set out a road map.”NSW ROAD MAP EXPLAINEDGATHERINGSGroups of 20 people will be allowed to gather in homes, excluding children, and up to 50 people can congregate outdoors.Ticketed events will be able to hold up to 3000 people in outdoor and controlled settings, kickstarting the state’s arts and music industry.Up to 5000 people will be able to attend sporting events and community sports are also back on.MASKSMasks will remain mandatory indoors except for in offices, a change introduced by Mr Perrottet as an incentive to get people back at work.HOSPITALITYDrinking while standing up in a pub will be allowed, but all venues will have density limits.The 20-person limit on bookings will remain until November 1.Nightclubs can reopen but dancing is not permitted.HAIRDRESSERSHairdressers are already open but the density limits will no longer apply once the state hits 80 per cent.WEDDINGS AND FUNERALSThe cap on the number of people allowed to attend weddings and funerals will be removed but all guests must be fully vaccinated.SCHOOLSAll students will return to on-site learning by October 25 as long as the school has CovidSafe measures in place.Kindergarten, year 1 and year 12 students will return to face-to-face learning a week earlier.TRAVELTravel between Sydney and the regions will not be allowed until November 1 after the government backflipped on a promise that it would happen at 80 per cent.More freedoms will be granted on December 1 and will also apply to unvaccinated residents.VICTORIA HAS 2179 CASES Fully vaccinated people in NSW red zones will soon be able to enter Victoria without facing two weeks of quarantine.It comes as Victoria rapidly approaches its jab targets, with 63 per cent of the state’s population now fully vaccinated.The travel changes will come into effect on October 19, but fully vaccinated people entering Victoria from red zones will need a negative Covid-19 test result 72 hours before entering the state.People who aren’t fully vaccinated must have a negative result from a test taken no more than 72 hours prior to entry, and they must quarantine for 14 days, plus get tested again on day 13.“People who are fully vaccinated have a right to reduced requirements because they present reduced risk,” Health Minister Martin Foley said.“Victoria and NSW have been through so much over the last few months, and we’re pleased that more families will now be able to reunite and more people will be able to travel in a safe way.”Victoria recorded 2179 new cases of Covid-19 on Friday, with the day also marking the cut-off for essential workers in Victoria now needing to show proof of vaccination to work.It is the second consecutive day Victoria’s case numbers have crashed through the 2000 mark, following the announcement of an Australian record 2297 cases and 11 deaths on Thursday. Jeroen Weimar saying authorities were expecting significantly high numbers in the coming days and weeks.Just over one quarter of cases are in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, with one third in the western suburbs, and numbers in the southeastern suburbs continuing to grow.Regional Victoria now accounts for nine per cent of all cases.Mr Weimar said the numbers this week were “worrying”.“From yesterday‘s numbers we are clearly seeing a step up in the number of cases we are dealing with here in Victoria,” Mr Weimar said.“We know with a high attack rate of coronavirus, of the Delta strain, within households we expect to see significantly more numbers coming out of those new households in the coming days and weeks.”There were another six deaths across the state on Thursday taking the toll from the current outbreak to 131.There are currently 695 people in hospital with the virus, with 157 people in ICU and 101 on a ventilator.A whopping 67 per cent of Friday’s cases were unvaccinated, with three quarters of those in hospital also not fully vaccinated.“Unvaccinated people here in Victoria right now are ten times more likely to catch Covid than somebody who is fully vaccinated,” Mr Weimar said.“This is why vaccination is our way out of this and why it is critically important that we all protect ourselves to get vaccinated, to get fully vaccinated as swiftly and as safely as possible.”Premier Daniel Andrews has assured Victorians the rising numbers will not deter the government’s plan to release residents from lockdown once vaccination goals are reached.“We have, fundamentally, a very important agreement with the Victorian community – you get vaccinated and we will open up, and I do what I say,” he said.The state is hovering below the 70 per cent double dose milestone that would trigger the first tranche of relaxations.There were 38,752 vaccinations conducted at government clinics on Thursday, and almost 59,000 jabs were administered at other sites in Victoria.According to CovidBaseAu, Victoria’s double dose rate stood at 62.6 per cent, while its single dose rate has surpassed 87 per cent.CORONAVIRUS BORDER RESTRICTIONS TO EASE Border restrictions are set to ease between New South Wales, Queensland and the ACT at midnight, as the Sunshine State and Capital Territory are no longer classified as areas of concern.On Thursday evening, NSW Health said travellers entering from the ACT and Queensland will not be required to complete a declaration form on entry into NSW or follow stay-at-home rules on arrival.NSW residents who live in regional LGAs can travel anywhere in regional NSW, but may not enter the Greater Sydney region without a reasonable cause. The same rules will apply for people entering from the ACT and Queensland.Holidays and outdoor recreation or activities are not considered to be “reasonable excuses”. Greater Sydney residents are not permitted to travel to regional LGAs without a reasonable excuse, such as weddings, funerals, going to work, attending school, visiting childcare services, receiving healthcare, or fulfilling legal obligations and household visits.MORE BLOOD CLOTS LINKED TO AZ JABThe number of blood clots cases in Australia linked to the AstraZeneca vaccine has risen to 152 from 12.5 million doses.Two cases considered ‘probable” were reported in a 25-year-old woman and 76-year-old man both from Queensland.The cases were disclosed in the Therapeutic Goods Administration Covid-19 vaccine weekly safety report on Thursday afternoon.“To date, we have not observed a significant change in the rate of TTS in people aged 50-59 years. There has been a trend for the rate to decrease in people under 50 years and the rates for people under 50 years and over 60 years are now similar,” the medicines watchdog said.So far, the TGA has found nine reports of death that were linked to immunisation from 597 reports received and reviewed. The overwhelming majority of deaths reported to the TGA following vaccination occurred in people aged 65 years and older.With regards to the Pfizer vaccine, the TGA has received 269 reports of suspected myocarditis alone or in combination with pericarditis, and an additional 725 reports of suspected pericarditis alone. It’s also received one report of suspected myocarditis and 13 reports of suspected pericarditis after the Moderna jab.The TGA advises people should seek immediate medical attention if they develop any of the following symptoms after vaccination:– severe or persistent headache, blurred vision, confusion or seizures– shortness of breath, chest pain, leg swelling or persistent abdominal pain– unusual skin bruising and/or pinpoint round spots beyond the site of vaccination.The most common time period for onset of TTS symptoms is 4–30 days after vaccination.NED-3736-Vaccine-benefit-vs-harmDUTTON SLAMS BORDER ‘NONSENSE’Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has dropped another hint about reopening the state’s borders in time for Christmas, but a furious Peter Dutton wants to know why it hasn’t happened already. Ms Palaszczuk on Wednesday night posted a curious tweet noting that the holiday season was just around the corner and urged people to help lift the state’s lagging Covid vaccination rate. Mr Dutton, whose federal seat of Dickson is in Queensland, agreed that Ms Palaszczuk’s reference to the approaching Christmas season was a likely hint she was planning to open the state up to outsiders. “I hope she lives up to that word,” the Defence Minister told 2GB radio host Ray Hadley. But he also lashed Ms Palaszczuk and Queensland Labor for its tough stance on borders and not committing to a firm reopening. “It is absolutely safe for Queensland to open up once that vaccination rate gets to 70 or 80 per cent,” Mr Dutton said on Thursday.“The Premier at one point was saying … kids need to be vaccinated, and if there’s a small pocket in the community somewhere in Queensland that’s not 80 per cent vaccinated … the rest of the state won’t open. All of that is nonsense.”Ms Palaszczuk has so far refused to commit to a reopening date, drawing criticism from various state and federal Coalition opponents as well as business and tourism groups. She has flagged concerns over the vulnerability of children who are unable to be vaccinated, while she has asked Prime Minister Scott Morrison to increase hospital funding and announce a plan for the rollout of Covid booster shots before she can open the state back up.The Queensland government is also concerned over its patchy regional vaccination rate and has previously said the 80 per cent double-vaccination figure flagged at national cabinet may not be enough.Queensland has 71 per cent of people aged over 16 with a first dose, ahead of only the Northern Territory, while the state’s 54.1 per cent double vaccination rate is only ahead of Western Australia. Regional Queensland areas are lagging the cities. But Mr Dutton said many local hospitality businesses had their last dollar on the line and were being unnecessarily punished.“It would be a remarkable set of circumstances, given the international travel resumes in November, if you can jump on a plane and go to Fiji, but I can’t jump off the plane and go to the Gold Coast in December,” Mr Dutton said. “That would be just absolutely nonsensical.”Ms Palaszczuk is proud of her record in warding off the virus – especially compared with NSW and Victoria – with the state stamping out several worrying clusters over the past two weeks.What’s more, Queensland on Thursday recorded a ninth straight day without a local Covid case. The state’s border travel bubble with six northern NSW local government areas was also reinstated on Wednesday.
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