Australia coronavirus live: NSW government extends $5,000 fine to people who spit at ‘all workers’ – latest updates | Australia news

A handy bit of information from the agriculture department about Australia’s food security situation:

“Australia imports just over 10% of domestically consumed food and beverages, to meet consumer preferences for taste and variety. It is unlikely – but possible – that Covid-19 could disrupt these supply chains temporarily, resulting in inconvenience for some consumers. This would not threaten the food security of most Australians.”

You can read the full report here.

On the coronavirus contact tracing app again, just worth noting that the deputy chief medical officer Paul Kelly said yesterday that the app would not track location, so it is similar to the Singapore app in that respect.

Just a bit more on the NSW government fines for spitting and coughing:

“Unfortunately, there have now also been incidents in which retail staff and transport staff have also been subjected to this disgusting, dangerous behaviour, and it will not be tolerated,” NSW health minister Brad Hazzard said.

“Every worker in this Covid-19 crisis is now an essential worker and will have the added protection they deserve, including those in retail stores and those critical to our public transport system.

OK, I’m going to hand you over to my colleague Josh Taylor while I take a short break.

There have been no new cases of Covid-19 in the ACT for the sixth straight day. The territory still has 103 confirmed cases, 89 of which have recovered.

The 14 remaining cases are self-isolating at home, meaning there are currently no cases in Canberra hospitals.

The ACT has recorded three deaths in total during the pandemic.

A fascinating story from my colleague in San Francisco, Lois Beckett, on protests against Covid-19 restrictions in the US. A day after the US president Donald Trump encouraged Americans to protest against strict public health measures, demonstrations were held in state capitals in Maryland, Texas and Ohio.

Hundreds of people stood shoulder-to-shoulder at the Texas Capitol on Saturday, chanting “Fire Fauci!” as part of a protest organized by the conspiracy theory site InfoWars. Anthony Fauci is the top public health expert on the White House coronavirus taskforce.

Bowen is asked whether Australia should “trust” China in the wake of the spread of Covid-19. He says “trust is something that is earned and something constantly reinforced by good actions and by full accountability”.

Everybody around the world would want to trust China. Whether that is the case or not depends on the quality of information provided and whether it is credible. Of course we would call on the Chinese government to be as upfront as possible at all times with the information they provided. Looking back, could China have done more in relation to accountability and transparency earlier in this crisis? Yes. Many countries could have done more and better. In relation to trust, it is something which is not static – it’s something that is owned and maintained through being truthful and honest at all times.

Shadow health minister Chris Bowen is speaking in Sydney. He says his “inclination” would be to download the government’s Covid-19 tracing app.

My inclination would be to support efforts by downloading the app, but whether you are an MP, an ordinary Australian, any Australian, you are entitled to know more before being asked to download it. Like all Australians, I would look at the proposal being put forward by the prime minister. I’d look at all that information to see if it’s something I wanted to do. If the government is trying to do something positive with Covid-19, we’ve supported that as opposition and as individuals, but we are all entitled to see much more detail and accountability.

Quickly back to New South Wales, Hazzard is asked about that figure of 700 fewer deaths than projected. He says on the state government’s early predictions it had been preparing for 700 deaths.

He says that’s a “conservative” figure and that “700 lives have been saved”.

“We’re doing very well but let’s not get too excited at this point because as Dr Chant has said we’re barely halfway through the first quarter of this very long game.”

Government services minister Stuart Robert has slapped down former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce for refusing to download the government’s Covid-19 tracking app.

Joyce told the Nine Newspaper on Sunday he would not download the app, citing privacy concerns.

“I treasure the government knowing as little about me as possible,” Joyce told Nine newspapers on Sunday.

But Stuart, who has said the app would not track people’s location, said Joyce did not understand the purpose of the app.

“Look Barnaby, no one wants to know where you’ve gone, pal, we are not interested. And plus the app doesn’t do geolocation,” the minister told 2GB/4BC radio on Sunday.

“I’m not interested in where you are on the face of the earth.”

Stuart said the Bluetooth connecting app aims to digitise the present manual process and collects four things – name, mobile number, age and postcode.

“If you’re within one and a half metres of someone else with the app for more than 15 minutes, both of those apps swap mobile numbers or details,” Robert said.

“Then, if you confirm positive for the virus, that information goes to a secure national data store, then straight to state health authorities and then they can call people you’ve been in contact with, or, they can call you if you’ve been in contact with someone.”

Hazzard has announced the $5,000 on-the-spot fine for people who spit or cough at healthcare workers has been extended now to include all workers.

Assistant police minister Karen Webb says that overnight, a 25-year-old man from Nowra was arrested for a number of offences including allegedly spitting at police officers.

Tony Smith, the state secretary of the fast food and retail workers union, has welcomed the extension of the fines.

Just in the last last week, I’ve had four matters raised with me by members across the state from people deliberately coughing or spitting on people … It is vile and it is disgusting and unacceptable.

New South Wales health minister Brad Hazzard is providing an update on new cases in the state.

He says to 8pm last night there were 21 new cases of Covid-19, taking the state’s total number of confirmed cases to 2,957. There are 245 people being treated in hospital, including 21 in intensive care and 17 on ventilators.

There are nine new cases at the Newmarch aged care home in western Sydney, where a 93-year-old man died yesterday. There are now 39 cases at the aged care home, including 13 staff.

Hazzard says looking back to March when the state was seeing hundreds of new cases a day he “couldn’t have imagined we would be doing as well as we are”.

He says the state were expecting “up in the order of 700 deaths, possibly more”.

But, Hazzard says, there is still a long way to go.

“We’re doing much better than we could have expected at this point but I also want to remind the community this is a long game. It’s a team game. Probably at this point we aren’t very far into the game.

Extending the sport metaphor, Hazzard says that during a conversation with the chief health officer Kerry Chant he “wondered aloud whether we were at the end of the first quarter”.

She looked at me and said minister probably if we’re lucky we’re 10 minutes into the first quarter. There is no room here for us to forget this is a long game and a game with a lot more to go.

Labor’s shadow foreign affairs minister Penny Wong describes the arrest of major pro-democracy figures in Hong Kong in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic as “deeply concerning”

The prime minister, Scott Morrison, will still make a commemorative address at the Australian War Memorial’s empty Dawn Service on Anzac day.

Anzac Day memorials will not go ahead as usual this year. Instead, the Dawn Service at the War Memorial will be broadcast nationally, while the Returned Services League has started a #lightupthedawn campaign year asking Australians to stand in their driveway, balcony or living room, with a torch or candle, immediately following in the televised dawn service

“ANZAC day is a sacred day for all Australians. It is an important time to remember the sacrifices of those who have gone before us, those who have laid down their lives or suffered great hardship to protect Australians’ way of life,” Morrison said.

“This year, we will not be gathering at the local cenotaph, or attending gunfire breakfasts at the local RSL, or gathering together to bow our heads in silence and listen to the bugles at dawn.

“But we will still remember the sacrifice of those who gave so much for us at Gallipoli and on many fronts, as we ourselves give what we can to protect Australian lives while we face this terrible virus.”

The dawn service will still include a ceremonial piper, didgeridoo player and bugler among other traditional elements, supplied by the Australian Defence Force.

The New South Wales shadow minister for health, Ryan Park, is speaking in Port Kembla addressing the delayed departure of the Ruby Princess cruise ship.

Can I say it is time the New South Wales government through the minister outline exactly what are the plans to get this ship moving. We don’t want to see this ship move until we’ve got a guarantee that the crew’s safety and wellbeing is paramount and is assured. What we don’t know is what is the criteria? What will the criteria be to allow this ship to set sail? What will be the health criteria, because we know that New South Wales police have effectively said it is up to [the] health [department] now to make the call about when this happens.

Park, who is also the local MP in Port Kembla, says he wants to know where the ship’s crew will be taken if they are deemed too sick to remain on board.

Some joy!

The Guardian is live-streaming the first six(!) hours of the One World: Together At Home event, organised by the World Health Organisation and Global Citizen in collaboration with Lady Gaga.

The Guardian will be streaming the first six hours today. Stars appearing in the earlier part of the show include John Legend, Megan Rapinoe, the Killers, Samuel L Jackson, Jameela Jamil, Jennifer Hudson and many more.

When I turned it on a little earlier Keith Urban was playing, though, so, you know, timing’s everything I guess.