Sydney restaurant patrons told to get tests as Victoria records 428 new cases – as it happened

What we learned: Friday, 17 July

That is where I will leave you tonight. Thanks for reading.

Here’s what we learned today:

• Victoria announced another record day of new coronavirus cases today, with more than 428 people diagnosed with Covid-19 and three deaths. Authorities warned the massive growth in infections would lead to further fatalities and dozens more in hospital.
• After recording eight new coronavirus cases on Friday, the New South Wales premier, Gladys Berejiklian, announced restrictions would be tightened in the state. From next Friday, the restrictions that were imposed on pubs – maximum group bookings of 10 people, down from 20 people, maximum venue capacity of 300 – will be extended to clubs, restaurants, cafes and “all indoor hospitality venues”.
• The Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, also said people living in regional Victoria were now requested to wear face masks if they are out in public, in circumstances where they cannot guarantee physical distancing.
• The Australian government has announced a new $10.2m international research program into the growing rates of zoonotic diseases across south-east Asia and the Pacific. Zoonotic diseases are diseases that pass from animals or insects to humans, such as coronavirus. Covid-19 is a zoonotic disease.
• The Victorian Ombudsman has opened an investigation into the treatment of public housing residents living at 33 Alfred Street, North Melbourne, the only one of the nine public housing towers still in hard lockdown.
• In a conversation with Scott Morrison, the US president, Donald Trump, was “very complimentary” of Australia’s coronavirus response. However, Morrison said he and Trump did not discuss the coronavirus situation in America because they both know it “very well”.

In case you missed it earlier, Victoria announced another record day of new coronavirus cases today, with more than 428 people diagnosed with Covid-19 and three deaths. Authorities warned the massive growth in infections would lead to further fatalities and dozens more in hospital.

My colleague Luke Henriques-Gomes has filed this report:

Following the confirmation a prisoner has been diagnosed with Covid-19, the Victorian Greens have called on the state government to “release low-risk prisoners and prisoners due for release in the coming weeks”.

It’s important to note the prisoner, who had recently entered custody, tested positive while serving a 14-day quarantine period for new prisoners.

Greens spokesman for justice Tim Read said:

Our prisoners are sitting ducks right now. It would take very little effort on the state government’s part to make low-risk prisoners eligible for early release to help reduce our prison numbers substantially and protect inmates and staff alike from a potential outbreak.

Roger Cook, deputy premier of Western Australia, has explained how entry into the state for those who have travelled through NSW will change.

Cook, who is also the health minister, said:

Anyone coming into WA who has come from or has travelled through Victoria in the last 14 days will be directed to hotel quarantine at their own expense.

As of today, anyone coming into WA from New South Wales and is exempt or has travelled through New South Wales in the last 14 days will be subject to mandatory Covid-19 testing.

As of 11.59, Sunday, 19th July, anyone travelling from New South Wales or who has travelled through New South Wales in the last 14 days will now need to meet the same limited exemptions we have in place for people coming from Victoria.

Western Australia has the toughest border controls in the country by far and we will make it tougher if we need to do so.”

NSW Health has directed anyone who visited the Thai Rock restaurant in Stockland Mall, Wetherill Park on 9, 10, 11, 12 and 14 July to get tested immediately and self-isolate for 14 days, regardless of symptoms.

The warnings come after the identification of a third case linked to the restaurant, a customer who dined at Thai Rock on 10 July.

A NSW Health statement said:

Earlier today, NSW Health advised that a woman in her 30s from South West Sydney worked at the Thai Rock restaurant in Stockland Mall Wetherill Park on 9, 10, 11, 12 and 14 July. A previously identified case was a customer who also dined at the restaurant on 10 July.

All those who attended the restaurant in this period are being contact traced and investigations are continuing.

As the Crossroads Hotel cluster expands, a number of venues attended by cases linked to the cluster are under investigation, with ongoing assessment and contact tracing continuing. Information on all venues is available here.

Some further information on the case of Covid-19 in a Victorian prison.

He had recently entered custody and returned the positive result during the 14-day quarantine period for all new prisoners.

A Department of Justice and Community Safety spokeswoman said:

An asymptomatic prisoner, who was in protective quarantine at the Metropolitan Remand Centre, has returned a positive result to coronavirus (Covid-19) and has since been placed into isolation.

The prisoner was swabbed as part of measures for new receptions, who are tested upon arrival and required to undergo a 14-day protective quarantine process.

He will continue to be monitored and assessed while in isolation, and is being provided with a range of support.

Working with the Department of Health and Human Services, measures are being taken in line with Corrections Victoria’s coronavirus (Covid-19) management plans. This includes isolation measures, contact tracing and thorough cleaning.

I’ll leave you now in the very capable hands of Elias Visontay, who will take you through the rest of the afternoon.

Remember, my fellow Melbournians: we have to stay at home this weekend, and keep our exercise to the “minimum time and minimum distance”. I know I will.

17 Jul 202002.07 EDT

Man charged with travelling from Victoria to ACT without exemption

Christopher Knaus

Police in the Australian Capital Territory have charged a 41-year-old man for travelling into Canberra from Victoria without an exemption.

The man is alleged to have entered the ACT from Victoria on Wednesday. He is the first person to be charged under the Public Health Act for failing to comply with Covid-19 health directions.

In a statement, detective superintendent Jason Kennedy, who heads ACT Policing’s Covid-19 taskforce, said there were “serious” concerns about the health risks posed to the community by the man’s behaviour. He said:

ACT Policing will continue to take all necessary action to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

The man was cooperative when taken into custody, police say, and will face court on Friday.

Labor’s government services spokesman, Bill Shorten, had some things to say about Stuart Robert’s comment that the app has not been used to identify any previously unidentified close contacts because Australians have, ah, very good memories.

Shorten says Robert is “trying to spin the Australian public”.

On this twisted logic, Mr Robert could also celebrate the multiple crashes of the myGov website he has presided over as the triumph of landlines and traditional face-to-face communications.

In Stueyworld perhaps charging taxpayers $2,832 a month for his home internet is not rorting but a triumph of entrepreneurial innovation.

It’s nice to see someone in Shorten’s office is having fun. He continues:

Let’s be clear: a virus tracing app is a good idea and we encourage the public to engage with the concept — but it must work and it must make a difference.

I’m glad Mr Robert agrees with me that pen and paper is currently our best tracing app. But that is not something, after much hype and spending $2m of taxpayers’ money, the Minister should be celebrating.

17 Jul 202001.55 EDT

Josh Taylor

Yesterday, government services minister Stuart Robert was on 5AA radio in Adelaide defending the Covidsafe app still not identifying any unknown close contacts not picked up through manual contact tracing.

He argued this just “simply means that Australian memories are actually working quite well”.

The app is designed to augment manual contact tracing when you come in close contact with people you don’t know (like, say, sitting in the Crossroads Hotel). As Victoria’s chief health officer Brett Sutton has said, it is likely to be less useful in Victoria because people aren’t moving around as much, but better for the Crossroads situation. It still hasn’t identified any unknown close contacts, despite over 300 uses.

To defend the app, Robert then quotes the Sax institute to claim that the app is “critical to containing the second wave”.

That’s true, but the study operated on the assumption the app would work as described.
He also said the University of Adelaide ranked it the best out of 34 apps worldwide. Also true, but it was assessing the privacy and security of user data, not the efficacy of the app.

Also importantly, none of the apps reviewed had implemented the Google and Apple exposure notification framework which would fix the issues Covidsafe is suffering from, but the government has so far refused to adopt.

Kelly said he authorities had been analysing data around the effective reproduction rate in Victoria, and he would provide more information about that tomorrow.

He added:

Suffice to say that it’s looking very positive compared to what it was about three weeks ago.

Why are pubs in particular a problem? The first round of restrictions, or re-restrictions, in NSW limits the number of people who can be at a pub to 300. Those rules came into force at midnight last night, and from next Friday they will also apply to restaurants, clubs, and all other hospitality venues.

Kelly said that alcohol decreases inhibitions “and may also decrease our ability to follow instructions”.

A circumstance I’m sure many of us would be familiar with.