Australia news live: NSW authorities scramble after three cases of local Covid transmission

An alarming tidbit from the Victorian ombudsman’s report was that the chief health officer had only 15 minutes before the press conference announcing the lockdowns, to sign off on the lockdowns.

Health officials had agreed to the lockdown but had assumed it would be announced for the next day, which would have given residents time to plan and purchase food and supplies.

Ombudsman Deborah Glass has said that it was this decision, the timing, which is what curtailed residents’ human rights.

“It was the immediacy of that which did not appear to be reasonably necessary,” she told a press conference this morning.

“There could have been time to plan that would have mitigated the impact of the lockdown to the point where people would have been able to have supplies of food, have supplies of medication, have an understanding of what was going on.”

A man has been shot by police in Queensland, with reports saying the man has died.

AAP has the story:

Police have shot an armed man multiple times after he confronted them on a motorway south of Brisbane.

Officers found the man walking along the Logan Motorway at Drewvale after being called there about 6am on Thursday.

Police say he then threatened the police, who shot him multiple times.

Officers can’t say what medical condition the man is in, but the motorway’s eastbound lanes have been closed.

Victoria’s ombudsman has tabled the report from her investigation into the detention and treatment of Melbourne public housing residents at the onset of the state’s second wave.

The ombudsman found the state government had breached human rights when it locked down several public housing towers in Flemington and North Melbourne.

It outlined that the residents deserved an apology, and that health authorities had been surprised by the decision, having assumed the towers would be locked the following day.

The ombudsman, Deborah Glass, said the decision to lock down the towers had breached the residents’ rights to humane treatment:

The rushed lockdown was not compatible with the residents’ human rights, including their right to humane treatment when deprived of liberty. Based on the evidence gathered by the investigation, the action appeared to be contrary to the law.

You can read more on the findings here:

The former Australian PM John Howard is in the news again, saying Donald Trump penned a lengthy “political suicide note” with his “terrible” handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Howard made the remarks at a question and answer session at the Menzies Research Centre after a lecture delivered by former Nationals leader John Anderson. Howard said:

He was headed towards a victory until the pandemic hit. It was his mishandling of that because, in the end, the public, when threatened, want their leaders to defend them against the threat.

You can read the full story here:

The Australian is reporting that the two Covid patients on the northern beaches did not isolate before receiving a negative test result, as per guidelines.

Authorities are apparently concerned that the two, a woman in her 60s and a man in his 70s, instead visited several venues in the area.

An official told the paper the two “took a long time to track down” and that they were a “classic Avalon couple, divorced but living under the same roof”.

Authorities also do not know how they contracted the virus, with genomic sequencing under way and results are expected within 48 hours.

Seven venues have been identified as locations the two northern beaches people visited while infectious, including:

• The Palm beach female change rooms, on Sunday 13 Dec, from 9-9.15am
• Hungry Ghost Cafe on Sunday 13 Dec, from 9.30-11am and Tuesday, 15 December 9.30-11am
• Coast Palm Beach Cafe on Sunday, 13 December 10‑11am
• Avalon Bowlo on Sunday, 13 December, 5-7pm, and on Tuesday, 15 December 3-5pm
• Sneaky Grind Cafe on Monday, 14 December, 9.30-11am
• Barramee Thai Massage and Spa on Monday, 14 December, 2-3.30pm
• Bangkok Sidewalk Restaurant on Monday, 14 December 7-8pm

NSW Health is advising anyone who has visited the following venues is considered a close contact and should get tested and isolate for 14 days even if they receive a negative result.

The Sydney airport van driver also attended venues while infectious, including the Forest Rangers FC Little Rangers session at Gannons Park in Peakhurst on Friday between 4.30pm and 5.30pm.

Anyone who attended is considered a casual contact, and NSW Health is advising all who were there to get tested as soon as possible.

Flood warnings are still in place for the mid north coast and northern rivers catchments, in addition to the Tweed, Wilsons, Clarence, Bellinger, Macleay, Hastings and Orara rivers.

A severe weather warning for heavy rainfall has also been issued for the north-west slopes and plains and northern tablelands districts.

The Bureau of Meteorology is saying that some of the weather is easing, but Sydney is still expecting thunderstorms later today.

Good morning everyone, Mostafa Rachwani here, and welcome to another Australian live blog.

It’s Thursday, which means tomorrow is Friday, which hopefully bodes well for what I’m sure will be a busy day.

First up, New South Wales is scrambling after three new locally acquired cases were reported yesterday. One patient is a van driver from the airport, the other two are from the northern beaches.

We know the van driver contracted the virus from aircrew he was transporting but we are still waiting to find out how the two others caught it. We’ll be keeping you updated on that.

Second, wild weather continues to lash the east coast, with much of NSW under severe thunderstorms and heavy rainfall warnings, in addition to southern Queensland. Since the downpours began on Saturday, the State Emergency Service has attended more than 1,900 jobs.

The federal government will today be handing down its mid-year budget, which will reportedly include funding for the aged care industry and show a stronger than expected economic recovery.

And Israel’s justice minister has signed an extradition order for Malka Leifer, saying it is their “moral duty” to see her stand trial. The order means Leifer could be back in Australia within the next two months.

If you see any news that you think should be on here, don’t hesitate to shoot me a message on Twitter, @Rachwani91, or by email to [email protected].