Australia Covid news live update: Victoria records 847 new cases and one death as Melbourne and Sydney brace for protests

A quick update on what to expect today. We’re still waiting to hear when we’ll hear from many state leaders or health ministers today.

The Queensland health minister, Yvette D’ath is up at 10am. The ACT will be briefing reporters at 11.30am.

A final piece for your reading list this morning (a self-indulgent one) from me on the Queensland border situation.

Frankly, it’s a pretty fraught space. You won’t find many Queenslanders who aren’t overall appreciative of the fact the state does not have the lockdowns – or Covid deaths – occurring elsewhere.

At the same time, measures are becoming more hardline. People are growing frustrated with the lack of a timeline to open the border – or even a plan that details how and when that could be achieved (ie. by hitting vaccination targets).

The premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, is leaning into isolationist and inflammatory rhetoric like her comments this week: “are you going to go to India?”.

Those sorts of comments play into a very polarised debate.

The case numbers in Victoria – 847 – are the state’s highest since the pandemic began.

The second wave peak last year was 725 in a day.

Our medical editor, Melissa Davey, has been writing about Ivermectin for more than a year and casts her eye over the dubious claim that the horse wormer can be used to treat Covid – and how that has spawned significant misinformation.

Morrison has exited stage left.

OK, now we have a moment to breathe, here’s a few more Saturday reads to chew over with a coffee this morning.

My colleague Michael McGowan has unpacked just who has been behind the Melbourne protests.

While Monday may have started out as a legitimate expression of frustration, it quickly attracted the attention of the so-called freedom groups that have made a name for themselves protesting against Covid-era restrictions and generally pushing a mass of conspiracy material throughout the pandemic.

The prime minister is asked about reports that Australians overseas cannot book flights home before the end of the year.

Well, we have been running more commercial flights and if we need to, we will, but once we hit 80% vaccinations, then that means Australians will be able to travel in those states that are opening up, they will be able to get on planes and go overseas and come home, and that means Australian whose are overseas who are vaccinated with the vaccines that are recognised in Australia will be able to get on planes and come to Australia.

The caps at the airports for vaccinated Australians to return will be lifted, and that means there will be the commercial demand for those flights to be put on. I don’t think Qantas will have to be encouraged to start running those flights and putting people on seats, and I’m looking forward to them getting on with that job, because that’s the business they are in.

Morrison is asked about China’s “belligerence” in the region.

He says:

Well, what we talked about today is how we achieve a free and open Indo-Pacific, and the way you do that is that countries like Australia and India and the United States and Japan … we stand up for the values that we believe in, and we resist any suggestion or any pressure that would come on any of us to be anything different to what we are.

Morrison also says he wants Australia to remain the world’s quarry in the new energy economy.

The Quad is all about positively contributing to the economic development, the prosperity and the stability of the region. And [we’ve had] very practical discussion on those items. We are really good at digging stuff up in Australia and making sure it can fuel the rest of the world when it comes to the new-energy economy.

Scott Morrison is up after the Quad meeting in Washington DC.

He’s spoken in pretty vague general terms about vaccines and global security, but now turns to climate change.

When it comes to climate, today there was a real sense of resolve, and not just about the “if” question – of course, is the answer to that question – but the “how” and how we can support particularly developing countries within the Indo-Pacific to get access to the clean energy technology that enables them to transition their economies, just like Australia is seeking to transition our economy.

An important initiative for a clean energy supply chain summit to be held next year inAustralia, to put together a roadmap over the next 12 months that can see how we can combine the best scientific knowledge, industry knowledge and academics coming together to ensure we can transfer our energy technology, clean energy technology, the supply chains that support it, to transform the economies of our region.

In the meantime, some recommended reading:

From our chief political correspondent Sarah Martin on Labor’s preselection fight to succeed Joel Fitzgibbon in the New South Wales seat of Hunter.

Will Daniel Repacholi’s working-class credentials will win back voters, or is the decision to back the Olympic shooter just the endorsement of a regional caricature?

If you were expecting a slow start to the morning before we get into the Covid numbers pressers, you’d be mistaken.

We’re expecting to hear from the prime minister, Scott Morrison, relatively soon after the meeting of the “Quad” in the United States.

Hello and welcome to today’s live blog.

This is Ben Smee and good morning from the Hermit Kingdom of Queensland. I’ll be with you as we unpick the day’s events, case numbers and whatever else is in store.

Yesterday, New South Wales recorded 1,043 new cases and 11 deaths; Victoria had 733 cases and one death.

Saturdays have been focal points for protest activity in recent weeks, so we’ll be watching closely to see whether more unrest occurs in Melbourne and Sydney.

Organisers in Melbourne are withholding the locations for protests until an hour before the start time while protests are reportedly planned for local parks in Sydney.

A total of 215 people were arrested in fifth day protests in Melbourne’s CBD and inner-north on Friday.

On Friday, Victorian health minister Martin Foley conceded the state was unlikely to hit 80% first dose vaccination coverage of the eligible population on Sunday as initially forecast, with the figure currently sitting at 76.3%.

“Let’s all redouble our efforts over this weekend,” he said.

Hundreds of people gathered at Bondi on Friday evening before being dispersed by police around 7.30pm.

NSW recorded 1,043 local Covid-19 cases and 11 deaths on Friday while Victoria reported 733 new local Covid-19 cases and one death.

Meanwhile, in the ACT, health officials have flagged more cases among residents and staff at the Calvary Haydon Retirement Community after two fully vaccinated workers tested positive on Friday.

Stick a pot of coffee on, we could be here a while. Let’s go.