Australia news LIVE: CMO urges masks indoors as COVID cases grow across the nation; Plibersek flags legislative change after State of Environment report
Key posts
- Plibersek promises new laws to tackle rapid environmental decline
- Chief doctor pleads for mask-wearing amid ‘significant’ new threat
- This morning’s headlines at a glance
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Plibersek promises new laws to tackle rapid environmental decline
New federal environment laws will be created next year to respond to the dire state of native animal populations and declining ecosystems revealed in a landmark report publicly launched by Environment and Water Minister Tanya Plibersek.
Australia will also conserve 30 per cent of its land and 30 percent of its sea areas by 2030 in line with the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, and explore the creation of new national parks and marine protected areas, Plibersek told the National Press Club on Tuesday.
Minister for the Environment and Water Tanya Plibersek.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
In her first major speech in the portfolio, Plibersek released the State of the Environment 2021 report, which finds Australia has suffered catastrophic losses of wildlife and habitat.
Since 2016, when the previous State of the Environment was released, 17 mammal species were either added to the endangered list or upgraded to the critically endangered list, as well as 17 birds and 19 frog species.
“Individually, every one of these revelations is dreadful, but it’s only when you think about the cumulative impact that you begin to get the full picture of environmental decline,” Plibersek said.
“If we continue on the trajectory that we are on, the precious places, landscapes, animals and plants that we think of when we think of home may not be here for our kids and grandkids.”
More on her speech, and Labor’s environmental policies, here.
Chief doctor pleads for mask-wearing amid ‘significant’ new threat
The nation’s top doctor has warned the latest Omicron subvariant poses a “significant” new threat, urging Australians to wear masks indoors as the government pauses plans to wind up the COVID-19 vaccine taskforce and launches a campaign to lift the takeup of boosters.
Federal Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly says the BA.5 variant is much more infectious than earlier strains and has noted that vaccines alone did not stop transmission.
Health Minister Mark Butler and Chief Medical Officer Professor Paul Kelly during a press conference at Parliament House on Tuesday.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
Along with mask-wearing, he encouraged people to get their booster shots or fourth doses if eligible, work from home if possible and said antiviral medications would also “help to protect the vulnerable”.
Federal Health Minister Mark Butler said the number of people hospitalised with COVID-19 had “increased very dramatically over recent weeks” from fewer than 3000 to more than 5200 patients, close to the January peak of 5300 cases, while Kelly said the current wave was only just beginning.
“This third Omicron wave for 2022 is proving to be a very, very significant one,” he said.
Read the full story here.
This morning’s headlines at a glance
Good morning and thanks for your company.
It’s Wednesday, July 20. I’m Broede Carmody and I’ll be anchoring our live coverage for the first half of the day.
Here’s what you need to know before we get started.
- Federal Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly has urged people to wear masks indoors, work from home if possible and get their latest booster shot. Yesterday, Australia recorded 50,258 official cases of COVID-19 and 75 additional deaths from the virus.
- Labor says it will push through new environment legislation in 2023 and to establish an additional federal watchdog after the release of yesterday’s State of the Environment report (which found Australia has suffered catastrophic losses of wildlife and habitat). However, Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek says widespread consultation is needed before any changes are finalised.
- In state news, a corruption probe into branch stacking and the misuse of taxpayer-funded staff in the Victorian Labor Party will reveal its findings today. And former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian has given her first round of interviews since joining telecommunications company Optus.
- And the heatwave in Europe continues. Several fires are burning across the outskirts of London and the United Kingdom has recorded temperatures of 40 degrees celsius for the first time in history.
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