Australia news LIVE: NSW records 38 new cases of COVID-19; AstraZeneca creators acknowledge ‘complicated’ blood-clotting debate

Police are preparing to launch a major operation focused on the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant of COVID-19 in south-west Sydney.

Three local government areas in south-west Sydney – Fairfield, Canterbury-Bankstown and Liverpool – have been highlighted as particular areas of concern this week with significant spreading of the virus between family members in different households.

Of the 38 cases confirmed on Thursday, 21 were in south-west Sydney and the state government holds concerns about low testing rates in the area.

NSW Police will launch a high visibility operation with increased resources from 7am on Friday to boost enforcement of the stay-at-home order.

The government had warned further action might be taken in response to growing concerns about the persistent spread of the virus in the area.

Community leaders in the multicultural areas are unhappy with the government framing of the issue and police say the operation will take into account cultural sensitivities.

Deputy Commissioner Mal Lanyon and Assistant Commissioner Tony Cooke, the commander overseeing south-west Sydney, are providing details on the operation at a press conference now.

The operation comes after NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian warned case numbers were too high and people needed to adhere to the stay-at-home order.“I want to say in the most strongest possible terms: please, please avoid contact with households, with other households. Please avoid visiting family and friends,” Ms Berejiklian said on Thursday morning.

She said visits to people on compassionate grounds should only be for the purpose of providing care to an isolated person or dropping off essentials.“We are not talking about visiting extended family members, we’re not talking visiting friends. Data over the last few days shows this is how the virus is spreading.”

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian appeared to distance herself today from comments by Health Minister Brad Hazzard, who suggested yesterday that if Sydneysiders didn’t hear and heed public health messages “then at some point … we’re going to have to accept that the virus has a life which will continue in the community”.

Ms Berejiklian said at today’s COVID-19 update that “we cannot live with the Delta variant unless you have a certain portion of the population vaccinated”.

“That is the bottom line,” she said. “This is why NSW, from day one, has had a sense of urgency about the vaccination and getting our population vaccinated.”

NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said that while the local government areas of Liverpool, Canterbury-Bankstown and Fairfield in Sydney’s south-west had been singled out as areas of concern, “overnight we are also seeing cases pop up everywhere” and ”do not think you are immune if you are in other parts of greater Sydney”.

NSW reported 38 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, the highest number of local cases recorded in a single day in more than 14 months. Eleven of the cases were in the community for their entire infectious period and nine were only in isolation for part of their infectious period.

Forty COVID-19 patients in NSW are now in hospital, with eleven of those in intensive care. Three of those in ICU are on ventilators. Seventeen people admitted to hospital are under 55 and of those 10 are under the age of 35. Of the eleven people in ICU, one is in their 30s.

Coronavirus restrictions are easing for Victoria this evening, but it’s worth noting there are some rules staying in place across the state.

While Victorians won’t have to wear masks in their workplaces from 11.59pm, if they’re not in public-facing jobs, they still have to carry them at all times and wear them indoors in public-facing settings.

Victorians are still only allowed to gather in public in groups of up to 50, and they can only have up to 15 visitors in their homes.

Weddings and funerals are still capped at 300 people, and people in hospitals and care facilities are only allowed up to five visitors a day unless they are end of life. You can read more about the restrictions here.

West Australian Premier Mark McGowan says it’s a “statement of the bleeding obvious” that his state will keep its border shut to NSW unless the eastern state brings a growing COVID-19 cluster under control.

“I’d say to the people of NSW: follow the rules,” Mr McGowan said at a press conference just now.

“If a state goes rogue and behaves irresponsibly you have to expect other states to use the measures we have to protect ourselves from that state.”

“Are you saying NSW has gone rogue?” a reporter asked Mr McGowan.

“No,” Mr McGowan said. But he pointed to comments by NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard yesterday, who suggested that “if individuals that we need don’t hear [public health messages] and don’t respond, then at some point we’re going to move to a stage where we’re going to have to accept that the virus has a life which will continue in the community”.

Mr McGowan said that “if the NSW premier is disowning that [today] then that’s a good thing”.

“If they don’t get it under control, border restrictions or rules about NSW will have to continue; that is a statement of the bleeding obvious. Otherwise we would just have importation [of the virus].”

Earlier this morning, Mr McGowan said he would consider a permanent hard border with NSW if the state decided to live with the virus instead of using its lockdown to eradicate the Delta variant.

Asked for her opinion on the matter, Ms Berejiklian scoffed.

“At least he is consistent,” she said.

Mr McGowan said “NSW is going through hard times I don’t want to kick them when they are down but Victoria last year went through a hard time and they crushed and killed the virus, and come out the other side, they don’t have any virus now, they have a very strong economy. It is the model NSW should adopt.”

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has also defended the pace of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout in Australia as other countries, such as Canada and Mexico, get additional Pfizer doses from surplus supplies in the United States.

Mr Morrison said, in essence, that those countries are faring far worse from the coronavirus and therefore have had more need while Australia has not seen mass deaths.

In a broader reply to critics who point to the United Kingdom as a role model for vaccinating its population and winding back restrictions, Mr Morrison said Australia’s rollout had been slowed by health advice restricting the recommended use of the locally-made AstraZeneca vaccine in most cases to people over 60.

“The AstraZeneca vaccine, as we know has been subject in this country to ATAGI device, which had a significant impact on the use of that vaccine in Australia,” Mr Morrison said.

“We would have had considerably more doses available to Australians in the absence of those ATAGI rulings. Let’s not forget that 44 million UK residents have been successfully vaccinated with the AstraZeneca vaccine.

“The UK has not been vaccinated by Pfizer. Or Moderna. They’ve been vaccinated with the AstraZeneca vaccine.”

People under the age of 40 in the United Kingdom are being offered an alternative to the AstraZeneca vaccine because of the risk of rare blood clots.

West Australian Premier Mark McGowan will hold a press conference in Perth at about 2.30pm AEST. You can watch it live here.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has defended the level of federal support to NSW residents against the backdrop of the state government spending $1.4 billion on businesses assistance while Canberra has provided about $26 million in disaster payments to people put out of work.

Mr Morrison said that figure would grow as the lockdown extends because the total amount of payments are not capped but instead depend on demand. He pointed out that states agreed they would cover business costs of lockdown while the federal government supported workers.

“States agreed, including NSW, I stress — ultimately, to be part of that national cabinet decision that states would look after business support, and that … the Commonwealth would look after households,” Mr Morrison said.

But he left open the possibility of further aid to NSW workers.

“And what I have said though, to the [NSW] Premier, and the Treasurer, today, is that.. we will work very closely to ensure that there is appropriate, economics support should the conditions in NSW, require further restrictions.”

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has urged people in the Sydney areas with the highest rates of coronavirus cases to get their second AstraZeneca jabs as soon as the medical advice allows.

Authorities recommended waiting eight to 12 weeks between AstraZeneca doses, but Mr Morrison said doses should be given after eight weeks to older, more vulnerable Australians in the areas were the virus is circulating.

“Given the risks to people… we expect and support they will get that second dose of AstraZeneca, as soon as possible.”

Not all experts support reducing the time between the first and second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine. You can read more on that here.