Locked-down Queenslanders to get $750 paid into their bank accounts as businesses get $5,000 support grants
- Eleven local government areas in the state's southeast are in hard lockdown
- Anyone who loses work can apply for cash up to $750 from Commonwealth
- State government will also be providing small business grants of $5,000
Queenslanders who lose work during the state's coronavirus lockdown can apply for up to $750 cash relief and businesses can get $5,000 grants.
Eleven local government areas in the state's southeast are in an extended lockdown until Saturday amid an outbreak of the Delta strain that has grown to 31 cases.
From Saturday August 7 anyone who loses more than 20 hours of work can apply for a $750 payment from Services Australia and anyone who loses 8-20 hours can get $450.
Queenslanders who lose work during the state's coronavirus lockdown can apply for up to $750 cash relief and businesses can get $5,000 grants. Pictured: Brisbane cafe workers
Residents are seen walking near the Brisbane CBD on Saturday during the city's lockdown
Sole traders can get a payment of $1,000, with the money paid directly into bank accounts within hours or days.
Meanwhile, the state government is rolling out one-off $5,000 business grants to small and medium companies across the state which have an annual turnover of $75,000 or more and a payroll of $10million a year or less.
'Today I'm announcing a $260 million package to support Queensland businesses, particularly small and medium sized enterprises,' Treasurer Cameron Dick said on Monday.
Deputy Premier Steven Milles said Queensland's lockdown would be extended until 4pm next Sunday as a result of the new cases.
Brisbane's Ekka agricultural show would also be cancelled for a second consecutive year.
Seven of the new cases are students from Ironside State School. Another five are related to the school being household members or family contacts.
One case is linked to a confirmed case from the karate school that trains at the school.
'For us to come out of this at the weekend, we need absolutely everyone in those LGAs to stay at home if they can,' Mr Miles said of the extended lockdown.
'It is absolutely critical that people only leave their homes for the four reasons. There's too many cars on the road in Brisbane at the moment. Too many people out and about.'
Pictured: Passengers from a Qantas flight arriving into Sydney Airport from Brisbane, Queensland on July 29
Queensland's nine new cases on Sunday represented the highest daily number in almost a year.
On Sunday Rockhampton was on Covid-19 alert after an infected contractor made a return trip on a Qantas flight.
The woman was working on the Rookwood Weir when she flew to the regional town for work at 8.30am Wednesday and returned to Brisbane at 6.40pm on Friday.
She tested positive on July 31, but it is believed she was infectious from July 28 and was included among the Sunshine State's nine local cases announced on Sunday.
'Work on site has stopped and workers have been isolated to their rooms for 14 days of quarantine,' Queensland Health said in a statement.
'Other workers from the Rookwood project who have left the site have also been contacted and told to isolate for 14 days.'
Other workers who have been at the site have been contacted and told to isolate.
Authorities are also contacting people who were on QF2362 at 8.30am on July 28 and QF2365 at 6.40pm on 30 July.
Rockhampton's Central Queensland University fever clinic has extended its testing hours.
Pictured: People at a Covid testing centre at Covid Testing Centre at Indooroopilly High School Brisbane
There are more than 80 exposure sites linked to the outbreak, with about 20 new sites of concern listed on Sunday.
On Sunday, Deputy Premier Steven Miles said implored more Queenslanders to seek virus testing, with fewer than 12,000 tests conducted on Saturday.
Authorities hope to see at least 40,000 daily tests.
The local government areas of Brisbane, Ipswich, Logan City, Moreton Bay, Redlands, Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, Noosa, Somerset, Lockyer Valley and Scenic Rim entered the lockdown on Saturday afternoon - which has harshest virus restrictions the Sunshine State has seen.
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Residents in affected areas can only leave home for essential work, study or child care, to exercise, buy food and supplies, and receive health care, including being tested for Covid-19 or vaccinated.
Non-essential travel must be within 10 kilometres of residences and everyone must wear a mask when outside their home.
All schools in the lockdown zone will be closed on Monday and Tuesday, while all staff and students of Indooroopilly High School and Ironside State School are in quarantine for two weeks.
Other schools affected by the outbreak include St Peters Lutheran College, Brisbane Girls Grammar School and Brisbane Boys Grammar School.
Chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young said: 'The purpose of the lockdown is to stop the virus spreading.'
'So it is to have everyone in their homes, as we find people, we find them in their homes, and they will have minimal exposure out in the community.'
The lockdown is set to end on Tuesday though experts believe it will almost certainly be extended after six cases on Saturday and nine on Sunday.
Dr Young admitted restrictions would only be rolled back when case numbers were down and all of the cases were not out in the community while infectious.
'The threshold is that I'm confident that all the cases that potentially have been exposed are safely in quarantine and are unlikely to end up having been infectious out in the community so unlikely to have been out there spreading,' she said.
