LIVE | Australia increasingly locked due to new corona revival | Inland

• Lack of staff when getting rid of ‘corona reservoir’ in care
• Joy in pub for relaxation: this is all allowed again from Saturday
• Going back to the office doesn’t happen by itself: ‘Absenteeism rises if the switch is too fast’

More and more states in Australia are taking corona measures because of a revival of the virus. About 18 million of the 25 million inhabitants currently face restrictions ranging from the re-mandation of masks to a total lockdown, which has been in effect for two weeks in the metropolitan city of Sydney and surrounding areas since this weekend.

“I think we are entering a new phase of this pandemic with the more contagious Delta variant,” Finance Minister Josh Frydenberg told Australian news channel ABC. According to him, the country is entering a ‘critical phase’ in the fight against Covid-19. A special committee, headed by Prime Minister Scott Morrison, will meet Monday to discuss the situation. A national lockdown is not ruled out.

On Monday, eighteen new local infections were reported in the state of New South Wales, which includes Sydney. The day before, there were thirty. A total of 130 cases have now been registered since the first infection was discovered almost two weeks ago in a limousine driver who had transported the crew of an overseas airline.

“We have to be aware that the numbers are going up and down and we have to be prepared for the numbers to rise significantly,” New South Wales Prime Minister Gladys Berejiklian told reporters in Sydney. “With this variant, we see almost 100 percent transfer within households.”

The northern city of Darwin went into lockdown for two days on Sunday because of someone who was found to be infected with the Delta variant. The state of Queensland has reintroduced mandatory face masks and restricted the number of guests allowed at home in several areas, including the state capital of Brisbane. Similar measures have also been taken in Western Australia for the capital Perth. Restrictions remain in place in Victoria’s state capital Melbourne and the national capital Canberra.

6.50 – Last corona meeting of mayors for the time being

The 25 mayors who together form the Security Council will meet for the last time in Utrecht on Monday for a special corona meeting. Justice minister Ferd Grapperhaus will be present and possibly also corona minister Hugo de Jonge. According to a spokeswoman for the council, it is no longer necessary to meet every week, now that so many corona measures have been relaxed. But the mayors will continue to keep in touch with each other, so that action can be taken quickly if necessary.

In the meeting, Hubert Bruls, chairman of the council and mayor of Nijmegen, will look back on the many meetings devoted to combating the virus. Since corona broke out in the Netherlands at the end of February 2020, the chairs of the 25 security regions have been meeting almost every week. In recent months, this also occasionally happened digitally, but usually the mayors met physically in Utrecht. Ministers on behalf of the cabinet were almost always present.

The meeting will discuss the first experiences on Monday after the many relaxations that will apply from Saturday. They are also looking forward to mid-August, when the distance rules may also disappear. According to Bruls, the meeting will “go on standby” from Tuesday. The mayors don’t want a local virus outbreak to spread. “If the country had to go into lockdown again, that would be a huge blow,” said Bruls.

6.32 -British defense minister and defense summit in quarantine

The British defense secretary and much of the United Kingdom’s defense top have been quarantined after the head of the British armed forces tested positive for Covid-19 last week. The British government has confirmed this, British media reported.

Minister Ben Wallace and the top men of the Royal Navy, Air Force and Strategic Command have been alerted by the health authorities and have been placed in home isolation for ten days.

They all had close contact with General Nick Carter (62) on Thursday at a meeting of the military academy in Shrivenham. After the event, Carter tested positive for the virus. The corona rule for keeping sufficient distance would have been observed at the meeting, but those involved are still seen as “close contact”.

The minister and the other employees will continue to work from home for the next ten days.

6.30 – Germany wants to ban British travelers from the EU

Germany wants to prevent Britons from traveling to EU countries any longer, regardless of whether they are fully vaccinated against the corona virus. That reports the British newspaper The Times. German Chancellor Angela Merkel proposes designating Britain as a “land of concern” because the highly contagious Delta variant is so widespread, the paper said.

The plans will be discussed by senior European and national officials in a special EU committee dealing with political crisis response. Greece, Spain, Cyprus, Malta and Portugal would see nothing in the plans. “Many countries will think it is their own decision and not a decision to be made in Berlin,” a British government source told the newspaper.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will receive Merkel on Friday at his Checkers country residence. Britain plans to unveil plans next month to allow fully vaccinated people to travel unrestricted to all countries except those with the highest Covid-19 risk.

The highest number of corona infections in one day was recorded in the United Kingdom on Saturday since February 5. The health authorities then reported 18,270 positive test results. 23 deaths were reported. Many people in Great Britain have already been vaccinated, but the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus is also going around. People who have been vaccinated once are not well enough protected against this corona mutant.

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