Good morning, Mostafa Rachwani with you today, to take you through the day’s news.
We begin in NSW, where the road to freedom has become a little bumpy, after reports emerged overnight that the state’s chief health officer did not endorse the changes to the roadmap made by new premier Dominic Perrottet.
The changes have raised concerns for case numbers once the state reopens, with the NSW president of the Australian Medical Association saying the changes may lead to “skyrocketing†case numbers.
Although the premier insisted the changes, which included doubling home visitors, opening schools a week earlier and doubling the number of attendees at weddings and funerals, were supported by health officials.
It comes as two police officers who were present at the recent construction industry protests in Melbourne tested positive, with one of them taken to hospital. Victoria police would not say how many of its staff were isolating, but said it was supporting the officers.
The state yesterday recorded 1,638 new cases yesterday and two deaths, a slight drop the high recorded earlier in the week, but hovering close.
In federal politics, we’ll be watching the fallout from yesterdays dual call for action against social media platforms from the prime minister and his deputy. Both called for the platforms to be held legally responsible for the content posted there, with the PM calling Twitter a “coward’s palace.â€
We’ll bring you the inevitable roll of Covid updates as they come this morning, and everything in between. Stay tuned.