Flu cases surge across NSW as people urged to get vaccinated
People across New South Wales are being urged to receive their flu vaccine as cases have surged.
The state’s chief health officer, Dr Kerry Chant, said in the week ending 8 June there was an increase of more than 25% in people diagnosed with influenza compared to the previous week.
Flu is rapidly increasing across the state. In the past week alone, presentations to our emergency departments increased by almost 22% for people with influenza-like illness.
We are expecting the flu season will be around for several weeks to come, so now is the time to book in for your free flu vaccine to get the vital protection you need.
Chant said people over 65 are at a higher risk of severe illness from the flu, but only 52.4% have received their vaccine. The vaccine is free for those at risk, including over 65s.
Key events
Peter Hannam
Origin Energy strikes six-month coal mine deal, sparing about 1000 jobs for now
Speaking of jobs (see earlier posts), the futures of about 1000 mine workers have brightened at least briefly with Origin Energy striking a six-month deal to keep buying coal from two mines near its giant Eraring power station in the lower Hunter Valley of NSW.
As you may recall, Origin last month agreed to keep Eraring open for at least another two years beyond its (re-) scheduled August 2025 closure date.
We had a close look at how this extension went down in the local community (in this feature) with an odd quirk involving two mines run by Thai-owned Centennial Coal that looked like missing out on extra work.
Origin had said fossil fuel supplied by the Myuna and Mandalong mines was pricier than what it could source from further up the Hunter.
Anyway, the news today is that Origin will keep buying coal from Centennial for half a year after its current contract ends this month. This outcome will be seen as a reprieve for 350 Myuna miners since it can’t supply any other customer. Mandalong – which sends half of its output to Eraring and the rest for export – has about 650 workers who faced possible cuts.
Belinda Giblin, lead organiser of the Collieries’ Staff and Officials Association, said:
A supply agreement with both mines for the life of the power station maintains a 40-year status quo and is in the interests of the local communities. This would bolster Origin Energy’s social licence and line up with its rhetoric on just transition.
Centennial – and its employees – will presumably be hoping the six-month deal gets extended again, and keeps going until Eraring runs out of puff.
The ABC is broadcasting footage showing Chinese premier Li Qiang arriving in New Zealand, ahead of his visit to Australia from Saturday to Tuesday.
As Tory Shepherd reported yesterday, Qiang is expected to make an announcement about the future of Australia’s giant pandas when he visits South Australia on the weekend.
You can read more about that below:
Victorian police investigate fire at gym that is associated with outlaw motorcycle gang
Victorian police are investigating a suspicious fire at a gym in the Melbourne suburb of Hallam, early this morning.
A passerby noticed a glow from inside the Princes Highway gym at about 4.30am this morning. A number of windows had been smashed and it’s believed an accelerant had been poured inside and set alight.
Police say nobody was inside at the time but say the building sustained significant damage. An arson chemist was due to attend the scene this morning.
Detectives will look at whether the business was targeted due to a number of outlaw motorcycle gang members attending the gym, a statement said.
Anyone with footage or information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
Andrew Messenger
Qld opposition envisages 53,500 social homes by 2044; churches to be allowed to build homes on surplus land
The opposition also plans to change planning laws to allow more social housing on unused church land, a policy adopted in several places overseas.
David Crisafulli says:
Today, I commit the LNP to the delivery of 53, 500 social homes by 2044 and will outline my plan to get there.
The LNP will work with faith-based and charity organisations and amend planning regulations to allow them to build social and community housing on their surplus land. Currently this is not easily permitted.
An initial review by the Brisbane Catholic Archdiocese and the Salvation Army has identified surplus sites that could accommodate 2,000 new dwellings.
Including other organisations, it has been estimated that up to 10,000 homes could be created. I am hopeful this will inspire other organisations to come forward with more sites.
The opposition also wants to sign a “master agreement’ with the social housing sector and create a productivity commission that would hold an inquiry into building regulations.
Peter Hannam
More on the latest job figures from the ABS
Among other stats of note from the labour market numbers was the participation rate remaining unchanged at 66.7% and the number of hours worked easing back 9m (out of a total of almost 2bn).
Bjorn Jarvis, ABS’s head of labour statistics, said the number of people unemployed fell by 9,000 in May, reversing some of April’s 33,000 increase.
There are now almost 600,000 unemployed people. However, that is still nearly 110,000 fewer people than in March 2020, just before the pandemic.
Western Australia’s jobless rate last month was the lowest in the nation at 3.6%, improving from April’s 3.9%, seasonally adjusted. New South Wales also posted a drop, to 3.8% from April’s 4%, while Victoria rose to 4.4% from 4.2%, making it the highest jobless rate in Australia.
Queensland, where polls loom in October, had an unemployment rate of 4%, compared with 4.1% in April. The ACT was steady at 3.8%, the equal second lowest in the country.
NSW police conducting review after senior constable charged
NSW police are reviewing “all aspects” of an incident after a senior constable allegedly failed to conduct a random breath test on a driver as required, and was later charged.
The review will include employment status and the way the matter was managed, police said in a statement.
On 11 August last year, the senior constable conducted a vehicle stop to undertake a random breath test near Narrandera, in the Riverina.
The officer allegedly failed to conduct a proper breath test on the driver as required, and self-reported the incident at his next shift.
On 9 February the officer was charged with two offences.
The matter was first mentioned at Griffith Local Court on 21 March, where the officer pleaded guilty to neglect of duty. The matter was adjourned before the same court to tomorrow for sentencing.
Andrew Messenger
Crisafulli announces housing policy, focuses on land release
The housing policy has six main areas:
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A big boost into home ownership
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Boost to buy
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Unlocking the homes for Queensland’s future
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Opening the door
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Homes with purpose
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Breaking down the barriers to building.
A lot of the language is around land release – that is, sprawl, rather than the so-called “missing middle” of townhouses and small apartments that the government prefers.
For instance, the opposition has a policy to spend $2bn for infrastructure to speed up housing “lots”. David Crisafulli says:
Priority will be given to local governments and developments which are able to deliver the greatest number of lots in the quickest possible time.
Andrew Messenger
‘Same standards’ to be applied to renewables development as to housing and farming: David Crisafulli
Back to Queensland parliament, where the opposition leader David Crisafulli says the LNP will offer “no special treatment” for renewables in planning or environmental approvals.
He has signalled the government will “preserve the jobs we have and create more new jobs for the future”.
We will bring in new laws to ensure all projects are treated equally.
That process will start with a thorough examination of the costings and planning for the government’s pumped-hydro project at Borumba during estimates.
He says “whether it is a farming project, a residential project or a renewable project, the same standards must apply”.
Crisafulli is promising a “maintenance guarantee” for power plants after part of the Callide coal plant in central Queensland blew up three years ago. The opposition will also cancel the government’s Pioneer Burdekin scheme, which Crisafulli says is “impossible”.
The LNP will investigate opportunities for smaller, more manageable pumped-hydro projects. We will bring in new laws to ensure all projects are treated equally.
Unemployment rate falls to 4% in May
Peter Hannam
The unemployment rate for May fell to 4% from 4.1% in April as employers added almost 40,000 new jobs, figures from the ABS show.
The economy added 39,700 jobs last month. Economists had tipped a net gain of 30,000 positions. Full-time roles (35 hours or more per week) rose by 41,700 in May, while part-time jobs fell by about 2,000, the ABS said.
The figures were slightly stronger than expected, with investors nudging the Australian dollar slightly higher against the US dollar, while stocks trimmed some of their gains for the day.
Andrew Messenger
Queensland opposition tipped to announce housing plan in budget reply
Housing looks to be the issue of the day in Queensland parliament today.
The opposition leader, David Crisafulli, is tipped to use the budget reply speech to announce a modest shared equity scheme, a ministerial taskforce and an aspirational goal of a 25% increase to housing approvals. That’s going to be easy given they’re at record lows.
He’s also tipped to announce opposition to the Pioneer Burdekin scheme, which according to the government is the “world’s biggest” hydro electric scheme. Instead the opposition wants to build several smaller hydro projects.
There might be a bit more in the speech, which has just started.
Flu cases surge across NSW as people urged to get vaccinated
People across New South Wales are being urged to receive their flu vaccine as cases have surged.
The state’s chief health officer, Dr Kerry Chant, said in the week ending 8 June there was an increase of more than 25% in people diagnosed with influenza compared to the previous week.
Flu is rapidly increasing across the state. In the past week alone, presentations to our emergency departments increased by almost 22% for people with influenza-like illness.
We are expecting the flu season will be around for several weeks to come, so now is the time to book in for your free flu vaccine to get the vital protection you need.
Chant said people over 65 are at a higher risk of severe illness from the flu, but only 52.4% have received their vaccine. The vaccine is free for those at risk, including over 65s.
More gas secured for Australia’s east coast market, energy minister says
More gas pumping into the east coast market under a new supply deal with Walloons will help ease power prices, according to the federal energy minister.
An additional 40 petajoules would be available for the domestic market through to 2027 under an enforceable supply commitment, Chris Bowen said.
It builds on commitments made by Esso, Woodside, Senex and APLNG, bringing the total amount of gas to more than 600 petajoules. Bowen said in a statement today:
The Albanese government’s gas code has now secured the equivalent of enough gas to power east coast gas generators for six years.
Bowen said gas would supplement the transition to renewable energy, which would further ease power prices in the long run – the argument at the centre of the government’s newly released gas strategy.
– with AAP
Swathes of NSW koala habitat at risk from logging, conservation council says
Up to 19,000 hectares of forest in the proposed Great Koala National Park is at risk of destruction before April next year, according to the Nature Conservation Council of New South Wales (NCC).
The NCC based this on Forestry Corporation’s planning portal, which shows the forest compartments “on the chopping block” before the national park’s boundaries are finalised. The council has developed an interactive map showing past and planned logging in the proposed park.
The park has been identified as home to one in five of the state’s koalas.
NCC chief executive officer Jacqui Mumford said:
The fact is that this is some of the most important intact koala habitat in the state and it should be protected, not put on the chopping block, while decisions are made about the national park.
It is untenable that so much has been destroyed, and will be destroyed in the coming year, before these areas have been assessed.
The NCC is calling for a moratorium on logging in the proposed park “now”.
Taxi fare price rise flagged for Victorians
The cost of hailing a taxi in Victoria is likely to increase, AAP reports, after the state’s Essential Services Commission recommended a price rise.
The commission released its draft decision on the 2024 taxi review yesterday.
The proposal to recommend a fare increase of 5.7% is primarily driven by the 3.75% increase in the minimum wage announced by the Fair Work Commission and the increase in vehicle and insurance costs since the last review in 2022.
It will increase the cost of a three kilometre trip by 84c and add $3.22 to a trip from the Melbourne CBD to the airport at Tullamarine.
The commission also recommends keeping the maximum surcharge steady at 4% for payments made by credit or debit card, and 6% for charge cards like Cabcharge.
The draft decision covers trips starting in metropolitan Melbourne, Frankston, Dandenong, the Mornington Peninsula, Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo.
It does not cover rideshare operators or pre-booked fares.
The draft is open for consultation until 12 July and the commission will release its final decision in September.
