Scott Morrison is going on annual leave for a week following the arrival of new and more contagious Covid strains in Australia from the UK and South Africa.
The Prime Minister is handing over to Deputy PM and Nationals leader Michael McCormack until January 18, as health authorities plan the February roll-out of coronavirus vaccines.
After a tough year battling a pandemic Mr Morrison is entitled to take a break, as state premiers had been last week, but some of the PM s harsher critics have regularly brought up his Hawaii holiday in December 2019 during the summer bushfires.
Scott Morrison is going on annual leave for a week following the arrival of new and more contagious Covid strains in Australia from the UK and South Africa. The Prime Minister is pictured with his wife Jenny and their daughters Abbey and Lily
New South Wales recorded 10 new local cases of coronavirus on Thursday including only one mystery case
Five of the cases were directly linked to the Avalon cluster, three were members of the Croydon cluster
There were 27,894 tests reported to 8pm on Thursday night, up from the previous day s total of 17,267
Premier Gladys Berejiklian has tightened rules for NYE, restricting home visitors to five and gatherings to 30
Household gatherings will be limited to five guests in greater Sydney, Wollongong, the Central Coast and Blue Mountains and outdoor events to 30 for New Year's Eve.
The Holy Parishes of St Nektarios and Holy Cross in Wollongong among the sites visited by a positive NSW case NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian provides a COVID-19 update at a press conference at St Leonards in Sydney, Wednesday, December 30, 2020. Photo: AAP/Mick Tsikas
30 December 2020 12:35pm
The end of Wednesday saw NSW record 18 new local cases of which nine are linked to the Avalon cluster while six are from a new Croydon cluster.
Three positive tests remain under investigation out of 17,267 tests done yesterday. The number of tests conducted is significantly lower than last week.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant provided a COVID-19 update at 11am (AEDT) today announcing that from midnight tonight until further notice, households gatherings will be limited to five guests in greater Sydney, Wollongong, the Central Coast and Blue Mountains.
All close contacts have been put in isolation and the cases are being interviewed
Victoria to shut borders to Wollongong and Blue Mountains from New Year s Eve
New South Wales recorded 18 new coronavirus infections on Wednesday
Tens of thousands of Boxing Day shoppers at a busy Melbourne Westfield have been ordered to isolate after six stores were visited by coronavirus patients.
Three mystery coronavirus cases - all woman, two aged in their 40s and one in her 70s - have emerged in Victoria.
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Authorities believe at least one of the cases is linked to the Sydney outbreak.
The new infections end the state s 61-day streak without any new cases, and all 40 close contacts of the three people have been put into isolation.