NORTH AMERICA UK AUSTRALIA...2020/08/19 · to resume in-person teaching as the pandemic rages on....

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AUGUST 19 (GMT) – AUGUST 20 (AEST), 2020

AUSTRALIAUKNORTH AMERICA

Dems officially nominate Biden

Democrats have formally nominated Joe Biden as their 2020 presidential nominee, as party officials and activists from across the nation gave the former vice president their overwhelming support during his party’s all-virtual national convention. The moment marked a political high point for Biden, who had sought the presidency twice before and is now cemented as the embodiment of Democrats’ desperate desire to defeat President Donald Trump this fall.

Jill Biden’s case for husband

Delegates from all 50 states, former Republican national security advisers and progressive leaders have all endorsed Joe Biden. But it was his wife’s support that painted the most hopeful and emotional picture of a Biden presidency. Jill Biden, speaking directly to wives, mothers and teachers just like her, described the devastation she felt watching the coronavirus pandemic ravage the nation.

Australia signs deal for vaccine

Australia has ordered 25 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine being developed by Oxford University in the UK in partnership with pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca, Prime Minister Scott Morrison says. Morrison promised to make the vaccine “as mandatory as you can” in a radio interview, before touring AstraZeneca’s laboratory in Sydney. He said: “Today is a day of hope and Australia needs hope, the world needs hope, when it comes to this coronavirus.”

Heathrow plan to cut quarantine

Heathrow Airport has announced the development of a new coronavirus testing facility which it hopes will lead to the end of the mandatory 14-day quarantine for those returning from certain countries and “protect the economy”. Arriving passengers will be able to book swab tests and have results sent to them in seven hours under the proposal, which is being used in Germany and Iceland.

Virus symptom differs from flu

Loss of smell associated with COVID-19 infection is “much more profound” when compared with a bad cold or flu, scientists have found. A team of researchers across Europe, which included experts from the University of East Anglia, compared the experiences of loss of taste and smell of people who had COVID-19 alongside those with other upper respiratory tract infections.

Virus not expanding rampantly

There are six new cases of COVID-19 in New Zealand, the Ministry of Health has confirmed. Five are in the community and related to the Auckland cluster and one is an imported case. Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said the imported case is a woman in her 50s who arrived on August 14 and has been in the Sudima Hotel. He said there are five people in hospital, one in Auckland City and one in Middlemore.

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AUSTRALIAUKEUROPE

Car crashes an ‘extremist attack’

A series of crashes caused by a 30-year-old Iraqi man on a Berlin highway was an Islamic extremist attack, prosecutors told the German news agency dpa. “According to the current state of our investigation this was an Islamist-motivated attack,” the office said. They did not reveal the man’s identity, as is customary in Germany. The suspect is being investigated for attempted murder.

EU set to meet on Belarus

European Union leaders are putting on a show of support for people protesting in Belarus. Emergency talks will aim to highlight their concern about the contested presidential election and ratchet up pressure on officials linked to the security crackdown that followed. The EU believes that the results of the August 9 polls, which handed President Alexander Lukashenko his sixth term with 80 per cent of the vote, “have been falsified”.

PM: Victoria getting on top of it

Victoria has recorded 216 new coronavirus cases and 12 more deaths. The deaths take the state’s toll from the virus to 363 and the national toll to 450. Further details are expected to be released by Premier Daniel Andrews. It is the lowest number of new cases since July 13. It comes as Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the state looks to be getting on top of its second wave.

Traffic fines rake in millions

Rail commuters face an increase in season ticket prices of 1.6 per cent despite people being urged to return to workplaces. The cap on the annual rise in most regulated fares is linked to the previous July’s Retail Prices Index (RPI) measure of inflation, which was announced by the Office for National Statistics. Rail fares are usually increased every January, although it is understood ministers are considering delaying the 2021 rise due to low passenger numbers.

Hands-free driving a step closer

Hands-free driving could be a reality in the UK in less than a year after the Government announced a consultation on the groundbreaking technology. The Department for Transport (DfT) has issued a call for evidence into Automated Lane Keeping System (ALKS) technology, which can take control of a vehicle at low speeds. The system controls the car’s movements and can keep it in lane for extended periods of time.

Peters calls for border force

New Zealand First wants to move the whole border quarantine operation into existing military facilities, and create a new Border Protection Force. Leader Winston Peters has released the party’s new quarantine policy, saying pandemics offer “no room for error”. He said the events of the past week have raised the question of whether the current arrangement of government agencies is the best way to fight outbreaks.

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NORTH AMERICA

Jill Biden, wife of Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden,

speaks during the second night of the Democratic National Convention. - AP

Jill Biden makes case for husbandDelegates from all 50 states, former Republican national security advisers and progressive leaders have all endorsed Joe Biden.

But it was his wife’s support that painted the most hopeful and emotional picture of a Biden presidency. Jill Biden, speaking directly to wives, mothers and teachers just like her, described the devastation she felt watching the coronavirus pandemic ravage the nation. And she told the audience her husband could lead the nation through this hardship just as he has their family through many personal tragedies of their own.

“As a mother and a grandmother, as an American, I am heartbroken by the magnitude of this loss. By the failure to protect our communities. By every precious and irreplaceable life gone,” she said. “Like so many of you, I’m left asking: How do I keep my family safe?”

Speaking from the Wilmington, Delaware, high school classroom where she taught English years ago, Mrs Biden described “the anxiety that echoes down empty hallways” and the uncertainty that has come as schools grapple with whether to resume in-person teaching as the pandemic rages on.

“The burdens we carry are heavy, and we need someone with strong shoulders,” Mrs Biden said. “If we entrust this nation to Joe, he will do for your family what he did for ours: Bring us together and make us whole, carry us forward in our time of need, keep the promise of America for all of us.”

And she pledged that if her husband is elected president, America’s classrooms “will ring out with laughter and possibility once again.”

Biden offered an optimistic view of the nation’s future, telling viewers that “Americans of all walks of life are putting their shoulders back, fighting for each other. We haven’t given up.”

Biden’s remarks capped off the second night of the convention – and was her biggest speech yet. ■

Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden. - AP

NORTH AMERICA

Democrats officially nominate BidenDemocrats have formally nominated Joe Biden as their 2020 presidential nominee, as party officials and activists from across the nation gave the former vice president their overwhelming support during his party’s all-virtual national convention.

The moment marked a political high point for Biden, who had sought the presidency twice before and is now cemented as the embodiment of Democrats’ desperate desire to defeat President Donald Trump this fall.

The roll call of convention delegates formalized what has been clear for months since Biden took the lead in the primary elections’ chase for the nomination. It came as he worked to demonstrate the breadth of his coalition for a second consecutive night, this time blending support from his party’s elders and fresher faces to make the case that he has the experience and energy to repair chaos that Trump has created at home and abroad.

Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State John Kerry – and former Republican Secretary of State Colin Powell – were among the heavy hitters on a schedule that emphasized a simple theme: Leadership matters. Former President Jimmy Carter, now 95 years old, also made an appearance.

“Donald Trump says we’re leading the world. Well, we are the only major industrial economy to have its unemployment rate triple,” Clinton said. “At a time like this, the Oval Office should be a command center. Instead, it’s a storm center. There’s only chaos.”

The speaking program underscored Biden’s challenge as he seeks to inspire a new generation of voters. While the Democratic leaders of yesteryear can point to experience and achievement, many of them are aging white men.

Just 77 days before the election, Biden has neither history nor enthusiasm on his side.

Just one incumbent president has been defeated in the last four decades. ■

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UK

- PA

Coronavirus smell loss ‘differs from cold and flu’Loss of smell associated with COVID-19 infection is “much more profound” when compared with a bad cold or flu, scientists have found.

A team of researchers across Europe, which included experts from the University of East Anglia, compared the experiences of loss of taste and smell of people who had COVID-19 alongside those with other upper respiratory tract infections.

In the small study involving 30 people, they also found that unlike common cold or flu, those with COVID-19 cannot detect bitter or sweet tastes.

The researchers believe their findings, published in the journal Rhinology, could help in developing smell and taste tests as a more rapid screening tool to identify those who may have COVID-19.

Lead researcher Professor Carl Philpott, from University East Anglia’s Norwich Medical School, said: “This is very exciting because it means that smell and taste tests could be used to discriminate between COVID-19 patients and people with a regular cold or flu.

“Although such tests could not replace formal diagnostic tools such as throat swabs, they could provide an alternative when conventional tests are not available or when rapid screening is needed – particularly at the level of primary care, in emergency departments or at airports.”

The team carried out smell and taste tests on 10 COVID-19 patients, 10 people with bad colds, and a control group of 10 healthy people.

Philpott said: “We found that smell loss was much more profound in the COVID-19 patients.

“They were less able to identify smells, and they were not able to identify bitter or sweet tastes.

“In fact, it was this loss of true taste which seemed to be present in the COVID-19 patients compared to those with a cold.”

According to Philpott, the findings add to the theory that COVID-19 infects the brain and central nervous system. ■

- PA

UK

Heathrow plan to cut down quarantine timeHeathrow Airport has announced the development of a new coronavirus testing facility which it hopes will lead to the end of the mandatory 14-day quarantine for those returning from certain countries and “protect the economy”.

Arriving passengers will be able to book swab tests and have results sent to them in seven hours under the proposal, which is being used in Germany and Iceland.

Travellers can do a second test at home a few days later and then leave quarantine early if they pass both checks, the Daily Mail reported.

Heathrow executives hope those testing negative could leave quarantine five to eight days after landing, though the airport’s programme needs Government approval before it can begin.

It comes as The Daily Telegraph reported Cabinet ministers will meet next week to discuss plans to replace blanket quarantines with COVID-19 testing for travellers.

Documents released from Sage’s June 18 meeting showed the scientific group found “double testing of travellers significantly reduces the risk of false negatives and could enable quarantine duration of less than 14 days”.

Heathrow chief executive John Holland-Kaye said the airport had been calling on the Government to introduce testing as an alternative to quarantine for months.

He said: “Heathrow is ready to support this provided the Government sets clear guidelines for a second test and changes regulations to allow passengers who provide two negative tests to leave quarantine early.

“We have worked closely with aviation services company Collinson and logistics firm Swissport to ensure such a testing procedure can be in place. If the Government is serious about protecting the economy, this is exactly what should be done.”

Holland-Kaye said double-testing “could have been in place for those caught up in the French problems last weekend”. ■

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NEW ZEALAND

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. - RNZ

Ardern: Virus is not expanding exponentiallyThere are six new cases of COVID-19 in New Zealand, the Ministry of Health has confirmed.

Five are in the community and related to the Auckland cluster and one is an imported case.

Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said the imported case is a woman in her 50s who arrived on August 14 and has been in the Sudima Hotel.

He said there are five people in hospital, one in Auckland City and one in Middlemore.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said there are no additional cases related to the Rydges Hotel maintenance worker who tested positive for COVID-19.

That brings the total number of COVID-19 cases in New Zealand to 1299.

Dr Ashley Bloomfield said 23,038 tests were processed. He reminded people to only be tested if they are symptomatic, have come in contact with a case or are concerned they have.

He said the person who visited PAK’nSAVE Glen Innes, only visited once and the person is considered low risk – therefore the contacts there are considered low risk.

Ardern said things as they are are encouraging.“The perimeter of the virus is not expanding exponentially,”

she said.However, she said the border testing has not been executed

at the scale and speed necessary. She has announced a small team that will support health to stand-up the comprehensive testing strategy.

The government will deploy around 500 extra Defence Force personnel into the quarantine facilities.

There will now be 19 Defence Force personnel in each isolation facility.

Ardern said MBIE is looking at directly employing security guards, and they will receive a living wage.

Ardern says it is a very logistically complex operation and the testing strategy is a significant logistical exercise across multiple agencies. ■

- PA

AUSTRALIA

Australia signs deal for UK virus vaccineAustralia has ordered 25 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine being developed by Oxford University in the UK in partnership with pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca, Prime Minister Scott Morrison says.

Morrison promised to make the vaccine “as mandatory as you can” in a radio interview, before touring AstraZeneca’s laboratory in Sydney.

He said at the facility: “Today is a day of hope and Australia needs hope, the world needs hope, when it comes to this coronavirus.

“And should we be in a position for the trials to be successful, we would hope that this would be made available early next year. If it can be done sooner than that, great.”

In another radio interview, Morrison said he had spoken with French leader Emmanuel Macron recently about how the AstraZeneca vaccine was “one of the best prospects in the world today”.

The British-Swedish company was one of the biggest fallers as the FTSE 100 closed in the red, and is the largest company listed on the London Stock Exchange by market capitalisation.

The UK has secured up to 100 million doses of the vaccine, which has reached phase three trials in Brazil and South Africa. Preliminary results suggest it is safe and induces an immune reaction.

It is one of six different coronavirus vaccine candidates in development that the UK has access to, across four different types, representing some 340 million doses.

Priority groups such as frontline health workers, those with serious diseases, the elderly and ethnic minorities are first in line to receive a jab, should a vaccine be approved. ■

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EUROPE

Belarusian opposition supporters gather for a protest rally in front of the government

building at Independent Square in Minsk, Belarus. - AP

EU set to tighten sanctions on BelarusEuropean Union leaders are putting on a show of support for people protesting in Belarus. Emergency talks will aim to highlight their concern about the contested presidential election and ratchet up pressure on officials linked to the security crackdown that followed.

The EU believes that the results of the August 9 polls, which handed President Alexander Lukashenko his sixth term with 80 per cent of the vote, “have been falsified,” and the 27-nation bloc is preparing a list of Belarus officials who could be blacklisted from Europe over their roles.

In a letter inviting leaders to the teleconference, EU Council President Charles Michel said that “what we have witnessed in Belarus is not acceptable.” He said the “violence against peaceful protesters was shocking and has to be condemned. Those responsible must be held to account.”

Belarus security forces detained almost 7000 people and injured hundreds with rubber bullets, stun grenades and clubs in the first four days of demonstrations. At least two protesters died.

Workers at state-controlled companies have joined strikes this week, as the unprecedented mass protests enter their 11th day and erode the authority of the man once dubbed “Europe’s last dictator.”

It’s not entirely clear what the Europeans can do right now, but they appear determined to help maintain the momentum that began in the streets of Minsk with a show of political support, and to revive a sanctions program on Belarus that was eased four years ago as relations with Lukashenko improved.

Ahead of their virtual summit, Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya called on Europe to support “the awakening of Belarus.”

“I call on you not to recognise these fraudulent elections. Mr Lukashenko has lost all the legitimacy in the eyes of our nation and the world,” Tsikhanouskaya said. ■

A car and a motorcycle stand on the city motorway A100 after an accident in Berlin,

Germany. - AP

EUROPE

Berlin highway crashes were ‘extremist attack’A series of crashes caused by a 30-year-old Iraqi man on a Berlin highway was an Islamic extremist attack, prosecutors told the German news agency dpa.

“According to the current state of our investigation this was an Islamist-motivated attack,” the office said. They did not reveal the man’s identity, as is customary in Germany. The suspect is being investigated for attempted murder.

Six people were injured, three of them severely, when the man allegedly drove into several vehicles, including a motorcycle, along a stretch of the German capital’s highway. The crashes at three different locations led to a complete closure of one of the main traffic arteries of Berlin.

There were also indications that the man was suffering from psychological problems, dpa reported.

Local media reported that the man, who was driving an Opel Astra, later stopped on the highway and put a box on the roof of his car, claiming it had explosives inside. Specialists opened the box and found only tools. The man was detained by police.

One of the injured is in life-threatening condition, the dpa reported.

The incident led to long traffic jams. Some 300 people were stuck on the highway for hours and were getting support from the German Red Cross, the Berlin fire department said. ■

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UK

- PA

Hands-free driving could be just down the roadHands-free driving could be a reality in the UK in less than a year after the Government announced a consultation on the groundbreaking technology.

The Department for Transport (DfT) has issued a call for evidence into Automated Lane Keeping System (ALKS) technology, which can take control of a vehicle at low speeds.

The system controls the car’s movements and can keep it in lane for extended periods of time, although the driver needs to be ready to take control when prompted by the vehicle itself.

It could be given the go ahead for speeds of up to 70mph, the DfT said, potentially making long stretches of tedious motorway driving a thing of the past.

According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, ALKS and other automated driving systems could prevent 47,000 serious accidents and save 3900 lives in the next 10 years.

The technology has already been approved by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), of which the UK is a member, and could be available as early as next spring.

Now the Government wants to hear from voices within the motoring industry to decide how it could be safely implemented in the UK.

It will also look at whether ALKS-enabled cars should be classed as automated vehicles, if so the technology provider rather than the driver would be responsible for safety while the system is in use.

The consultation closes on October 27 this year.Rachel Maclean, transport minister, said: “Automated

technology could make driving safer, smoother and easier for motorists and the UK should be the first country to see these benefits, attracting manufacturers to develop and test new technologies.

“The UK’s work in this area is world leading and the results from this call for evidence could be a significant step forward for this exciting technology.” ■

- PA

UK

Millions raked in from moving traffic offencesRail commuters face an increase in season ticket prices of 1.6 per cent despite people being urged to return to workplaces.

The cap on the annual rise in most regulated fares is linked to the previous July’s Retail Prices Index (RPI) measure of inflation, which was announced by the Office for National Statistics.

Rail fares are usually increased every January, although it is understood ministers are considering delaying the 2021 rise due to low passenger numbers.

The UK, Scottish and Welsh governments regulate rises for around half of fares, including season tickets on most commuter routes, some off-peak return tickets on long-distance journeys, and tickets for travel around major cities at any time.

Rail regulator the Office of Rail and Road said regulated fares went up by an average of 2.7 per cent in January 2020, following the July 2019 RPI figure of 2.8 per cent.

Unregulated fares, including advance and peak long-distance tickets, can be increased at the discretion of train companies.

Passenger watchdog Transport Focus called for a major shake-up of rail fares to encourage passengers back to the railways following the collapse in demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Chief executive Anthony Smith said a system that fits “the way we live and travel now” is needed, including flexible season tickets, carnet-style tickets and “better value for money fares across the board”.

Rail Minister Chris Heaton-Harris said: “We expect any rail fare rise to be the lowest in four years come January and any increase will go straight to ensuring crucial investment in our railways.

“Taxpayers have been very generous in their support to keep trains running throughout the coronavirus pandemic and whilst it’s only fair that passengers also contribute to maintaining and improving the services they use, a lower rise will help ensure the system returns to strength.” ■

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Peters issues call for border protection forceNew Zealand First wants to move the whole border quarantine operation into existing military facilities, and create a new Border Protection Force.

Leader Winston Peters has released the party’s new quarantine policy, saying pandemics offer “no room for error”.

He said the events of the past week have raised the question of whether the current arrangement of government agencies is the best way to fight outbreaks.

“This is not a criticism of the valiant efforts of our frontline staff and emergency workers,” Peters said, “this is a call by my party for a new border security policy … a new Border Protection Force.

“A new centralised force to focus our government efforts in a single line of attack.”

He said the “roles, responsibilities, and obligations” of the border force would be clearly set out; “patchwork responses and blurred responsibilities must be rejected”.

It would combine the functions of the Defence Force, Customs and other border agencies.

Another major change would be handing responsibility for quarantining over to the Defence Force, with the option of using Waiouru, Ōhakea or Burnham Camps, with assistance from police.

Peters said this will all provide longer term options, and potentially avoid having to put large cities like Auckland back into lockdown.

He said it will significantly reduce the cost to taxpayers.“The current costs of quarantine to government are

astronomical, a fraction would instead be invested into the set-up and the running of military facilities.”

Pandemics move swiftly, he said.“They offer no room for error, and a government must be at

its very best to beat a pandemic. “This nation has responded well in the past, but we must

examine every option and take every step to respond better in the future.” ■

NEW ZEALAND

Deputy Prime Minister and New Zealand First leader Winston Peters. - RNZ / Claire

Eastham-Farrelly

Victoria getting on top of virus, Morrison saysVictoria has recorded 216 new coronavirus cases and 12 more deaths.

The deaths take the state’s toll from the virus to 363 and the national toll to 450.

Further details are expected to be released by Premier Daniel Andrews.

It is the lowest number of new cases since July 13. It comes as Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the state

looks to be getting on top of its second wave. “Obviously the number of deaths we have seen is very

upsetting and disturbing,” he said.“But those (case) numbers look like we are getting on top of

it now, which is welcome and we’ve got to stay the course.”Melbourne is in the third week of a strict level-four lockdown,

which includes an 8pm-5am curfew, due to end on September 13, while the rest of Victoria is under level-three restrictions.

Thirteen of the 17 deaths reported on Tuesday were linked to aged care outbreaks. Some 230 aged care residents have died so far.

Most residents were housed in facilities regulated by the federal government, which the aged care royal commission castigated last week for not having a plan to protect the elderly.

But Morrison continues to deflect federal responsibility for the crisis in the sector.

“We regulate aged care, but when there is a public health pandemic, then public health, whether it gets into aged care, shopping centres, schools or anywhere else, then they are things that are for Victoria,” he said. ■

A healthcare worker conducts a coronavirus test at a drive-through COVID19 testing

facility in Melbourne. - AAP

AUSTRALIA

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