LIVE: Coronavirus Victoria: Legal action taken against Melbourne's much-hated curfew
As part of stage four restrictions, Melburnians are not allowed to leave their homes between 9pm and 5am, unless they need to go to work, seek medical care or need to provide caregiving.
“Let me be really clear with you – the curfew position at the moment will not be changing,” Mr Andrews told reporters.
“Because it is working. It is working. And if you don’t limit movement, you won’t limit the number of cases. And what everyone wants to get up and stay open simply won’t happen.”
But now, the Victorian Premier might not have a choice: documents were filed in Victoria’s Supreme Court this afternoon to have the curfew removed.
Mornington Peninsula restaurateur and single mother-of-three Michelle Loielo, who filed the suit, has accused the curfew of violating her rights to freedom, liberty and security.
“Since the implementation of the curfew I would describe the home environment for my children and I as absolutely suffocating,” she said in an affidavit filed with the court.
“Looking after the mental and emotional wellbeing of my children, coupled with the pressure of trying to keep my business afloat, has taken a significant toll on my health.
“The social isolation from my family and friends has been unbearable.”
Ms Loielo has asked the Supreme Court to either rule the curfew unlawful, or quash the Stay At Home Directions that stipulate it.
The court documents argue Victoria’s deputy public health commander Michelle Giles “failed to give any real independent consideration to whether it was appropriate to make the curfew”, ABC reports.
They also claim the curfew direction is invalid on grounds of irrationality and illogicality and that the curfew is not reasonably proportionate nor based on relevant and reliable evidence in line with public health laws.
Follow the latest coronavirus updates in our rolling coverage below.
Live Updates
ADF member fined over hotel quarantine guest
Natalie Brown
A 26-year-old member of the Australian Defence Force – who invited a guest to his Sydney quarantine hotel room – has been fined $1000.
In a statement, NSW Police said ADF officers working as security at the Hickson Road hotel heard a female's voice in the man's room in the early hours of this morning.
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The man in quarantine is a serving ADF officer who had returned to Australia from overseas deployment.
The 53-year-old woman, who was a guest staying at hotel, was removed from the room and directed to immediately self-isolate in her Hornsby home and seek a COVID-19 test.
Both the man and woman were issued fines for breaching public health orders.
Move to overturn Melbourne's lockdown curfew
Natalie Brown
Just last Friday, Daniel Andrews made clear he wouldn't budge on Melbourne's controversial curfew.
As part of stage four restrictions, Melburnians are not allowed to leave their homes between 9pm and 5am, unless they need to go to work, seek medical care or need to provide caregiving.
"Let me be really clear with you – the curfew position at the moment will not be changing," Mr Andrews told reporters.
"Because it is working. It is working. And if you don't limit movement, you won't limit the number of cases. And what everyone wants to get up and stay open simply won't happen."
Picture: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images
But now, the Victorian Premier might not have a choice: documents were filed in Victoria's Supreme Court this afternoon by Marcus Clarke QC to have the curfew removed.
Mornington Peninsula cafe owner and single mother-of-three Michelle Loielo, who filed the suit, has accused the curfew of violating her rights to freedom, liberty and security.
"Since the implementation of the curfew I would describe the home environment for my children and I as absolutely suffocating," she said in an affidavit filed with the court.
"Looking after the mental and emotional wellbeing of my children, coupled with the pressure of trying to keep my business afloat, has taken a significant toll on my health.
"The social isolation from my family and friends has been unbearable."
Picture: Facebook
Ms Loielo has asked the Supreme Court to either rule the curfew unlawful, or quash the Stay At Home Directions that stipulate it.
The court documents argue Victoria's deputy public health commander Michelle Giles "failed to give any real independent consideration to whether it was appropriate to make the curfew", ABC reports.
They also claim the curfew direction is invalid on grounds of irrationality and illogicality and that the curfew is not reasonably proportionate nor based on relevant and reliable evidence in line with public health laws.
Breakdown of Victoria's cases
Natalie Brown
The DHHS has released its daily breakdown of Victoria's 42 new coronavirus cases.
Of those, 27 are linked to outbreaks or complex cases and 15 are under investigation.
And of the state's 1040 active cases:
- 987 are in metropolitan Melbourne under stage 4 restrictions
- 42 are in regional local government areas under stage 3 restrictions. There are no new cases in regional Victoria.
- 5 are either unknown or subject to further investigation
- 4 are interstate residents
- 1 is an overseas resident
- Colac Otway has 22 active cases, Greater Geelong has four active cases, Greater Bendigo has one active case and Ballarat has no active cases.
Non-aged care outbreaks with the highest number of active cases include:
- 13 active cases are currently linked to Bulla Dairy Foods in Colac (20 total cases)
- 8 active cases are currently linked to Vawdrey Australia Truck Manufacturer (61 total cases)
- 7 active cases are currently linked to Footscray Hospital (7 total cases)
- 7 active cases are currently linked to Wydinia Kindergarten in Colac (13 total cases)
- 6 active cases are currently linked to Dandenong Police Station (14 total cases).
Fourth straight day of no virus cases in SA
Natalie Brown
South Australia has gone its fourth straight day of reporting no new coronavirus cases.
The state currently has no active infections and a tally of 466 cases since the pandemic began.
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The news comes as SA today announced it would lift its border restrictions with the ACT from midnight tonight.
Anyone flying in from the ACT to SA will no longer need to quarantine for 14 days upon arrival.
However, the quarantine period for travellers from NSW to SA will remain in place for "the foreseeable future", SA Police Commissioner Grant Stevens told reporters earlier.
"We're hopeful the situation in NSW will continue to improve…but for the time being people travelling from the ACT, they must travel by air straight from the ACT and not through NSW," he said.
Security steps up at regional Victoria's border
Natalie Brown
Security is stepping up at the border between Melbourne and regional Victoria ahead of restrictions in the latter being rolled back on Thursday.
The ABC's Emilia Terzon shared footage to Twitter of cars lined up coming out of Melbourne, writing that the line out of the capital – still under stage 4 lockdown – was at least 1km long.
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Premier Daniel Andrews told reporters this morning he was "pleased and proud of every single regional Victorian who has stayed the course, followed the rules, got tested".
Under regional Victoria's next step on its lockdown exit plan, the four reasons to leave home will no longer apply, gatherings of up to 10 people will be allowed outside and hospitality and entertainment will be allowed, among other changes which will come into play at 11:59pm tomorrow.
Mr Andrews also issued a warning to anyone in Melbourne thinking of heading to the regions, saying police enforcement would be "beefed up" at the capital's border.
"It will mean that there will be significant queues, there will be travel issues," Mr Andrews.
"Certainly the message I get is (regional Victorians) jealously guard the low numbers…and they want to keep it that way."
Andrews' hotel quarantine claim shattered
Natalie Brown
Melissa Iaria and Tom Minear, NCA NewsWire
Victoria’s top public servant was directly offered soldiers for hotel quarantine security, contradicting Daniel Andrews’ claims such help was not available.
The explosive revelation is contained in a series of emails and Defence Force documents released by the hotel quarantine inquiry on Tuesday.
The Premier has repeatedly maintained that ADF support was not on offer to provide security in hotels used to isolate returned overseas travellers.
Victoria instead used private security guards, with health protocol breaches responsible for the state’s deadly second wave of COVID-19.
Follow our live coverage of the inquiry here.
'No serious culture problem' with Victoria Police
Natalie Brown
Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews told reporters today he doesn't think Victoria Police have a serious culture problem, despite a series of violent clashes in recent days.
Australians were left shocked after the "barbaric" arrest of a man in Melbourne's north on Sunday afternoon, and the moment this morning police opened fire on a man who pulled a knife and rushed at officers outside a Lilydale shopping centre.
Asked during his press conference this morning how he felt about the incident on Sunday afternoon, Mr Andrews said the officer involved being stood down "is the appropriate step to take", and sent his "best wishes" to the family of the man arrested.
Picture: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images
But questioned over whether Victoria Police had a serious cultural problem – in light of an Aboriginal Melbourne metro rail tunnel worker being allegedly pinned to the ground and called a "black c***" by police – the Premier said he didn't believe there was.
"No, I don't believe so, and I don't think that police would concur with the way you've described that particular event," he said.
"They would have a different version of events. But that's not for me to advance. That would be for them to advance and I'm not sure whether there's a court process or any other process in relation to that."
Mr Andrews said "in broad terms" that Victoria Police "are out there doing very important work".
Picture: William West/AFP
"They do it with professionalism, they do it with skill, they do with a genuine concern to keep the community safe," he said.
"I'm grateful to them, but where an individual incident occurs, which I don't think speaks to the culture, where an individual incident occurs, it should be properly investigated and I have confidence that that's exactly what will happen.
"Whether it's COVID issues, or the youth gang push that was announced yesterday, I think Victoria Police have a very broad brief and they are working very hard to make sure that in the pandemic, and afterwards, that they're out fighting crime and keeping the community safe."
Man 'dobs in' boys selling soft drinks
Frank Chung
A Melbourne man has been hounded off social media after “dobbing in” kids selling drinks from a stall during coronavirus lockdown, suggesting the council send “someone down there”.
The man, who has since deleted his Twitter account, posted a photo over the weekend of two young boys sitting at a makeshift stall fashioned from an ironing board, selling cans of soft drink and lollies.
Picture: Twitter
“Group of lads selling sweets and drinks for cash in Ramsden Reserve, during stage four lockdown is pretty silly in my humble opinion,” he said in the post, which tagged the Yarra Council Twitter handle.
“Maybe worth sending someone down there? They didn’t listen to me. Along the Yarra Trail walking track.”
Crucial number NSW needs to hit
Ally Foster
An epidemiologist has revealed the crucial COVID-19 figure New South Wales needs to reach to finally be “out of the woods”.
Speaking on Nine’s Today show, infectious disease expert and UNSW Professor Mary-Louise McLaws said the state doesn’t have to hit zero cases to show success in suppressing the virus.
She said NSW was doing very well in overcoming coronavirus but said she would like to see the state record fewer than four new daily infections for two weeks.
Picture: Gaye Gerard/NCA NewsWire
“They are potentially on track to zero (cases) but to be out of the woods you don’t necessarily have to have zero but you do have to have between zero and four cases every day for twice an average incubation period and that average incubation period is 14 days,” Prof McLaws said.
“If they get to four cases or less and it’s consistent over 14 days then NSW is … in a very safe place.”
Woman's COVID breach prison sentence overturned
Alexis Carey
A Perth woman who made headlines after being slapped with a six-month jail term for breaching WA's quarantine rules has won an appeal against the sentence.
Instead, Asher Vander Sanden was given a 50-hour community service order.
The 28-year-old was originally given the harsh penalty after being caught trying to re-enter WA from Victoria by hiding in a car being transported by a truck.
Justice Jenni Hill said imposing an immediate jail term was “unreasonable, unjust and outside of the sentencing discretion", according to The West Australian.
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