Good evening!
It’s Friday, December 31. Here’s what’s been happening today:
One thing to know right now: National cabinet has already changed the COVID-19 rules announced yesterday
Here’s the lowdown:
- Yesterday, the Prime Minister gave a post-national-cabinet press conference, when he told us all about the new national definition of a close contact and related testing requirements — they’re now being adopted by all the states and territories except WA
- Today, Scott Morrison put out a media statement saying those rules have been amended so that confirmed COVID-19 cases won’t have to get a test to leave isolation if they’re asymptomatic
- But people who are deemed close contacts — which means anyone who has been in a home or household-like setting with a positive COVID-19 case for four hours or longer — will still have to get a test on day six of their isolation period
- The federal government says confirmed cases with symptoms should remain in isolation
- And once more for the people up the back: anyone — whether you’re a close contact or not — who has symptoms should still have a PCR test.
Another thing to know about: Tropical Cyclone Seth
- It’s currently a category two cyclone and is sitting east north-east of Mackay, Queensland
- Tropical Cyclone Seth is not expected to cross the coast, but the Bureau of Meteorology has forecast large waves from tomorrow and through to early next week
- The system is expected to move away from the coast today and into Saturday before taking a southerly track on Sunday
- It may move closer to the coast by Monday, but it should weaken into a sub-tropical low.
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News you might have missed
Let’s get you up to speed.
- Floods triggered by torrential rain have left at least three people dead in the southern Indian city of Chennai. The city and suburbs have witnessed nearly 20 centimetres of rain in the past 24 hours
- The NT government has introduced a territory-wide indoor mask mandate after recording 60 new COVID-19 cases today. The mandate kicks in at 6pm
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A man in his 20s has died following the collapse of a cliff face in Bells Beach, Victoria, this afternoon. A man and a woman in their 20s sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
The news Australia is searching for
- Tesla: More than 475,000 of Tesla’s Model 3 and Model S electric cars have been recalled to address rear view camera and trunk issues that increase the risk of crashing
- Grace Tame: Last week, the reigning Australian of the Year said she’d do a shooey out of her moon boot on New Year’s Day if this tweet chalked up more than 10,000 likes:
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Unsurprisingly, that target was met within hours:
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Based on her last update, it looks like she’s going to keep her word.
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One more thing: If you’re looking for a song to kick off your NYE, how about these?
No. This isn’t news. But it IS important:
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This next one is Kylie Minogue’s latest offering, a duet with British pop star Jessie Ware.
Back in November when it was released, ABC’s Dan Condon said it gives “us a spectacle with just the right amount of pomp”.
He wasn’t wrong:
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And, in case you’re not going through a Kylie phase (but it’s not just a phase, let’s be honest), here’s an alternative option:
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That’s 2021 done
And thanks heavens for that!
If you’re looking back at the last 12 months and thinking this year was an absolute stinker, it’s not just you.
As someone who has worked in breaking news and sent out alerts to some truly horrific stories this year, I can confirm that it’s been a really, really rough year.
Even if things have been going pretty OK for you personally, this bin fire still takes its toll.
So, if you’re feeling absolutely cooked at the end of this year, that’s more than fair.
No one can say what 2022 will bring, but I can assure you that good things will happen, and they’ll keep on happening.
So, be nice to yourself, tell your loved ones you love them, and have yourself a lovely little New Year’s Eve.
We’ll … see you next year! (Sorry, couldn’t help it!)
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ABC/wires
