Podcasts about health minister greg hunt

Former Morrison Health Minister Greg Hunt chats with Chris O'Keefe following the news of Scott Morrisons' decision to resign from politics. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Governor-General David Hurley has confirmed he swore Scott Morrison into multiple ministerial roles – in some cases without the existing minister's knowledge – but has distanced himself from the decision to keep the changes a secret. In March 2020, the former Prime Minister was sworn in as a second Health Minister and second Finance Minister, with the move never made public, even to his colleagues. The Governor-General's office said in a statement to news.com.au it was acting on the advice of Mr Morrison and the decision to publicise the arrangements was a matter for “the government of the day”. This development comes shortly after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese blasted his predecessor's secrecy, and confirmed he was seeking advice on the legality of Mr Morrison's appointments. “This is extraordinary and unprecedented,” he said. “In Australia, we have a Westminster system of government that produces accountability. This is the sort of tin-pot activity that we would ridicule if it was in a non-democratic country.” Mr Albanese said he was seeking a briefing from the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. “Let's be very clear – Australians knew during the election campaign that I was running a shadow ministry. What they didn't know was that Scott Morrison was running a shadow government,'' he said. Mr Albanese said it was “extraordinary” that then-Finance Minister Mathias Cormann wasn't even told the former Prime Minister had joined him in his portfolio. “A whole lot of questions arise from this. What did Peter Dutton and other continuing members of the now shadow ministry know about these circumstances?'' he said. “We had the extraordinary revelation that Mathias Cormann, apparently, wasn't aware that Scott Morrison was the Finance Minister as well as himself. “And how is it that the Governor-General could swear-in Scott Morrison into ministerial portfolios without there being a transparency there about that process? This is quite extraordinary. “This is a government of Australia where the people of Australia were kept in the dark as to what the ministerial arrangements were. It's completely unacceptable. “This is very contrary to our Westminster system. It is unbecoming. It was cynical and it was just weird that this has occurred.” In a statement to news.com.au, a spokesperson for Governor-General David Hurley said the head of state was not doing anything out of the ordinary by appointing the minsterships to Mr Morrison. “The Governor-General, following normal process and acting on the advice of the government of the day, appointed former Prime Minister Morrison to administer portfolios other than the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. The appointments were made consistently with section 64 of the Constitution,'' the spokesperson said. “It is not uncommon for ministers to be appointed to administer departments other than their portfolio responsibility. These appointments do not require a swearing-in ceremony – the Governor-General signs an administrative instrument on the advice of the Prime Minister. “Questions around appointments of this nature are a matter for the government of the day and the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Similarly, the decision whether to publicise appointments to administer additional portfolios is a matter for the government of the day.” News.com.au revealed on Sunday the former Prime Minister swore himself in as Resources Minister and ultimately used the power to roll his own frontbencher, Keith Pitt, over a plan to drill for gas off the New South Wales coast. Mr Pitt has told colleagues he was kept in the dark and shocked to learn of the prime minister's secret powers during discussions with him and his office in late 2021 over the controversial oil and gas project. In December of 2021, Mr Morrison announced he was taking the first steps towards killing the gas project. Mr Pitt wanted to move ahead with approvals. Mr Morrison did not. It was during this process, when he was presented with a range of options, that the prime minister revealed to Mr Pitt he was secretly sworn in as the minister and could make the decision himself. Mr Pitt was so concerned that he asked for the executive order outlining how two ministers could be sworn into the portfolio, only to discover it did not exist. Coalition sources have told news.com.au Mr Pitt then complained to the deputy prime minister, Michael McCormack, but was told: “He's the prime minister”. Multiple former cabinet ministers have told news.com.au they either didn't understand why it had been done or objected to it. “The problem with Scott is he had this grandiose view of himself,” one former minister said. “And it was kind of weird.” Government sources have confirmed that ministers can be appointed under instrument when ministers are sick for short term administration without the need to tell the Governor-General but it was unusual for the prime minister to be appointed. It's now emerged former finance Minister Mathias Cormann was never informed that Mr Morrison had sworn himself into his portfolio in March 2020. Coalition sources confirmed Mr Cormann only learned of the secret arrangement through an excerpt of new book Plagued, by Simon Benson and Geoff Chambers, published in The Weekend Australian last week. News.com.au has contacted Mr Morrison, Mr Porter and Mr Cormann, who is currently serving overseas as a diplomat, for comment. Plagued recounts how Mr Morrison “hatched a radical and, until now, secret plan” with then-Attorney-General Christian Porter's approval. “Porter advised that it could be done through an administrative instrument and didn't need appointment by the Governor-General, with no constitutional barrier to having two ministers appointed to administer the same portfolio,'' the book says. “I trust you, mate,” Mr Morrison told Health Minister Greg Hunt, “but I'm swearing myself in as Health Minister, too.” The public was never told of the prime minister's secret arrangement, and the reasons for that secrecy have not been explained. Mr Morrison also swore himself in as Finance Minister alongside Mr Cormann because he wanted to ensure there were two people who had their hands on the purse strings. “Such a move was without precedent, let alone being done in secret, but the trio saw it as an elegant solution to the problem they were trying to solve – safeguarding against any one Minister having absolute power,'' Benson recounts in Plagued. “One option was to delegate the powers to cabinet, but Attorney-General Christian Porter's advice was these powers could not be delegated and could reside only with the Health Minister. “A declaration under section 475 gave Hunt as Health Minister exclusive and extraordinary powers. He, and only he, could personally make directives that overrode any other law and were not disallowable by parliament. He had authority to direct any citizen in the country to do something, or not do something, to prevent spread of the disease.” In June, BPH Energy told the stock exchange it had launched a Federal Court challenge to the gas project decision. The Australian newspaper reports today Mr Morrison was appointed by Governor-General David Hurley to take control of the entire Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources nearly a year before he scuttled an offshore gas project weeks out from the federal election. Federal Court documents reveal that the former prime minister was appointed to administer the super department on April 15, handing him powers over the Commonwealth-NSW Offshore Petroleum Joint Authority “pursuant to sections 64 and 65 of the Constitution”. - by Samantha Maiden, news.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Anthony Albanese has revealed "there may be more" portfolios that former prime minister Scott Morrison secretly appointed himself to, as he launches an investigation into the bombshell revelations. Describing the situation as "extraordinary" and "unprecedented", the Prime Minister said he simply could not understand the mindset that decided keeping Morrison's extraordinary move a secret was a good idea. So far, it has emerged that Morrison was appointed as a Minister for Health, Finance and Resources during his time in power through a secret mechanism that did not require him to make the change public. Only then-Health Minister Greg Hunt was aware that Morrison was joining his portfolio. Cabinet will be briefed on the unfolding scandal this morning, but preliminary advice suggests that the three portfolios that Morrison is believed to have been secretly appointed to may not be the full extent of the changes. "There may well be more,'' Albanese told ABC Radio National on Tuesday. "But I'll have more to say about that. It may well be that it takes some time to get to the bottom of this. "This really does undermine our democracy. Our democracy is precious and it relies upon accountability. "And this, this cowboy action, I likened it to some tin-pot regime. Well, this is Australia." Albanese said he was "not aware" whether or not Morrison secured extra pay for his additional jobs, but doubted this was the case. Solicitor-General Stephen Donaghue QC is also probing the ­legality of Morrison's ministerial arrangements. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Photo / AP In a statement, Governor-General David Hurley insisted he was acting on the advice of the former prime minister when swearing him into the extra portfolios, and disclosing the arrangements was a matter for him. Asked if he still had confidence in the Governor-General, Albanese said his job was to take the advice of the prime minister. "The Governor-General acted on the advice of the government of the day,'' he said. "Let's be very clear here, it is Scott Morrison that initiated this extraordinary and unprecedented action. "I think that the blame for this lands fairly and squarely with the former government — not just the prime minister — clearly other ministers knew that this was going on, they chose not to make it public." On Sunday, news.com.au revealed Morrison had sworn himself in as resources minister without the knowledge of the existing minister, Keith Pitt. He ultimately used that power to roll Pitt on a plan to drill for gas off the New South Wales coast. Revelations emerged over the weekend via the new book Plagued, that in March of 2020, Morrison was sworn in as a second health minister and second finance minister. None of these moves were revealed to the public. Former Health Minister Greg Hunt was briefed on the changes but former Finance Minister Mathias Cormann was not. Morrison broke his silence on the matter on Monday, texting a Sky News journalist to say he doesn't "engage in day-to-day politics". He was responding to Sky News host Kieran Gilbert, who offered him a right of reply to Albanese, who had blasted Morrison's secrecy. "Haven't seen what he has said," Morrison texted. "Since leaving the job I haven't engaged in any day-to-day politics." Albanese said that response was unacceptable. "Well, he's a member of Parliament,'' he said. "I find that quite an extraordinary dismissal by a former prime minister." The former prime minister is still collecting a $211,250 salary as a backbench MP and recently skipped the first week of Parliament to travel overseas. Albanese has confirmed he will seek advice on the legality of Morrison's appointments. Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull also slammed revelations that Morrison secretly swore himself into up to five portfolios as "sinister" and "incredible". Turnbull said he was shocked by the revelations. Asked if he had ever secretly sworn himself into other minister's portfolio he confirmed he had not. "No, I think this is one of the most appalling things I have ever heard in our Federal Government,'' Turnbull told ABC TV. "This is sinister stuff. This is a secret government. What Albanese said today about it is absolutely right." Turnbull backed calls for an investigation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This Week In Wellness in a move described by News Ltd as being “quietly noted in budget papers” Children aged 0 to 4 years of age have been added to Australia's vaccine injury compensation claims scheme and Health Minister Greg Hunt suggested planning was under way for “children aged zero to four”, despite no vaccines Listen In The post TWIW 147: Children 0-4 added to vaccine injury compensations scheme appeared first on The Wellness Couch.

British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell found guilty of sex crimes, Health Minister Greg Hunt promises five million extra booster doses, Police have charged a 25-year-old man over the alleged sexual assault of a seven-year-old girl in Perth, England's cricket coach Chris Silverwood in isolation, Kylie Jenner, Patti Newton, Bert Newton See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says Novavax could be available to Australians as soon as next month. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says Novavax could be available to Australians as soon as next month. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Daniel Andrews has made the state's first formal pandemic declaration under Victoria's new pandemic management laws. Health Minister Greg Hunt has rejected bids from Australia's health insurance funds to charge customers higher premiums. Australians have been warned to get their Christmas orders in before strict cut off dates or they won't receive their gifts in time. And an album of tweets and chirps from 53 of Australia's most threatened bird species is set to rattle the cages and pop chart dominance of superstars Abba, Taylor Swift and Michael Buble. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says the Pfizer vaccine for children aged five to 11 years old has taken a step closer and could be available from 10 January.  - Η Αρχή Θεραπευτικών Προϊόντων (TGA) της Αυστραλίας ενέκρινε το εμβόλιο Pfizer για παιδιά ηλικίας μεταξύ πέντε και 11 ετών. 

This week, two of the nation's most high profile politicians have announced that they will be quitting politics.The departure of the Health Minister Greg Hunt and former Attorney-General Christian Porter only adds to the pressure that the Prime Minister Scott Morrison is under right now - pressure created by the internal division plaguing the Coalition.Today, columnist for The Saturday Paper Paul Bongiorno on whether Scott Morrison has lost control of his own party, and what that means in the leadup to the next election.Guest: Columnist for The Saturday Paper, Paul Bongiorno. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Victorian Pandemic bill continues to be debated; Ghislaine Maxwell trial; Interest rates and inflation; Floods crisis in Southern QLD; A focus on quality, skills and a business-focused state government key to prosperity; Former attorney-general Christian Porter and Health Minister Greg Hunt to leave politics; Inquiry to raise the heat on Big Tech; Omicron covid variant continues to spread; Money update with Scott Phillips. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

 A 73-year-old man has died after his car was swept away in flood waters west of Brisbane, Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt is expected to announce his retirement from politics today,  Australia's primary school students might have to start the year without the equipment they need as worldwide technology shortages cause chaos for families, An Austrian court has fined a surgeon for amputating the wrong leg of an elderly patient, Alec Baldwin has given his first sit-down interview about the tragic accidental shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, Spotify has revealed who the most streamed artist in Australia was for 2021   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The worst is yet to come for some Queensland towns after the biggest floods in 33 years forced the evacuation of an entire town,  claimed the life of a driver and forced multiple swiftwater rescues. Scott Morrison will seek a third term in power without two of his most senior colleagues, with Health Minister Greg Hunt set to call it quits and  former Attorney-General Christian Porter also retiring. Australia's international borders will continue to reopen and faster than previously forecast, despite the omicron variant. People in the midst of a mental health crisis seeking help in the state's emergency departments are twice as likely to suffer a long wait  and in extreme cases are turned away because there are no beds. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Steve Price speaks to Sky News Political Editor Andrew Clennell as Health Minister Greg Hunt and former Attorney-General Christian Porter are set to retire at the next election. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Scott Morrison will seek a third term in power without two of his most senior colleagues, with Health Minister Greg Hunt set to call it quits and former  attorney-general Christian Porter also retiring. Victoria's sixth lockdown has contributed to a 1.9 per cent hit to the national economy between July and September — the third worst quarter on record. Australia's primary school students might have to start the year without the equipment they need as worldwide technology shortages cause chaos for families. Inner-city Northcote is rated the best Melbourne suburb to live by a new landmark study of the city forever reshaped by the pandemic. For updates and breaking news throughout the day, take out a subscription at herald sun.com.au  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Five cases of the latest COVID variant Omicron have now been confirmed in Australia, after a case was discovered in the Northern Territory earlier today and two more were picked up in New South Wales late Monday afternoon. The Health Minister Greg Hunt says the nation's vaccination rates puts Australia in a good position to respond to this variant.

Australian News: 28 November 2021 – Sunday Read by RaySel - ஆஸ்திரேலிய செய்திகள்:  28 நவம்பர்2021  ஞாயிற்றுக்கிழமை      வாசித்தவர்: றைசெல்

Ray Hadley is seeking further clarity for those planning a trip to Queensland. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Senator Malcolm Roberts has written to the Prime Minster Scott Morrison and Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk demanding answers to numerous important questions. They are issues the Senator's constituents are very concerned about however all citizens have been affected by the mismanagement of the pandemic by the Federal Government and all the states in Australia.   As noted by Senator Roberts, Australians are concerned about critical matters on current and future health policies, erosion of our basic human rights, the failure of Federal Government leadership and exactly what parliament's role is in protecting Australian citizens when Governments become unaccountable. Senator Robert's letter notes the wide acknowledgement that government actions and inaction have torn apart businesses, employment and the economy, as well as marriages, families and communities. Our health systems, aged-care facilities, police forces, education systems, the legacy media, social media, governments and parliaments have all been affected.  Senator Roberts notes that responses so far from the Prime Minister and the Premier have lacked data. Very poor justification has been provided for draconian restrictions and dangerous actions such as the mass coerced injection of people of a provisionally approved “vaccine” Health Minister Greg Hunt said himself was “The world's largest clinical vaccination trial." Australia is now a divided country and the Federal Government, and all State Premiers need to account for their actions and reverse course immediately. Covid-19 is no longer an excuse to wreck a nation.  Asia Pacific Today. November 13, 2021 Asia Pacific Today believes that your opinion is legitimate. And we believe that our guests have something to say and that their opinion is also legitimate. Throughout the week, Mike Ryan has discussions about politics, polarising issues, current events, and more. We really are connecting with people all over the world that simply speak their mind. There's new videos throughout the week, every week on our website.  And we also need our audience to grow. It would really help us grow if you could subscribe to https://www.asiapacifictoday.tv

Fully-vaccinated Australians are being asked to come forward for their third COVID-19 vaccine as the booster program formally begins. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says people will be able to get a Pfizer booster six months after receiving a second dose.

Australians who have been fully vaccinated for at least six months will soon be eligible for their first booster shot. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Western Australia remains under fire from the east coast over slow vaccination rates and little enthusiasm for reopening their state border. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Senior Liberals have opened a  new personal front to criticise Steven Marshall, urging him to curb late-night functions and a perceived growing arrogance fuelled by high public approval for his pandemic performance. Plans for a $200m gas import project at Outer Harbor would require almost two million cubic metres of material dredged from the Port River bed. Children as young as five could get access to the Covid-19 vaccine in weeks after Health Minister Greg Hunt said he was “very confident” the Pfizer jab would be approved soon. And in sport, new Crow Jordan Dawson says his desire to return home grew stronger during the year as Sydney's Covid situation forced the Swans to play out of New South Wales. For updates and breaking news throughout the day, take out a subscription atadvertiser.com.au  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With Australia racing towards the 80 per cent vaccination target, a fresh fight has broken out between the states and territories and the Commonwealth, this time over hospital funding. The states and territories wrote to the Federal Government asking it to agree to a 50-50 split for hospital funding but the Health Minister Greg Hunt has rejected those requests.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said the procurement deal finalised with Pfizer in December was the best and only option. Australia announced its agreement with Pfizer several months after the UK, Canada, Japan, and Britain negotiated their deals. Labor's health spokesman Mark Butler has rejected Mr Hunt's explanation.

NSW has accepted the federal government's offer to deploy Defence Force personnel into Greater Sydney. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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The title of this week's episode, ANVIL, will be a word you'll wanna shout a lot during the start of this podcast, don't worry, the fact we've chosen it as a name for the episode means that your yelling of that word, whilst not being heard in any way, shape or form, will result in it being repeated back to you and also acknowledged by the time we get to the wrapping up of things. In between, well once Em's high school bestie Michael is ushered in, we get underway with thanks for Michael's introduction from our last episode, plus some advice for those hoping to become seasoned in front of a microphone. We also get a commentary on Michael's ability to change his look on the regular, and a full explain on why there won't be any videos of them this week on socials, safe to say someone is rocking a swollen eye accessory that isn't of their choosing, nor something they wanna be showing off either. Then we move on to how Sydney is coping with life in lockdown, this also allows for our first appearance of the Unicorn of Death, and a reflection on how her uncanny and ultimately depressing predictions, sometimes come home to roost. Of course Gladys is now having all her previous cocky statements brought up for a revisit, and also facing daily press conferences to discuss the latest developments as well. Thankfully, just like the daily press conferences in Victoria managed to offer up distractions, like Brett Sutton's facial hair and hot Auslan guy, NSW press conferences have also managed to deliver the distracting goods. Like their Chief Health Officer, Dr Kerry Chant, who's done everything from almost wipe her eye with the OUTSIDE of her protective mask, to reading updates with broken reading glasses that sat lopsided on her face. Then Em and Michael need to talk through the PM Wars that erupted over claims Scomo had bungled the delivery of the Pfizer vaccine. Then claims that ex PM, Kevin Rudd had fixed it, which Dutton was having none of, and Health Minister Greg Hunt had a giggle about, then Malcom Turnball had a go, which meant Scomo had to step into the fray again. Basically it got hectic messy, so Em has been on a deep dive and got all the receipts. She's also low key, loving how petty and “game on moles'' it has all become. Finally we'll wrap up that ramble by offering up our second prediction from the Unicorn of Death, then it's on to the utterly adorable and low key brilliance of Ash Barty. Em and Michael are HUGE fans and are just so stoked about her incredible journey, which culminated in her show stopping win at Wimbledon during NAIDOC Week, they've got LOTS of gushing and approval to drop her way. Then before we close things out, we spend some time celebrating Michael's achievements of late, from the panic of re-writing TV scripts on the fly whilst trying to film around the restrictions of Sydney's lockdown, to the fact he now has two TV shows, in Five Bedrooms and The Newsreader, both ready to hit our screens at the exact same time. So get amongst the audio goodness and make sure you stick around for two beautiful pieces of advice at the very end, we promise you won't be disappointed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Australia's brightest scientific minds have joined forces to urge Australians to get vaccinated, arguing Covid is more insidious than the rare side ­effects attached to some of our vaccines. Pfizer executives and federal Health Minister Greg Hunt have rubbished news reports suggesting that former prime minister Kevin Rudd personally intervened to get the drug company to speed up its delivery of vaccine jabs to Australia. Up to 800 homes proposed for southwest Sydney could be blocked by local bureaucrats, leading to claims a planning “rejection” culture is fuelling the city's housing affordability crisis. And in sport, Wimbledon Champion Ash Barty and NBA star Patrick Mills will light up the sky in some of the country's most remote Indigenous communities as part of the Australian Olympic Committee live site tour for the Tokyo Games.  For updates and breaking news throughout the day, take out a subscription atdailytelegraph.com.au See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Minister Greg Hunt joined Jonesy & Amanda to chat about the latest COVID-19 vaccine campaign.

Health Minister Greg Hunt joined Jonesy & Amanda to chat about the latest COVID-19 vaccine campaign.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says work is being done to get Australians overseas on repatriation flights after international arrival caps have been slashed in half. It comes as New South Wales has seen its biggest COVID-19 surge this year amid a two-week lockdown.

A plan from National Cabinet lacks detail and timelines, but sets out Australia's return to normal; The Health Minister Greg Hunt joins PM, saying the government's working on getting Pfizer vaccine doses delivered earlier than expected; And a record number of cases for this New South Wales outbreak, are too many people still hanging out for too long at the shops?

A plan from National Cabinet lacks detail and timelines, but sets out Australia's return to normal; The Health Minister Greg Hunt joins PM, saying the government's working on getting Pfizer vaccine doses delivered earlier than expected; And a record number of cases for this New South Wales outbreak, are too many people still hanging out for too long at the shops?

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The federal government is seeking to clear up confusion over the safety of the AstraZeneca vaccine, following conflicting messages from state governments. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has maintained the current roadmap for the vaccine rollout remains appropriate. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The federal government has changed its advice for the AstraZeneca vaccine, recommending people below 60 receive the Pfizer jab. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More than five million Australians have received the Covid-19 vaccine as the federal government announced GPs will be able to administer doses for people with disabilities and the elderly at their homes.Health Minister Greg Hunt said 5.9 million people had received their first vaccine dose and more than 5.8 million of them had been administered their second dose.“During the course of the last week, we've also seen a record day and record weekday figures,” he told reporters on Monday.Mr Hunt also revealed an “important next step” in reaching older Australians and those with disabilities.“We've now reached 100 per cent of aged care facilities around Australia for first doses and 94 per cent of facilities have had second doses, with the remaining numbers over the coming days and weeks as they reach the three-week mark from their previous dose,” he said.“As part of that, one of the things we're doing is enlisting Australia's GPs to be able to visit people at home or in a disability or in a residential aged care facility.”Under the home visitation payment program, GPs will be paid $56.75 plus the vaccination fee for the first patient they visit.“It's about expanding the vaccination program, bringing it to people,” Mr Hunt said.“It's recognising that each year we have up to 60,000 people who come into aged care and to ensure that there is a continuous vaccination program in our aged care facilities and in our disability facilities as those programs continue to go forward.“That in-home visitation fee will assist … to provide access for all of Australia's 30,000 plus GPs to choose if they so wish to be part of the program.”Vaccine Operations Centre commodore Eric Young said Australia was on track to have a further 1.1 million doses of the vaccine distributed to more than 2800 locations across the country this week.Asked about reports of people being told to come back in six weeks for their second Pfizer shot in Victoria, Mr Hunt said the federal government's advice had not changed.“The states and territories have been delivering, I think, approximately 90 per cent of the doses in the due week – of the second doses, so that's an extraordinary effort,” he said.“I know that Victoria is focusing very much on ensuring now that they are booking people in.”Mr Hunt said he had a “very constructive” discussion with the Victorian Health Minister about early bookings.“Some states and territories have early booking programs so when you book in for your first dose you book in for your second,” he said.“They have brought forward an enormous amount of people and they obviously have to manage their doses within their total inventory, but we have made almost 500,000 additional doses available to Victoria over and above what would otherwise have been their allocation through this.”- text by Angie Raphael, news.com.au

The Victorian Government is starting a five day blitz to vaccinate aged care and disability care workers across the State. In Question Time, the Health Minister Greg Hunt was forced to admit he'd gotten earlier statements about the number of unvaccinated aged care facilities.

A huge health response is underway at four aged care facilities after they were linked to Victoria's growing Covid-19 outbreak.There are fears more cases will emerge in aged care after three of Monday's five new local infections were linked to the sector.Minister Health Martin Foley said one was the son of the first case in aged care – reported on Sunday – at the Arcare Maidstone facility.Another case was a staff member at the same nursing home – the woman, who was not vaccinated, worked alongside the initial case.Mr Foley said the third case was a resident at the Arcare Maidstone home. She was a woman in her 90s, asymptomatic and had been transferred to hospital.Victoria Minister Health Martin Foley says three of Monday's five cases have come from aged care. (Photo / NCA)It means two staff members and one resident have contracted coronavirus at Arcare Maidstone overall, while it was also revealed on Monday another worker at the BlueCross Western Gardens nursing home in Sunshine tested positive on Sunday night.Two other Royal Freemasons sites were also on high alert after two workers – one from Coppin Centre and the other from Royal Freemasons Footscray – worked at the Arcare Maidstone facility in the past week.The Royal Freemasons was notified of the link at 6am on Sunday and immediately locked down the facilities, notified the Department of Health and commenced full PPE and testing of all residents and staff.No staff or residents at Royal Freemasons have tested positive at this stage.Arcare Maidstone issued a public statement on Monday saying the ill resident had received one dose of the Pfizer vaccine.Meanwhile, in a letter sent to families by BlueCross Western Gardens aged care home and published on 3AW, the facility said its residents were being quarantined in their rooms and were symptom-free after a worker tested positive on Sunday night.The worker was a close contact of a positive worker at another aged care facility. It's not known if the Blue Cross Western Gardens staff member worked alongside the other positive aged care worker.A worker at the BlueCross Western Gardens nursing home in Sunshine tested positive on Sunday night. (Photo / NCA)It comes after Labor MP Bill Shorten's earlier comments on Monday that he had heard second-hand accounts from Arcare Maidstone the virus had spread to other partially vaccinated residents.“Worryingly, both the staff member who recorded positive and one resident, possibly two, (who) have contracted Covid were both vaccinated in the first round,” he told ABC.“So it just emphasises to me, and I think to everyone listening, that two vaccinations is what we need.“When I hear the federal government saying one vaccination somehow (the) goal … you need two. One is not enough.”Health Minister Greg Hunt revealed the worker felt ill and got tested on Friday, returning a positive result the following day.Bill Shorten says the case may have spread to at least one other partially vaccinated person at the site. (Photo / News Corp Australia)“Common work began immediately between the commonwealth and the Victorian government. And both the Victorian Aged Care Response Centre, led by the commonwealth, in partnership with the Victorian Department of Health, I think, followed an exemplary process so far,” he said on Sunday.“They were vaccinated on May 12, and so it's some considerable time now that the worker has been vaccinated and that was done as part of the in-facility residential program.”Arcare Maidstone Aged Care residents must quarantine in their rooms after three cases emerged out of the facility. (Photo / News Corp Australia)The Health Minister said 53 of the centre's 76 residents had consented to be vaccinated.Mr Shorten conceded it was a “worry” that 15 per cent of the residents had declined the vaccine but said the Arcare centre was “fortunate” to have leftover vaccines on May 12.“It also worries me that Mr Hunt thinks that everyone's had one dose at ou...

Melburnians are today enduring their 160th day in lockdown after a snap seven day “circuit breaker” was imposed on the state, federal Health Minister Greg Hunt copped a grilling from Leigh Sales last night,The US President yesterday ordered US intelligence agencies to report to him within 90 days on whether Covid-19 first emerged in China from an animal source OR from a laboratory accident, it's been revealed former UFC lightweight champion Khabib turned down $127 million to fight Floyd Mayweather, David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston revealed that they had romantic feelings for one another when the show first started, Prince Philip allegedly left a generous amount money to three close staff members in his will     See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Queenslanders could get access to the Pfizer jab through GPs or pharmacists, on top of state-run hubs....after Health Minister Greg Hunt hinted a change in vaccine storage conditions being considered by authorities.  The Queensland Winter Carnival has been rocked by drama...after a flight packed with race-winning horses was barred from entering the state due to unexplained COVID fears.  Desperate city shops and landlords will offer discount vouchers, gift card giveaways, freebies, coffee deals and even putt-putt in their building ­foyers ….in a bid to get workers to ditch Friday “work from home” and breathe life back into Brisbane's city centre.  The state government will today unveil a multimillion-dollar jobs campaign... offering free flights and cash ….in a bid to fill thousands of tourism posts in Queensland.  For updates and breaking news throughout the day, take out a subscription at COURIERMAIL.com.au/  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rachel Clun, Federal political reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald & The Age covering health, joins Michael regarding the shameful revelation that fewer than 1000 disability residents have been vaccinated against COVID-19.   ‘A senior health department official has admitted the COVID-19 vaccine rollout for people living in residential disability homes needs to be accelerated after it was revealed under 5 per cent of those residents had been vaccinated three months into the national program’, writes Ms Clun.   ‘In a special one-day hearing to examine the vaccine rollout for people with disabilities, the disability royal commission heard in some states fewer than 10 people living in residential homes had been vaccinated.’   ‘Health Minister Greg Hunt on Monday said 999 people in residential disability homes have received vaccines, and 1527 workers had also been vaccinated through in-reach programs.’ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australia has reached a supply agreement for 25 million doses of Moderna COVID-19 vaccines in a deal that the government hopes will ensure all Australian adults have access to inoculation this year.The deal included 10 million doses of the vaccine against the ancestral strain to be delivered in 2021 and 15 million doses of an updated variant booster to be delivered in 2022, U.S.-based Moderna said on Thursday.The vaccines have yet to be approved by the Australian regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration. Pfizer and AstraZeneca are the only coronavirus vaccines approved for use in Australia. All three vaccines require two doses.Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he expected the first 10 million Moderna vaccines to arrive in Australia in the last three months of 2021.The 15 million booster doses would deal with possible future variants of the virus, he said."We're now well into the phase of dealing with what's coming next because the pandemic's not going anywhere," Morrison said.Moderna is in discussions with the government to allow its vaccines to be manufactured in Australia.Australian-made Moderna shots could be available as early as next year, said Brendan Murphy, chairman of Australia's Science and Industry Technical Advisory Group on COVID-19.AstraZeneca is already manufactured in Australia. But Moderna promises to provide quicker inoculation, with three weeks between shots as opposed to three months with AstraZeneca.Pfizer's recommended doses are also three weeks apart. But Moderna has an advantage that it does not need to be stored at temperatures as low as Pfizer.Moderna vaccines would help Australia achieve its aim of inoculating all willing Australian adults within the population of 26 million by the end of the year."This locks in our capacity to ensure that every Australian has access to a vaccine this year," Health Minister Greg Hunt said.Australia has contracted 20 million imported Pfizer doses, which is the preferred option for adults under 50 years old because of the blood clotting risks associated with the AstraZeneca shot. The government also has deals for 3.8 million imported AstraZeneca doses plus 50 million locally manufactured shots.The government expects Moderna vaccines would be recommended for Australians under 50.Hunt said he expects the first of Australia's order of 51 million doses of the Novavax vaccine will be delivered this year.Australia's CSL plant would manufacture the 50 million AstraZeneca doses as planned. Shots that Australia did not need would be donated to neighboring countries, Hunt said."We are continuing on with the production because we think if a country can be producing vaccines, the world needs those vaccines if we have more than we need," Hunt said.The vaccine rollout began in February, and the government had expected to administer 4 million doses by the end of March. But only 2.8 million doses had been injected by this week, with the government blaming slow shipments for delays.Australia has been relatively successful in containing the virus. While 910 have died of COVID-19, the government argues the death told would be 30,000 higher if Australia's fatality rate was the average of Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development countries.

Australia’s chief medical officer Paul Kelly says the threat of fines and jail time for people returning home from India was not ordered by him.Professor Kelly today told Sky News the criminal punishment was a separate part of Australia’s Biosecurity Act, but health authorities had not been asked to advise on that section of the government act.“Let’s be very clear, we were asked for public health advice on the nature of threat, how long (a measure) was needed, that was the advice given,” he told Sky News.“We weren’t asked about penalties. I’m an adviser, I don’t make decisions for the government.”Professor Kelly warned of the “consequences” of Australia’s travel ban on India in a letter to Health Minister Greg Hunt. He highlighted the risk the ban would have on Australian citizens and permanent residents in COVID-ravaged India as a result of our pause on flights and entry into Australia.“These include the risk of serious illness without access to healthcare, the potential for Australians to be stranded in a transit country, and in a worst-case scenario, deaths,” he wrote in a letter to Mr Hunt tabled in parliament today.“I consider that these serious implications can be mitigated through having the restriction only temporarily in place, ie a pause, and by ensuring there are categories of exemptions.”This came as cricket great Michael Slater slammed Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s Indian flight ban, warning he has “blood on his hands” for banning Australian citizens from fleeing COVID-ravaged India.While the broadcaster got out of India on one of the final flights to the Maldives before the ban came into force, he took to social media to attack the threat to jail Australian citizens trying to flee.“If our Government cared for the safety of Aussies they would allow us to get home. It’s a disgrace!!” Slater wrote. “Blood on your hands PM. How dare you treat us like this. How about you sort out the quarantine system.“I had government permission to work on the IPL but I now have government neglect”.Shortly afterwards, the 51-year-old tweeted at “those who think this is a money exercise” telling them to “forget it”.“This is what I do for a living and I have not made a penny having left early,” he said. “So please stop the abuse and think of the thousands dying in India each day. It’s called empathy. If only our government had some!”The Australian newspaper’s cricket writer Peter Lalor reported on Monday night that Slater, a commentator at the tournament, had been trying to get out for a week and eventually found his way to the Maldives where he will wait until he can return to his home country without the threat of being thrown into jail.While Slater escaped India just in time, cricketer David Warner remains stranded amid the humanitarian crisis. Warner recently posted a photo of himself and a teammate, New Zealand captain Kane Williamson, dressed in a full protective body suit on a flight to Delhi.Adding insult to injury, Warner has officially been dropped by the Sunrisers Hyderabad in recent days.The Prime Minister is now under extreme pressure to dump the flight ban before May 15.Earlier, Sky News host Andrew Bolt declared he is “ashamed of Australia” over the threat of jail terms for Indian-Australians trying to return home, slamming the Prime Minister’s decision as a bad call that “stinks of racism.”“I hate people playing the race card. But even I must now say I am ashamed of Australia, which is making it a crime for Indian Australians to come back home,’’ Bolt said.“To me, it stinks of racism to tell the 8000 Indian Australians trying to come home that they must stay in India, in what Western Australia’s Premier admitted was the ‘epicentre of death and destruction’.”Chillingly, Bolt went on to argue, just like Slater, that the death of any Australian left trapped in India should “shame” the Prime Minister.“The death of any Australian in India because of this ban will shame the Prime Minister and ev...

The Federal Government has provided mixed messages this week on how and when Australia's international border can re-open. Health Minister Greg Hunt warned the border could remain closed even when the whole population is vaccinated - and now Prime Minister Scott Morrison has signalled allowing vaccinated Australians to travel overseas and quarantine at home upon their return. - Federálna vláda poskytla tento týždeň zmiešané správy o tom, ako a kedy sa môžu znovu otvoriť medzinárodné hranice.Minister zdravotníctva Greg Hunt najskôr upozornil, že ani celoplošná zaočkovanosť ešte nemusí znamenať voľné cestovanie, a teraz predseda vlády Scott Morrison naznačil, že očkovaní Austrálčania, ktorí potrebujú odcestovať do zámoria z pracovných, zdravotných, či z dôvodu návštevy pohrebu predsa len budú môcť cestovať a po návrate zostanú v domácej karanténe

Senior members of the Australian government have been targeted in phishing attacks this week, with news Health Minister Greg Hunt and Finance Minister Simon Birmingham have been attacked, as well as Australian ambassadors overseas. The attackers impersonate the officials on WhatsApp and Telegram services, contacting people from their stolen address books to find out about people living in Hong Kong. The AFP continues to investigate and is educating MPs on how to deal with phishing attacks.Component shortages continue to grow in impact, with a report from Nikkei Asia that Apple MacBook and iPad production is being delayed due to shortages of parts like mounting components and display parts. Apple is known to run a very tight supply chain that avoids warehousing, so while devices are set to remain available the report suggests some production plans are being delayed until later in the year. Optus has announced a new feature for its phone and broadband customers that will offer a simple app interface to shut off internet access across both mobile and Wi-Fi for a set period of time. Dubbed Optus Pause, the tool in the My Optus app will allow choosing devices and a time period after which connectivity will be restored – a helpful idea for some who need to enforce some offline time in their lives.Australian researchers have published a study on using drones to herd sheep as a positive improvement over traditional methods. The research out of UNSW Canberra and published in Scientific Reports found that drones that approached carefully while emitting certain tones could herd sheep with less stress on the animal. Drones are already in use on farms, but this research helps understand the positive impacts on animal welfare.During an online presentation at the Game Developers Conference recently, Intel has announced a new AI tool that aims to remove toxic language from a livestream in real-time. It's called Bleep, and the settings screen shows options for a series of sliders that control how much toxic language is OK across fields like misogyny, racism, sexism and more. There's even a toggle for the N-word. If only we could deal with the toxic culture that created a need for something like this in the first place.Lenovo has announced its latest gaming smartphone, the Legion Duel 2. The phone features multiple USB-C ports that can be used simultaneously to fast-charge the device's huge battery in just 30 minutes, as well as two cooling fans to let the phone run its processors at high speeds while gaming. It's a beast of a handset and for those wondering if it's overkill, remember that mobile has become the primary gaming platform across many parts of the world – the Legion phone is part of a competitive market with Asus and Xiaomi also eager to win.In esports, the League of Legends LCO Grand Final will take place at 6pm Saturday night, with the top two teams of the Split, Pentanet.gg and Peace, set to face off. The final series saw the Chiefs make a big run into the semi-finals from the bottom of qualification, but Peace held them off to secure their place in the final. You can watch the best of five match live on Twitch.This weekend also sees the final of the Asia Pacific Predator League taking place, with events in both PUBG and DOTA 2. Australia's Team Immunity is expected to place highly in the PUBG final, taking place Sunday afternoon. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says there's been an "extraordinary acceleration" in Australia's COVID-19 vaccination program with a "massive" number of people vaccinated. But by the government's own initial targets, the vaccine rollout is anything but fast.

Six million Australians are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, but as of Monday, fewer than 600,000 have had it. For many countries, the hold up has been the international supply chain, but that's not the case here. Today on The Signal, we investigate the slow start to Australia's COVID-19 vaccine program. Is it time to admit there's a problem? And either way, how do we speed it up? Featured: Dr Stephen Duckett, Health Economist & Director, Health Program, The Grattan Institute Dr Karen Price, President, Royal Australasian College of General Practitioners Editor's Note: A statement from a spokesperson for Health Minister Greg Hunt was received after this podcast was recorded, a link to a related story has been included within the episode description. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-03-30/covid-rollout-logistical-effort-to-ramp-up-vaccination/100026116

Vaccine booking website frustrates users GP clinics were inundated with phone calls from people trying to book their Covid-10 vaccine yesterday after the federal government's online booking website failed to launch. Bookings opened for vaccinations for people in the 1b group yesterday, but the government's booking page wouldn't let anyone actually make a booking online. The Guardian reports, “the booking website told them to call their nearest vaccinating clinic to book an appointment, receptionists had told them they could not take any bookings as they has not yet been told by the government how many doses they would be receiving.” Many of those people waiting on hold were in their 80s. At a press conference, Health Minister Greg Hunt insisted the website had not been rushed and was always scheduled to be launched on Wednesday.There are a lot of moving parts here… FYI the vaccine booking website – accessed via the Department of Health's eligibility toolInstagram Creeps BlockedInstagram rolling out message restrictions to protect young usersInstagram now bans adults from messaging teenagers who don't follow them. The app will also now show “safety prompts” to teens messaged by adults “exhibiting potentially suspicious behaviour,” offering options to report or block the users. Instagram is going to give safety notices to teens making sure they know they can restrict, report, and block users.The prompt also gives reminders that say “Don't feel pressured to respond,” “Only share with people you trust,” and “Your safety comes first.”Amazon's newest robot cathedral Amazon is building a colossal warehouse in Sydney's West and it is ready for the robots to move in. The fulfillment centre will be Amazon's biggest in the southern hemisphere, covering 200,000 square metres over four levels, it is the size of 24 football fields.It will be Amazon's fifth fulfilment centre in Australia, but the first one with the really good robots. The robots basically do all the heavy lifting and moving the inventory inside the building, and the humans do the picking and the packing. Expected to be completed for the Black Friday sales in November, and will house 11 million items.Is this enough for Amazon to go from quietly competing to absolutely crushing retail in Australia? Wikimedia wants big tech to payWikipedia Is Finally Asking Big Tech to Pay UpFor years now, Wikipedia has made freely available a snapshot of everything that appears on the site every two weeks—a so-called “data dump” for usersToday, the Wikimedia Foundation, which operates the Wikipedia project in more than 300 languages as well as other wiki-projects, is announcing the launch of a commercial product, Wikimedia Enterprise. The new service is designed for the sale and efficient delivery of Wikipedia's content directly to these online behemoths (and eventually, to smaller companies too).seeking the reaction of Wikipedia's... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is headlines by Auscast Wednesday March 10th 2021. VO by Andy Martin. ++++++++ The Queen has finally broken her silence on the Prince Harry and Meghan Markle interview with Oprah Winfrey.  "The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan, "The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. "While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately. "Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved family members." ++++++++ The Porsche Driver that has been accused of filming and taunting a dying police officer on Melbourne's Eastern Freeway has pleaded guilty to three charges. Richard Pusey, 42, has admitted to outraging public decency, reckless conduct endangering serious injury and drug possession.  His lawyer said his client would now be seeking "significant credit" because he had admitted his guilt. "Without his efforts to resolve this matter, it had the potential to drag on for years." ++++++++ Health Minister Greg Hunt has been suffering a 'suspected infection'. Prime Minister Scott Morrison says hew will be ‘back on his feet' by next week. "He is being kept overnight for observation and is being administered antibiotics and fluid," the statement said. The minister is expected to make a full recovery. Mr Hunt's office said his condition is "not considered to be related to the (COVID-19) vaccine". Mr Hunt received the AstraZeneca coronavirus jab on Monday alongside former prime minister Julia Gillard. ++++++++ Commonwealth Bank experts say that around 110,000 Australians could lose their jobs when the Jobkeeper wage subsidy ends at the end of this month. The experts say workers in the coronavirus-hit industries like tourism, accommodation, transport, arts and recreation are most at risk of jobloss. ++++++++++++ IN ENTERTAINMENT thanks to Little Box Co, Check out the new Gourmet Box Menu now at littlebox.com.au Piers Morgan has quit Good Morning Brian after making a slew of controversial comments about Meghan Markle  during Good Morning Britain following the airing of the Prince Harry & Meghan Markle controversial Interview. UK broadcaster ITV announced the news in a short statement, saying: "Following discussions with ITV, Piers Morgan has decided now is the time to leave Good Morning Britain. ++++++++ Zac Hanson and his wife, Kate, have welcomed their fifth child! The announcement was made on instagram, along with the cutest pic ever.  Zac revealed the name of his newborn son -- Quincy Joseph Thoreau Hanson. And that's the latest Headlines from Auscast, if you want to see more news and the listen to the most loved podcasts in Australia, head to Auscastnetwork.com. More Headlines soon. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Also today Health Minister Greg Hunt in hospital - but his office says it's not considered to be related to the vaccine he got on Sunday. Victorian Premier Dan Andrews also in hospital also after a horror fall on wet stairs. And what a way to start your weekend - an early mark on Friday afternoons to revive struggling CBD's. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In Episode 45, Jeff in Adelaide asks Chris a Maritime History question about dogs on the Titanic (and other transatlantic ships). Chris and I then discuss the latest cruise news and finally, Shane from Virgin Voyages drops by to talk all things Virgin Voyages.This podcast is not possible without the support of our coffee club. https://bit.ly/2T2FYGXVirgin VoyagesThe Sea Terrace Cabin (Day)The Sea Terrace Cabin (night)The Loose Cannon pubTest KitchenThe Grounds ClubPink Agave Restaurant EntranceRichards RooftopAthletic ClubWellbeing Zone Pool Bimini Beach Club 1Bimini Beach Club 2Bimini Beach Club 3Bimini Beach Club Night 1 Bimini Beach Club Night 2CRUISE NEWSAustralian Borders now closed to JunTHE three-month extension to 17 Jun of Australia's biosecurity emergency declaration by Health Minister Greg Hunt, cites the ongoing COVID-19 situation overseas which continues to pose an unacceptable health risk to Australia, including the emergence of more highly transmissible variants.  “The extension of the emergency period…is about mitigating that risk for everyone's health and safety,” noting the move extends restrictions on outbound international travel, predeparture testing and mask wearing on international flights, restrictions on trade of retail outlets at int'l airports, and restrictions on the entry of cruise vessels within Australian territory.Path to cruise resumption needed as losses approach $5 billionAustralia's cruise industry will continue to advocate strongly for a phased and controlled return to domestic cruising following the Federal Government's decision to continue its year-long biosecurity ban. Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) said $5 billion had been lost to the Australian economy over the past 12 months since the industry stopped operations in March last year. The cruise industry, which has been amongst the hardest hit in the travel sector, supports more than 18,000 full time equivalent jobs across a range of sectors including thousands of Australian travel agents, farmers, entertainers, tour operators, ports, and marine and logistics services.P&O Cruises to offer UK summer sailings, other cruises cancelled through August/SeptemberA series of short sailings and weeklong cruises in the UK this summer will go on sale later this month, while cruises on Arcadia, Aurora, Azura and Ventura have been cancelled until the end of August, and on Britannia and Iona until the end of September. The coastal sailings will be from P&O's homeport of Southampton and available for bookings later this month. Extended Pause on Cruises Round-trip Southampton through Sept 25, 2021Following the recent UK Government announcement on the roadmap to ease lock-down and related international travel restrictions, Princess Cruises is extending the pause of its UK-based cruise vacations, sailing round trip from Southampton, through September 25, 2021 on Sky Princess, Regal Princess and Island Princess. For UK guests, Princess Cruises will launch a series of new short cruises departing in late summer on Regal Princess and Sky Princess from Southampton that will go on sale later this month.Royal Caribbean to resume sailings in the Med from Haifa with vaccination mandate on Odyssey of the SeasRoyal Caribbean International's Odyssey of the Seas will debut in May, sailing from Haifa and offering Israelis a combination of three- to seven-night cruises visiting the Greek Isles and Cyprus.In conjunction with Israel's health and tourism authorities, Royal Caribbean will offer fully vaccinated sailings, where both crew and guests above the age of 16 will be vaccinated against COVID-19. Details on the additional health and safety measures to be implemented will be announced at a later date.Originally planned to debut in the Eastern Mediterranean based out of Civitavecchia (Rome) in November, Odyssey's delivery from Meyer Werft was delayed until April 2021. It will be the first Quantum Ultra-class ship to homeport in the region. The itineraries, round-trip from Haifa, will feature Rhodes, Santorini, Mykonos and Piraeus, Greece; and Limassol, Cyprus.Odyssey of the Seas' features include the next-generation SeaPlex, a reimagined Adventure Ocean kids program and Social180 teen lounge. Dining venues include Teppanyaki and the cruise line's first Giovanni's Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar. Signature features include the FlowRider surf simulator, skydiving with RipCord by iFly, the North Star , and robot bartenders at Bionic Bar.Aurora to sail Australia after 30 yearsAurora Expeditions is set to launch a new extensive season of domestic journeys in Australia from Jun. It is the first time in Aurora's 30-year history the cruise line will offer a full season of voyages ex- Australia, with adventures to also visit Antarctica's Commonwealth Bay and Ross Sea.Other destinations for the season will include the Bass Strait Islands; the Coral Coast, Western Australia; South Australia's Kangaroo Island; the Kimberley; the Ningaloo Coast, the South West; Tasmania and more.Bookings will open on 11 Mar.Scenic Eclipse Kimberley 2021 Discovery VoyagesScenic Eclipse Kimberley 2021 Discovery Voyages Scenic Eclipse home to Australia, with the launch of our 11 Day Kimberly Coastline cruises. As a proudly Australian founded travel company, we are delighted to invite your clients to cruise the Kimberley with Scenic Eclipse. Guests will have an unrivalled ultra-luxury discovery experience with up to 228 guests during this exclusive Australia 2021 season (June through Aug 2021).Guests will enjoy the experience of a lifetime, as we reveal the many wonders of this remarkable region from the elegant surrounds of Scenic Eclipse, The World's First Discovery Yacht™. Soar above the horizon by Helicopter to view iconic waterfalls and landscapes. Explore by Zodiac with an expert Discovery Team who will share unique insights of the region's native flora, wildlife and ancient spiritual heritage. Season on sale from Friday 5 March.New for 2022 European River Cruises Riviera Plus – Luxury additions for premium suite passengersLuxury European river cruise line, Riviera Travel River Cruises, will debut a new VIP guest program in 2022 called Riviera Plus which offers premium suite passengers luxury additions designed to enhance the enjoyment of their five-star cruise.From next year, guests booked in deluxe and superior suites and all upper-deck cabins will receive a host of complimentary benefits including use of a smart handset with maps, translator, currency converter, unlimited calls, text messages and internet service for use onboard or ashore. Premium suite guests will also receive L'Occitane en Provence luxury toiletries, a bottle of chilled Prosecco on arrival, a platter of fresh seasonal fruits during the cruise and a refreshing aperitif each evening. VIRGIN VOYAGES Shane Riley Associate Vice President of International Sales joins the podcast to update us on all things Virgin Voyages including their onboard policies post COVID.Voyage Well: http://bit.ly/30i3seVShips: http://bit.ly/3kRFVuTOnboard: http://bit.ly/38g9pNYWhen looking for a travel advisor seek out a CLIA accredited and “Certified First mate” with the below logo. Only Certified First Mates have undertaken the “Seacademy” to truly understand what makes a Virgin Voyage experience so unique and how to secure and available Sailor Loot (onboard credit).Ethical Cruise T-Shirts Now available branded podcast t-shirts, cruise-tees and Christmas gifts or design your own in the studio. All using organic cotton, printed using green energy and plastic-free packaging! https://bit.ly/32G7RdhJoin the show:If you have a cruise tip, burning question or want to record a cruise review get in touch with us via the website https://thebigcruisepodcast.com/join-the-show/  Guests: Chris Frame: https://bit.ly/3a4aBCg    Chris's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/ChrisCunard  Peter Kollar: https://www.cruising.org.au/Home  Listen & Subscribe: Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2XvD7tF  Castbox: https://bit.ly/2xkGBEI  Google Podcasts: https://bit.ly/2RuY04u  I heart Radio:  https://ihr.fm/3mVIEUASpotify: https://spoti.fi/3caCwl8  Stitcher: https://bit.ly/2JWE8Tz  Pocket casts: https://bit.ly/2JY4J2M  Tune in: https://bit.ly/2V0JrrsPodcast Addict: https://bit.ly/2BF6LnE Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The family of Hannah Clarke have been dealt another heartbreaking blow after Facebook blocked the domestic violence charity page, honoring their daughters legacy on the eve of the anniversary of her horrific murder.  Queensland is no longer on the bottom of the country's unemployment ladder in January, after the state added 2300 jobs in the month....but it's only up by one spot.  The Health Minister Greg Hunt says the first phase of the Coronavirus vaccine rollout is on track to start on Monday, with age and disability care residents in 41 Queensland towns and suburbs to be the first to receive the jab. And the opening hours of some of Queensland's biggest theme parks have been slashed.as the tourism industry continues to suffer in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.  For updates and breaking news throughout the day, take out a subscription at couriermail.com.au See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Minister Greg Hunt joined Jonesy & Amanda to chat about the COVID-19 vaccine and when we can all expect to get the jab!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australia's vaccine plans have received a boost after the Prime Minister confirmed extra doses of the Pfizer jab had been secured - and it's left some Kiwi medical professionals wondering where our vaccines are. Scott Morrison confirmed the government had struck a deal for another 10 million Pfizer doses, doubling Australia's order for a jab considered the world's most effective protection from COVID-19.“These additional vaccines have been secured consistent with our requirements under the strategy,” he told reporters in Canberra.Morrison confirmed Australia was on track to begin its vaccine rollout at the end of the month.“That puts us in a very good position, particularly with our sovereign vaccine production capability,” he said.Health Minister Greg Hunt would not be drawn on a timetable for the additional doses, but guaranteed they would arrive before the end of the year.He said the rollout was the “next critical step” in Australia's fight against COVID-19.MedSafe yesterday approved the jab here, but Pfizer is only committing to delivering us the 1.5-million doses we've ordered. Medicines New Zealand Chief Executive Graeme Jarvis told Heather du Plessis-Allan he doesn't buy the line it's because we're a small country."Iceland's got these vaccines, their a small country. They've in fact got two vaccines they are rolling out through immunisation programmes."LISTEN ABOVE

Australia has approved the nation's first Covid-19 vaccine, allowing the first jabs to be rolled out within weeks, beginning with frontline hotel quarantine workers.News.com.au has confirmed that the independent Therapeutic Goods Administration has ticked off on the Pfizer jab, announcing the decision on Monday morning.With the approval, the Covid-19 vaccination will be available to teenagers over the age of 16 and adults, with the first Australians to be vaccinated from late next month.Frontline workers and health workers will be the first to be vaccinated, before attention turns to aged care staff, seniors and other vulnerable communities.Health Minister Greg Hunt said Australia is on track to have the majority of the population vaccinated against Covid-19 by October."The commencement remains on track for February, as the Prime Minister has said. The completion remains on track for October," he said.The two-dose regimen could not be imported into Australia until it was approved by the TGA and today's announcement means millions of doses of the drug can now be shipped from overseas.When it arrives, a rapid phase of final batch testing will commence before the rollout begins.In a statement, the TGA said provisional approval of this vaccine is valid for two years."The TGA has granted provisional approval to Pfizer Australia Pty Ltd for its Covid-19 vaccine, COMIRNATY, making it the first Covid-19 vaccine to receive regulatory approval in Australia," it said."Following a thorough and independent review of Pfizer's submission, the TGA has decided that this vaccine meets the high safety, efficacy and quality standards required for use in Australia."Careful monitoring of the vaccine and any side effects will continue as the rollout commences."Australians can be confident that the TGA's review process of this vaccine was rigorous and of the highest standard," the TGA said."The decision to provisionally approve the vaccine was also informed by expert advice from the Advisory Committee on Vaccines (ACV), an independent committee with expertise in scientific, medical and clinical fields including consumer representation."The TGA will continue to actively monitor the safety of the Pfizer vaccine both in Australia and overseas and will not hesitate to take action if safety concerns are identified."As an extra check, the TGA laboratories will undertake batch assessment of each batch of the vaccine before it can be supplied in Australia."Outlining the road map for the rollout earlier this month, Prime Minister Scott Morrison revealed the timetable had been brought forward from March.In a statement, Pfizer told news.com.au that the logistics of the rollout will be co-ordinated by the Morrison Government."During the initial pandemic stage, our contracts are with the Government, and we will provide doses according to the Government's preferred channel and designated locations," a spokeswoman said."Our role is to ensure that, if our vaccine candidate is authorised for use, we supply our vaccine doses through a robust process, consistent with the agreement we've entered into with the Australian Government."

Australia's COVID-19 vaccine rollout will be brought forward to February for frontline workers in border control and hotel quarantine and it may be mandatory in some workplaces.After rapidly bringing forward the timetable in recent weeks from late March to early March just 24 hours ago, the Prime Minister announced the first public rollout of the vaccine will now commence in mid-February.Those who are not in high risk groups, including people aged under 50, can expect to get the vaccine from mid year, after the first “ring of containment” among aged care workers and the elderly is completed.But the first ‘guinea pigs' to receive the Pfizer vaccine in Australia could get the jab as early as late January as soon as the Therapeutic Goods Administration gives the vaccine the tick and it can be imported for batch testing.“We are now in a position where we believe we will be able to commence vaccinations in mid to late February,” the Prime Minister said.“There have been no delays in the introduction of the vaccine in Australia there has been the necessary swiftness that has been asked of the TGA and health officials driving this process,” he said.After the TGA approves the vaccine in late March it will then take up to three weeks to import the vaccine and complete batch testing as a final safety check.However, the Prime Minister cautioned that “COVID-safe” practices will need to continue to be a feature of people's daily lives for a long time, possibly throughout 2021.“Vaccination is not a silver bullet once vaccination starts COVID safe practices do not end they continue, they will be a 2021 lived experience, they continue,” he said. PLEDGE VACCINATION WILL BE FREE FOR ALLProfessor Brendan Murphy confirmed the vaccine would be free for every Australian and that patients should not be charged GP fees to get the jab.“We can guarantee the vaccine will be free, and it will be delivered free,” he said.“We do not want there to be any barrier whatsoever.”VACCINE WILL BE VOLUNTARY - BUT SOME WORKPLACES WILL REQUIRE ITMr Morrison has repeatedly pledged that the vaccine will be voluntary and will not be part of Australia's “no jab, no pay” welfare rules.However, he conceded on Thursday that some employers may require vaccination on workplace health and safety grounds.It may also become a requirement of international air travel to Australia to protect against visitors bringing new strains of the virus here.“All I have said today is that is a discussion that needs to be had,'' Mr Morrison said.“It is voluntary, but that is an important discussion for public health and safety that needs to be had with states and territories.”PM TO GET JAB LIVE ON TVThe Prime Minister outlined the new timetable for the rollout on Thursday revealing he is also preparing to roll up his sleeve and get the jab on live television to build confidence in the vaccine.“I don't think we need to line the whole cabinet up. I think there are more important people who need to get vaccinated,” he said.“But I think it's important for a show of public confidence. We will line up for the televised jab.”Health Minister Greg Hunt said he didn't want to be seen as a “queue jumper” but was happy to get the jab along with the Labor leader and the health spokesman Chris Bowen as a show of confidence.WHERE WILL YOU GET THE VACCINE?Frontline workers who are most at risk of contracting COVID-19 including hotel quarantine workers, border control staff and people driving international travellers to the hotels are first in the queue.They will secure the COVID-19 vaccine at hospitals where the Pfizer vaccine, that must be stored in freezing temperatures, can be carefully secured.However, the majority of the population will get their vaccines from respiratory clinics established by the federal government or GP surgeries.That rollout will not commence until later in the year for groups deemed not at risk, including under 50s until most likely in winter.After...

COVID-19 update from Sunrise and 7NEWS reporters around the country, plus interviews with Health Minister Greg Hunt, NSW Emergency Services Minister David Elliot, infectious disease researcher and recent winner of Australia's Global Citizen Hero Award Professor Brendan Crabb, Victoria's Health Minister Martin Foley, President of the Australian Medical Association Dr Omar Khorshid and members of the tourism industry impacted by renewed border restrictions. Latest updates: 7NEWS.com.au/coronavirus See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

COVID-19 update from Sunrise and 7NEWS reporters around the country, plus interviews with Health Minister Greg Hunt, NSW Emergency Services Minister David Elliot, infectious disease researcher and recent winner of Australia's Global Citizen Hero Award Professor Brendan Crabb, Victoria's Health Minister Martin Foley, President of the Australian Medical Association Dr Omar Khorshid and members of the tourism industry impacted by renewed border restrictions. Latest updates: 7NEWS.com.au/coronavirus Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says it is “an important step for the world” and the vaccine will be delivered in Australia after it is approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration. - 영국이 코로나19 백신 사용을 세계 최초로 승인하자, 호주 정부는 '코로나19 예방접종의 서막이 열렸다"며 반겼다

There are hopes that Melbourne's stage 4 lockdown could end earlier than expected as the number of new daily infections continues to fall; the Federal Government's telehealth scheme has been extended by six months to provide Australians with Medicare-subsidised virtual doctor visits until March 31 - Health Minister Greg Hunt explains; NSW stadiums will be allowed to operate at 50% capacity from next month, just in time for the NRL grand final. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

There are hopes that Melbourne's stage 4 lockdown could end earlier than expected as the number of new daily infections continues to fall; the Federal Government's telehealth scheme has been extended by six months to provide Australians with Medicare-subsidised virtual doctor visits until March 31 - Health Minister Greg Hunt explains; NSW stadiums will be allowed to operate at 50% capacity from next month, just in time for the NRL grand final. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

*Guest: Dr. Colin Mendelsohn, Founding Chairman of the Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction Assoc. It was a surprise decision issued by Australia's Minister of Health to ban the personal importation of liquid nicotine for vaping beginning on July 1. The order was issued on June 19, leaving little time for harm reduction activists and a coalition of MPs to mount an effective challenge to a law, which many agree, could drive tens of thousands of vapers back to smoking. Under growing pressure, Health Minister Greg Hunt decided on June 27 to delay the ban on importing nicotine. However, the fight to legalize vaping is far from over. Joining us today on RegWatch is Dr. Colin Mendelsohn, Founding Chairman of the Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction Association and member of the Expert Advisory Group that develops the Australian national smoking cessation guidelines. Why did the Australian government issue the ban? What impact would it have had on public health? How did the vaping community mobilize against the ban? Were there surprising allies in the fight? And, what's next in the fight to legalize vaping in Australia? Find out! Only on RegWatch by RegulatorWatch.com. Live Streamed: June 29, 2020 Sr. Producer: Cindy Schmidt Exec. Producer: Brent Stafford https://youtu.be/lJWs0zhEFVE This episode is supported by: DEMAND VAPE Make RegWatch happen: https://support.regulatorwatch.com    

Mr Hunt talks about the new CovidSafe app to help health workers track down people who have come into contact with a coronavirus sufferer. He's joined by the Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy and other key health officials. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.