Health News at Your Fingertips

Western Australia has reported 31 locally acquired cases of Covid-19, as well as 15 “other” cases comprising people in quarantine from overseas or interstate.

Twenty-five of these cases are linked, with six of them classified as mystery cases. The WA premier, Mark McGowan, said an unspecified number of the local cases were in the community while infectious.

That wraps up my time on the blog for today. I’m going to hand things over to my colleague, Josh Taylor, to bring you the news into the evening.

WA authorities say 210 career and volunteer firefighters worked through the night in a bid to keep major bushfires under control in Bridgetown and Denmark.

The fire in the coastal town of Denmark was first reported on Friday morning, and has burnt approximately 2,151 hectares.

The Bridgetown fire, which is not contained and nor controlled, has burnt approximately 2,359 hectares. Authorities are still working to determine the cause of the fire.

There are now 218 people in hospital across the state. Of these, 13 are in the ICU and five require ventilators.

NSW is pushing to increase the rate of booster vaccinations as the health minister calls for a national definition on what it means to be “fully vaccinated”, AAP reports.

While 94% of eligible NSW adults are double vaccinated against Covid, only 43.5% have received a third dose.

Health minister Brad Hazzard says the booster rate should be higher.

The question in my mind is: if we have almost 95% of people in NSW double dosed and we’ve got a little less than 45% of people who have had the booster, what’s happened to the other 50%? Why aren’t they out there getting their boosters?”

He says the state has “a lot of people” working on finding an answer to that question.

More booster shots have been administered in NSW than anywhere else in the country, but the state’s rate should be higher because more people were eligible for boosters earlier.

Hazzard says Atagi should also provide advice nationally on whether a booster is required for people to be considered fully vaccinated.

Until then the state will be taking a more “encouraging” approach to promoting booster uptake and will hold off on mandating boosters for healthcare workers, Hazzard says.

Channel 5 in the UK has confirmed that Neighbours will be dropped from its summer scheduling, after airing for more than a decade on the network, according to a report from Digital Spy.

It likely spells the end of the iconic show because it relies on funding from Channel 5.

The show’s production company Fremantle and Australian broadcaster Channel 10 are yet to comment.

Tasmania has recorded 471 new Covid cases and sadly one death. There are now 11 people with the virus in hospital.

Only five of these patients are being treated specifically for virus symptoms. The remaining six are being treated for unrelated medical conditions.

South Australian premier Steven Marshall confirmed that as of today PCR testing will be available for all people with symptoms, especially close contacts. He said there is massive excess PCR testing capacity available in SA at the moment.

He acknowledged that PCR tests are “far more accurate than rapid antigen tests”.

“This is the Rolls Royce, it’s highly sensitive, it works very well and you can get an accurate picture very very quickly. It’s far more accurate than rapid antigen tests,” he said.

Elective surgery is resuming in the state from tomorrow.

Independent senator Rex Patrick is calling out the government’s decision to prioritise its religious discrimination bill during the upcoming parliamentary sitting week.

Queensland’s deputy premier Steven Miles has dismissed calls for a government integrity probe, saying “you can’t have a royal commission into a vibe”, AAP reports.

Two independent watchdogs, the Liberal National Party, Katter’s Australian Party and the Greens are calling for a probe amid multiple allegations of interference in regulators and processes.

Outgoing Integrity Commissioner Nikola Stepanov claims a laptop was taken from her office and wiped, and that the government tried to have her sacked.

Former state archivist Mike Summerell says there was interference in his record-keeping, potentially leading to parliament being mislead.

Miles says those allegations are being investigated properly so there’s no need for a wider inquiry.

“If there is new evidence then it should be forwarded to the CCC (Crime and Corruption Commission), but you can’t have a royal commission into the vibe,” the deputy premier told reporters on Sunday.

The CCC is itself under a cloud after the government ordered a formal commission of inquiry into the watchdog’s functions and structure after its botched probe into Logan Council.

Miles said while “questions have been raised about the CCC” it was still the “appropriate forum” for any allegations of government misconduct.

“If anyone has any new evidence they should forward it to the CCC,” the deputy premier said.

Meanwhile, the premier’s director-general Rachel Hunter has launched a third probe into Mr Summerell’s allegations of interference in his record-keeping role.

The terms of reference for Hunter’s review were released on Friday, with the findings due by 4 March.