Leader of Australia’s Victoria state, known for COVID lockdowns, to step down
Sydney, AustraliaReuters Daniel Andrews, the premier of Australia’s Victoria state who oversaw one of the longest pandemic lockdowns in the world, said on Tuesday he would resign after about nine years in office. Victoria’s State Premier, Daniel Andrews, speaks to the media, on 21st December, 2017. PICTURE: Reuters/Luis Ascui/File Pphoto Andrews’ surprise resignation comes just […]
Australian state to pay $A380 million for withdrawing as 2026 Commonwealth Games host
Sydney, AustraliaReuters Australia’s Victoria state will pay A$380 million to Commonwealth Games organisers, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said on Saturday, after it withdrew as 2026 event host citing a projected cost blowout. Victoria in July pulled out of hosting the quadrennial multi-sport event, which was to have been held in four regional hubs, with Andrews […]
Australian state of Victoria pulls out of hosting 2026 Commonwealth Games over costs concerns
Updated: 4:45pm (AEST)Melbourne, AustraliaReuters Australia’s state of Victoria will not host the 2026 Commonwealth Games due to projected cost overruns, placing the future of the quadrennial multi-sport gathering in doubt. Victoria state Premier Dan Andrews said the cost of the Games, which were to have been held in four regional hubs, could blow out to […]
Australian state to impose hefty fines to compel COVID-19 isolation; Uluru access blocked
Sydney, AustraliaReuters Australia’s second-most populous state Victoria said on Tuesday that anyone breaking COVID-19 isolation orders will face hefty fines, as high as $A20,000, and that more military personnel will be deployed to fight the spread of the virus. Australia, once heralded as a global leader in containing COVID-19, is desperately trying to slow the […]
Australia’s Victoria declares disaster, sets curfew to curb COVID-19
Melbourne, AustraliaReuters Australia’s second-most populous state of Victoria declared a state of disaster on Sunday and imposed a nightly curfew for the capital Melbourne as part of its harshest movement restrictions to date to contain a resurgent COVID-19. Melbourne, Australia’s second-largest city already under a reimposed six-week stay-home order, has struggled to rein in the […]
Australia reports record spike in coronavirus cases, 13 deaths
Sydney, AustraliaReuters Australia recorded its deadliest day in the coronavirus pandemic on Thursday with at least 13 deaths and more than 700 new infections mainly in Victoria state, where the government ordered all residents to wear face-coverings outside. The toll takes the country’s total fatalities from the novel coronavirus to 189, more than half of […]
Australian state records daily virus record, warns of lockdown extension
Sydney, AustraliaReuters Australia’s Victoria state on Monday reported the country’s highest daily increase in coronavirus infections, prompting the authorities to warn a six-week lockdown may last longer if people continue to go to work while feeling unwell. The second-most populous state reported 532 new cases of the virus which causes COVID-19, the most new cases […]
Australia reports highest daily toll of coronavirus deaths
Melbourne, AustraliaReuters Australia reached a grim milestone on Sunday, recording its highest ever daily tally of deaths from the novel coronavirus, as authorities in Victoria state battled scores of clusters of infection and intensified efforts to trace their contacts. Victoria’s leader, Daniel Andrews, told a media briefing the state had reported 10 COVID-19 deaths in […]
Australia’s second largest city orders 36 suburbs locked down to stop virus spike
Sydney, AustraliaReuters Authorities on Tuesday ordered the lockdown of 36 suburbs in Australia’s second biggest city Melbourne in an attempt to stop a spike in coronavius cases, a dramatic departure from the relaxation of restrictions elsewhere in the country. From midnight on Wednesday the first suburb-specific stay-home order will be imposed on some 320,000 people, […]
Australian Christian Lobby urges Lord’s Prayer to be kept as part of state parliament proceedings
The Australian Christian Lobby has expressed concern over calls for the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer to be removed from the daily opening of Parliament in the state of Victoria, urging that the century old tradition to be retained. The idea of dropping the prayer from the formal proceedings opening which precede each day’s parliamentary […]