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Coronavirus pandemic
This Week in AsiaHealth & Environment

Coronavirus: in Australia, ‘appetite for drastic measures’ rises as new cluster emerges

  • Prime Minister Scott Morrison says it is ‘not sensible’ to set an economic forecast as the virus crisis widens in the country
  • Meanwhile, as cases hit 709, some believe Morrison’s tough steps can yet go further, as schools remain open and no cities are placed under lockdown

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Passengers seen in face masks at the international airport in Sydney on March 18, 2020. Photo: AFP
John Power
Australia on Friday postponed its annual budget and announced tough curbs on gatherings of people as part of measures to tackle the coronavirus crisis, as the country’s worst-hit state saw its biggest daily spike in infections.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Friday that the federal budget would be delayed from May until October, and all indoor gatherings of fewer than 100 people would have to allow at least four square metres (11 square feet) per person in a room.

“The idea that you can actually put together any sort of forecast around the economy at this time is simply not sensible,” Morrison said at a press conference.

Morrison also said access to remote Indigenous communities would be restricted to those providing essential services only.

The drastic measures came as New South Wales on Friday recorded 75 new cases within a 24-hour period, its biggest rise since the country’s outbreak began in January, bringing the total number of infections in the country’s most populous state to 382. Dozens more cases were confirmed in Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia.

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