Australian Prime Minister Ends Payment of Pandemic Paid Leave

Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said disaster payments for pandemic vacations would not be refunded despite the quarantine policy in place.

The payment system funded those who ended in isolation on June 30. However, as the number of isolated people increases, they are being called upon to reopen the system.

But Albanese said the government would take “financial responsibility” after inheriting $ 1 trillion in debt from the previous administration.

“We are announcing today that we will add government revenue to the federal government. We have a lot of things we want to do, but we will be financially responsible for how to deal with the problem,” he said. I told the group. Tuesday.

Dominic Perrott, Premier of New South Wales, said financial support remains in a variety of areas.

“We will continue to work with the federal government to provide that support, but we must be in a balanced position as we move on to the next period of this COVID,” he said. Told.

This was after Federal Health Minister Mark Butler pointed out that the current COVID-19 health measures were decided by the state government and said the government had no plans to continue paying.

He added that the federal government lifted the emergency setting in May, giving health officials ample time to restore society to normal.

Mask rules to state

With the advent of new subvariants and the spread of the flu season, many have quit their jobs.

After the increase in the new Omicron variants BA.4 and BA.5, the Australian Health Protection Commission recommended reducing the recommended reinfection period from 12 weeks to 28 days.

This requires testing and quarantine again if symptoms recur 28 days after recovery.

With the spread of COVID-19 and influenza, there are increasing calls for the return of Maskman Date.

The Prime Minister said health advice recommends that masks be appropriate in situations where social distance is not possible, such as public transport.

But he added, “Of course, obligations on these issues are a matter of state governments across the country,” and does not suggest that mask rules will be imposed from the federal level.

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Rebecca Zhu is based in Sydney. She focuses on Australian and New Zealand national affairs. Do you have a hint? Contact her at [email protected].