What is coronavirus Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a respiratory infection that spreads from person to person through droplets from an infected person’s cough or sneeze. It can also spread by touching objects or surfaces that have droplets from an infected person on them, and then touching your mouth or face. Should I wear a mask? With the rates of COVID-19 rising …

The inquiry into what went wrong in Victoria’s hotel quarantine program has been delayed due to the state’s stage 4 coronavirus restrictions on workplaces. The board of inquiry, headed by former Family Court judge Jennifer Coate, was due to start hearing evidence tomorrow, but this has now been postponed until August 17. It was originally due to report by September …

Queensland will close its border to all of New South Wales and the ACT from 1:00am on Saturday. It comes as the state recorded one new case of coronavirus. The 68-year-old Queensland woman was diagnosed with the virus in the past 24 hours and authorities are still investigating the source of the infection. Two historic cases have also been added …

Not long after news of a virus outbreak in the Chinese city of Wuhan began to spread worldwide, this image hit the internet: Some people claimed it was a map of Wuhan travellers across the 2020 Lunar New Year. Tabloids in the United Kingdom picked it up. Channel 7’s Sunrise used it in a live segment. But it did not …

More than four decades since they were penned, the Palace letters — dubbed the missing link in Australia’s political history — have been released. And while they may reveal the Queen was unaware of then governor-general Sir John Kerr’s decision to sack the Whitlam government in 1975, they also provide an invaluable insight into some of the more eccentric discussions unfolding …

Part-time and full-time workers are expected to receive different amounts of cash under the revised JobKeeper program set to be announced alongside changes to JobSeeker on Thursday. Both the wage subsidy and the boosted unemployment benefit are set to end in September, but the Federal Government has acknowledged support would still be needed past then as the coronavirus crisis continues. …

Victoria has close to 3,000 active cases of coronavirus, Premier Daniel Andrews says, as a woman in her 80s becomes the latest fatality recorded. Mr Andrews said there were 275 new cases recorded in the state. Mr Andrews said he was “cautious” about Monday’s figures, a drop from 363 on Sunday. The latest fatality brings the state’s death toll to …

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says the state is at a “critical point” after health authorities recorded another 20 coronavirus cases overnight, including 11 linked to known Sydney clusters. Over 20,000 COVID-19 tests were conducted at the weekend and in the 24 hours leading up to 8:00pm on Sunday night, 20 people were diagnosed with the disease. All the newly-identified cases …

A Sydney GP accused of sexually assaulting sleeping patients has told a jury a 16-year-old consented to receiving “alternative treatment” involving him placing his genitals in her hand. Ali Khorami has pleaded not guilty to 25 charges related to five female complainants who attended the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research, in Glebe, for various sleep problems in 2018. The 49-year-old, …

Coles and Woolworths have been forced to bring back purchase limits on toilet paper and other essential items after a second wave of panic buying cleared shelves. While the restrictions largely apply to Victoria, which has seen a dramatic rise in coronavirus cases, the restrictions on toilet paper apply across Australia. Even Prime Minister Scott Morrison weighed in on renewed panic …