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Newcastle Herald
Newcastle Herald
National
Alex Crowe

Albo's in iso but the campaign marches on

Labor leader Anthony Albanese is in isolation with COVID-19. Picture: Sitthixay Ditthavong

Week two of the election campaign is wrapping up and the surprises just keep coming.

Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese issued a statement on Thursday evening confirming he had tested positive to COVID-19, and would be forced to isolate for a week during the election campaign.

Mr Albanese was forced to cancel a trip to Western Australia and will now be speaking to the public via video and his team.

With Albo in iso, campaign spokesman Jason Clare has stepped up.

"The boss has got the bug. So you got me," Mr Clare told the media on Friday.

The PCR result was barely in before an announcement came from Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan that he too had gotten "the bug".

Mr McGowan, who has been in isolation since Wednesday, said a family member had tested positive earlier in the week.

"I will continue to quarantine and work from home over this period," Mr McGowan said.

After issuing well wishes to his opponent, Prime Minister Scott Morrison continued his campaign from Brisbane on Friday.

During a radio interview, Mr Morrison said Australia's aged care system was seen as a global standard.

He said the government was working to introduce round-the-clock nurses in facilities by 2025.

"The rest of the world looks at our system and actually sees it as a standard," Mr Morrison said.

"What I love about it is we don't settle for that. It's not perfect, and it needs to be a lot better."

In his home state, NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet weighed in on the controversy surrounding the choice of candidate for Warringah.

The candidate, Katherine Deves, has been campaigning on preventing transgender women playing sport alongside other women, the controversial "captain's pick" now threatening to derail the NSW government.

With week two wrapping up - including the first leader's debate and that "blessed" comment - there's still a long election trail ahead.

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