What we learned, Sunday 10 July
And with that, we are going to put the blog to bed. Before we go, let’s recap the big stories:
- Elderly Australians with severe medical conditions will be able to access lifesaving Covid-19 antiviral treatments from Monday
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Unions have hit out at the federal government for refusing to extend pandemic leave disaster payments as the nation experiences a dramatic surge in Covid-19 cases
- Queensland deputy premier Steven Miles has encouraged residents to wear masks even as states decline to reintroduce mask mandates
- It comes as Australia reported 13 deaths from coronavirus and the national death toll passed 10,200
- Nearly 415,000 NSW flood victims have received a total of $340m in disaster support from the federal government
- Flood victims returning to inundated homes have been urged to mentally prepare and reach out for support from people around them as evacuation orders ease
Thank you so much for spending the day with us - we will be back tomorrow!
Updated
China urges Australia to see it as a partner
The Chinese foreign minister, Wang Yi, has urged his Australian counterpart, Penny Wong, to treat China as a partner, accusing previous governments of treating it as an opponent or threat.
On the sidelines of the G20 foreign ministers meeting in Bali on Friday, Wang expressed hope that Australia could “seize the opportunity, take concrete actions and come to a correct understanding of China” and accumulate “positive energy” towards it, according to a summary published late on Saturday by China’s foreign ministry.
Updated
