CLUSTER MOVE

NSW Health’s list of COVID-19 case locations has grown to more than 100 venues, with The Sydney Morning Herald reporting that, although all locally-acquired cases are linked to the Northern Beaches cluster, several of yesterday’s 15 new cases were infected outside the region i.e. Turramurra Salon for Hair on the north shore and The Rose in Erskineville.

With Gladys Berejiklian due to make a decision tomorrow on current restriction levels, the ABC reports the state government is cautiously optimistic and UNSW epidemiologist Mary-Louise McLaws is confident the city will, at least, not experience a Melbourne-style outbreak. Conversely, The Guardian reports that another UNSW expert, Raina MacIntyre,is calling for a three day hard lockdown across Sydney.

Elsewhere, the Queensland government has banned anyone driving to the state who has been in Greater Sydney since December 11, and will require any returning residents to arrive by air and enter government-arranged quarantine.

HIRE POWERS TO BLAME

According to The Age, security companies have claimed vindication after the final report for Victoria’s hotel quarantine inquiry pointed the finger squarely at structural problems, namely a confusing governance structure with poor lines of communication, the failure of ministers including Dan Andrews to consider health risks, and the Department of Health and Human Services’ refusal to accept responsibility despite being the lead agency among five.

The report, which found the “overwhelming majority” of guards worked on the scheme “honestly and with goodwill”, only found the decision to use private security as frontline guards was reached by “acquiescence” at a meeting at the State Control Centre. Additionally, then-police chief commissioner Graham Ashton “was consulted and expressed a preference that private security perform that role and Victoria Police provide the ‘back up’ for that model”.

Andrews yesterday apologised for the scheme, rebuffed calls for his resignation by the Victorian Liberals, and announced a “preference” to adopt all 81 recommendations, while Ashton has reiterated to The Australian ($) he “was not the decision maker for the use of security guards”.

P.S. An equally-damning review of outbreaks at two aged care homes — finished November 30 but, curiously, only released yesterday by the Morrison government — found Australia still lacks a large enough surge workforce to contain future outbreaks, The Guardian reports.

A COAL NEW WORLD

Finally, centre-right think tank the Blueprint Institute has proposed a five-point “Coal-Generation Phasedown Mechanism” to halve electricity emissions by 2030 by, as The New Daily explains, paying owners of coal-fired plants to shut down ahead of schedule.

The proposal comes after the International Energy Agency published a grim analysis of coal emissions blowing out climate targets through to 2025, a short-term trend RenewEconomy explains is supported by coal mining in three countries: Russia, South Africa, and, far and away, Australia.