Federal Minister for Immigration, Alex Hawke, has warned councils against refusing to hold Australia Day celebrations, The Australian reports.

Minister Hawke said the national day should not be defined by “past mistakes” and councils should not be using the day to launch protests.

“It is… very sad to see some councils continue to politicise Australia Day this year, in a range of increasingly ridiculous ways, totally out of step with an overwhelming majority of people and the Australian community generally,” Minister Hawke told the newspaper.

“Councils should stick to their own role and not waste ratepayers’ time or money entertaining extreme views.”

READ MORE: ‘Un-Australian’: Mayor Steve Christou blasts councils over Australia Day festivities.

A number of Councils across Australia have cancelled or modified their Australia Day events this year.

Melbourne’s Australia Day parade was cancelled for the second consecutive year, whilst other events, such as one held in Byron Bay, have become online events due to COVID-19.

In response, Mr Hawke said the federal government rejected “disingenuous and ahistorical views from fringe councillors designed to undermine what is in reality the luckiest country on earth.”

Source: The Australian.

South Australian property developer, Theo Maras, has publicly declared his support for SA Labor Party leader, Peter Malinauskas.

After sharing a post by Mr Malinauskas on LinkedIn, Mr Maras wrote: “Leadership that looks to the future generation and a team that will work together for the benefit of all South Australians.”

This news comes as a surprise to many as Mr Maras has consistently been a strong Liberal Party donor.

READ MORE: Theo Maras: ‘Who you are is measured by what you will leave behind’.

But Mr Maras said he had lost confidence in Liberal SA Premier, Steven Marshall, after he decided to reopen the state’s borders when the Omicron variant posed a serious threat to the state’s economy.

“We needed a plan before we opened the gates, we needed contingencies in case of the worst case scenario,” he told The Advertiser.

“We needed strength, leadership and conviction. That did not happen from our Premier or our government.”

READ MORE: Developer, Theo Maras, calls for a new vision for future development across Adelaide.

Asked why he had endorsed Labor, Mr Maras said he decided it was “time to give somebody else the help that I have given the Liberals.”

According to The Advertiser, Mr Malinauskas has welcomed Mr Maras’ support. Premier Marshall declined to comment.

READ MORE: Theo Maras calls for greater help to prevent hospitality industry from crumbling.

Source: The Advertiser.

In a back-to-school plan announced by NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet over the weekend, every student and teacher will be asked to take a rapid antigen test twice a week to attend school, but masks will be ­restricted to high school.

More than six million tests will be distributed to 3000 public, Catholic and ­independent schools across the state before the start of the term to ensure enough supply for the first two weeks of term.

Students will also be allowed to take part in choirs, music ensembles and overnight camps again, subject to Department of Education guidelines to reduce the risk of virus infection.

READ MORE: Angelo Gavrielatos says teacher vaccine rule will ‘add stress’ on the education system.

Premier Perrottet acknowledged that whilst there would be some “disruption” along the way, it was important for children to return to school on the first day of term.

“It’s best for educational outcomes, it’s best for mental health, and it’s best for social outcomes as well,” he said.

In response, the NSW Teachers Federation President, Angelo Gavrielatos, said his members were concerned for the health and safety of students and staff.

READ MORE: Reopening NSW schools early ‘won’t be without risk,’ Angelo Gavrielatos says.

He said masks should be mandatory for primary school children as well.

“You can’t be vigilant enough with these settings. No other industry requests you to be on a work site with hundreds and up to 2000 other people in sometimes poorly ventilated sites, which are classrooms with up to 30 students,” he said.

“We remain very concerned and we are bracing ourselves for a disruptive start to the school year.”

Source: The Sydney Morning Herald.

More borders are closing to Australian travellers as the Omicron variant causes one of the biggest surges of COVID-19 cases in the world.

The United States and Europe have this week both downgraded Australia’s travel safety rating, making it significantly harder for Australians to visit. 

In an official directive, the European Council listed Australia, Canada and Argentina as “COVID-19 danger zones” due to surging Omicron case numbers, and they were removed from the EU’s travel white list.

The directive, which applies regardless of vaccination status, means people wanting to undertake non-essential travel to Europe from Australia could face restrictions ranging from a total ban on entry to having to quarantine or face extra testing requirements.

Cyprus, Greece and Italy dissented from the European Council’s decision to ban Australian travellers.

This comes as the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has also issued a warning to avoid travel to Australia, listing the country as “Level 4: Very High Level of COVID-19.

The CDC places a destination at level four when more than 500 cases per 100,000 residents are registered in the past 28 days.

The Chief Executive and Founder of Flight Centre, Graham Turner, told The Sydney Morning Herald that although he was taken aback by these developments, he was confident the restrictions would be lifted quickly as case numbers stabilise in Australia.

“Things will open up fairly quickly… I will be surprised if most countries have many restrictions after [the next few weeks or months],” Mr Turner said.

These restrictions come just as it has now become easier for Australians to get home.

International arrivals no longer need a PCR test to enter Australia, instead a rapid test within 24 hours of departure will be accepted.

If travellers contract COVID-19 overseas, they only have to wait seven days instead of 14 before flying home.

Source: The Sydney Morning Herald.

Businesses across New South Wales are struggling in the wake of the Omicron wave, with many feeling like they are in a “de facto” lockdown.

One of these businesses is Helen Psarakis’ Impress Laundry Dry Cleaning, which has a shopfront at Bondi Beach and a cleaning service based in Banksmeadow.

The business has had its turnover decimated as customers continue to work from home and don’t need to wash business wear. There’s also the constant cancellation of social events.

Speaking with The Sydney Morning Herald, Ms Psarakis said the business had already been doing it tough through two lockdowns since 2020, but recent weeks have provided no reprieve.

“I think people are tending to be cautious and holding back on doing any unnecessary cleaning of garments, particularly those they would normally wear to evening functions,” Ms Psarakis said.

Ms Psarakis’ business partner, Debbie Moore, added that the cost of coat hangers, chemicals, electricity and other services had increased while revenue had plummeted.

“The governments can easily say we’ve got to continue, but life doesn’t continue. This is a Clayton’s lockdown,” Ms Moore said.

The Executive Director of Business Sydney, Paul Nicolaou, agreed that small businesses were “hurting very badly due to a self-imposed lockdown where customers are choosing to stay away and shop online out of fear of catching Omicron or because they are isolating or recovering from it.”

In response, Mr Nicolaou said the NSW government could reintroduce a form of funding like the previous Job Saver assistance package.

Source: The Sydney Morning Herald.