National Cabinet has agreed restaurants and cafes will be allowed to reopen under the first stage of eased coronavirus restrictions. Follow live.

National Cabinet has agreed restaurants and cafes will be allowed to reopen under the first stage of eased coronavirus restrictions.
Libraries, community centres, playgrounds and boot camps will also be allowed to open, and people will be able to undertake local and regional travel.
Coronavirus update: Follow all the latest news in our daily wrap.
Follow all the latest updates in our live coronavirus blog.
9mminutes agoBy Simon Smale
PM says 85,000 jobs will be restored in the months ahead
“Three steps, moved at the pace of States and Territories. That will get us back where we need to be. As quickly as we can. A plan that according to treasury can see some 850,000 jobs restored in the months ahead.
“Step one will enable greater connection with friends and family, allowing gatherings up to 10 people, and five guests in your own home. Working from home, if it works for you, and your employer. That’s a difference in emphasis. As I’m sure you picked up. It will see children back in classrooms and in play grounds in their communities. Golfers back on the green. Lap swimmers back in the pool. Boot catch camps back in the parks. Retail and small cafes and restaurants reopening. Interstate recreational travel, starting again. It will see easing of restrictions for funerals with up to 30 attendees, outdoors, and 10 at weddings.
“Step two will allow larger size gatherings up to 20 people, including for venues such as cinemas and galleries, more retail openings on sector based COVID safe plans, organised community sport, and beauty parlours, and you’ll be pleased to know, barre classes open once again.
“Step three, allowing gatherings up to 100 people. This will become clearer as we move through the first two steps. There will be more work to do on step three. But most workers, by then, will be back in the workplace. Interstate travel will likely resume. Pubs and clubs with some restrictions will be open. And also possibly gaming venues.
“As I said, steps three, step three, but also step two, will get greater definition as we move through the success of step one.”
12mminutes agoBy Simon Smale
PM announces a three-step plan to reopen the economy by July this year
“Today, National Cabinet agreed a three-step plan and a national framework to achieve a COVID safe economy and society. And it is our goal to move through all of these steps to achieve that COVID safe economy in July of this year.”
“In this plan, we walk before we run. We know we need to be careful to preserve our gains, if we wish to reclaim the ground we lost, we cannot be too timid.
“There will be risks. There will be challenges. There will be outbreaks, there will be more cases, there will be set backs.
“Not everything will go to plan.
“States will and must move at their own pace, and will cut and paste out of this plan to suit their local circumstances. There will be undoubtedly be some human error. No-one is perfect. 
“Everyone is doing their best. To think or expect otherwise, I think, would be very unrealistic. This is a complex and very uncertain environment.”
15mminutes agoBy Simon Smale
The Prime Minister said we are dealing with the virus ‘better than many and most around the world today’
“Firstly, we’re being fighting the virus and we are winning.
“Secondly, we have put in place and are delivering the economic lifeline through JobKeeper and JobSeeker and many other programs to get us through the worst of this. To buy Australians time as we fight the virus and we chart our way back.
“Thirdly, and particularly today, we move ahead with reopening our economy. And our society, with a clear plan, and a clear framework, that shows Australians the road ahead.
“The next step beyond this will be to build the confidence and momentum that will see our economy get back up and running and get Australians back up on their feet and moving ahead with confidence.”
20mminutes agoBy Simon Smale
Here we go…. the Prime Minister Scott Morrison
The PM has started by saying that being thankful is an important lesson.
“Always being thankful is a common lesson our mothers advise us, and I found that particularly good advice from my mum, especially if you’re going through difficult times. It turns your focus on others, who are not so advantaged as yourself. We’ve been doing a lot of that lately.
“So many Australians are hurting right now. Lives turned upside down, painful separation from their loved ones. Livelihoods that they have spent a lifetime building stripped away. Uncertainty about their futures and their family’s future. The last few months have given us a reminder of the things that are really important, our health, our wellbeing, a strong health system. And all those who keep it strong.
“Every job matters. Whatever job you do. Every job is essential. Our children’s education. Caring for our elderly, respecting their dignity. The selfless and humble service of so many Australians who just get on with it every day. Make this great country work. We have seen these heroes in action. Above all, the importance of each other. 
“That every Australian matters. Every life, every job, every future. And we have learnt some important lessons that.”
27mminutes agoBy Simon Smale
39mminutes agoBy Simon Smale
When will the Prime Minister be speaking?
When is the press conference today?-Phil
Any idea on a time for Scomo press conference? I need to rearrange some meetings today so I can watch it.-K
What time will we hear from the PM this afternoon?-???
Hi, What time are we expected to hear announcements from the national cabinet meeting? Approximately-Dave, CBR
Will our PM be addressing the nation after the Cabinet Meeting?-CK
So lots of you are pretty keen to find out when the PM is speaking. (this is just a small selection of comments that we’ve got in the last 15 minutes – I kid you not.
He’ll be speaking very, very soon – at 12:30-ish in fact.
Watch live in the streaming window above.
Of course, we’ll get all the details to you all in the blog comments as well.
54mminutes agoBy Simon Smale
Teen arrested after police officer bitten on thumb
A Queensland police officer has been bitten on the thumb trying to break up a party that breached coronavirus restrictions. 
Officers were called to a unit in the Ipswich suburb of Redbank Plains last night and say a physical altercation broke out, with one officer bitten on the thumb. 
An 18-year-old man was arrested nearby a short time later, along with another man and a woman.
The teenager is due to appear in court today on charges including serious assault of a police officer.
The trio was also issued with $1,300 on-the-spot fines for failing to comply with coronavirus public health directions. 
1hhour agoBy Bridget Judd
The situation in Victoria…
What are (were) the protests in Victoria about?-Wondering
What are the protests about??-Protest??
It’s understood the protests are/were in relation to the state’s coronavirus restrictions and the 5G network…
1hhour agoBy Bridget Judd
Don’t think about protesting, Victoria warns
Ms Neville has also pleaded with people planning two protests for this weekend to call them off.
   She warned police would be there and “will arrest and fine people for breaking restrictions”.
 “To blatantly breach restrictions like that puts both Victoria Police in a difficult position, puts our community in a difficult position so my plea is if you’re thinking of going to those protests, don’t. If you do, Victoria Police will be there.”
Post – when are my goods due to arrive?
Hi there, just wondering what the postal situation is? I’m guessing that if we’ve made any international purchases, then we shouldn’t hold our breathes waiting for it to arrive? Case in point – purchased some bits and pieces from a business in England around mid March, and nothing yet. Usually, these guys can have my goodies here within 7 to 8 days. Cheers-Tony
There are certainly delays in the postal service right across the country – and international services have been impacted just as much.

• reduction in air freight capacity and passenger flights (which also carry our parcels)
• a significant increase in parcels volumes, many which require manual sorting
• hygiene and social distancing requirements in our network (such as social distancing through zoning, dedicated shift start times to reduce cross over of workers)

So dads/children, if you’ve not got your Mothers Day gift sorted yet, you are allowed to start panicking… 
In terms of international deliveries, Australia Post says it “is experiencing international delivery delays in all destinations due to limited airline capacity and government restrictions as a result of COVID-19. Australia Post is working with partner airlines and other postal operators to move items as quickly as possible and clear backlog.
           “Please note: Australia Post has suspended its Economy Air international delivery service for parcels to all countries effective 3 April and until further notice.”
Fingers crossed your delivery arrives soon Tony. I’m also waiting on a delivery from the UK that I have seen no sign of yet, which I’m assuming is also down to the backlog.
Either that or Mum and Dad actually did forget my birthday. 
2hhours agoBy Simon Smale
Public transport  is it going to be safe?
What are the plans for people returning to work using Public transport? How is the government planning to handle the crowds on the trains and more so when there are train disruptions and a huge crowd wait at the Station platforms and also jump on the next service. I have seen crazy scenes of people trying to squeeze into trains. What sort of social distancing can they apply?-Krish
The issue of public transport is interesting. During the height of the pandemic, movements of people around suburban train stations were down to about 10 per cent of “normal” traffic.
Marion Terrill of the Grattan Institute predicted that many Australians would continue to avoid public transport as they gradually return to the office.
“I think people won’t feel safe if trains and buses are crowded, so we could see them avoiding public transport altogether, with more using their cars or trying alternatives like bikes or scooters,” she said.
2hhours agoBy Bridget Judd
Is your steak safe to eat? Abattoir coronavirus outbreak leaves consumers wondering
ABC News
A coronavirus outbreak at a Melbourne meatworks has left some consumers questioning the safety of the meat they are grabbing off supermarket shelves.Thirteen more coronavirus cases were linked to a cluster at Cedars Meats Australia on Thursday, taking the total to more than 60.The outbreak has prompted a number of readers to contact the ABC with concerns about the safety of food and food packaging.So, is it safe to keep eating meat? Or should we be steering away from steak?Read the full story.
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