On Tuesday night, Prime Minister Scott Morrison addressed the press following another meeting with the National Cabinet.
Announcing further social distancing measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Morrison announced a slew of new rules which will come into place from midnight tonight.
The new measures, which have been dubbed the Stage Two restrictions, include the closing down of beauty salons, real estate auctions, open house inspections, amusement parks, arcades, and community and recreation clubs.
Mamamia’s daily news podcast, The Quicky, answers your questions about COVID-19. Post continues below.
- While schools will remain open, strong restrictions have been placed on weddings, meaning only five people can attend. As for funerals, only 10 people can attend.
(You can read more about the new measures here: Stage two restrictions: Exactly what is and isn’t shutting down from midnight Wednesday.)
Although the lengthy press conference outlined a long list of strict new changes, Australians weren’t afraid to find some humour in the Prime Minister’s address.
In one particular moment during the press conference, Scott Morrison struggled to pronounce barre, which is one of the activities now suspended under the strict new changes.
“Community and recreation centres, health clubs, fitness centres, yoga, bar-re – I hope I pronounced that correctly,” he said.
“I might need some help with that, I’m not quite sure what that is to be honest – but B-A-R-R-E, for those looking for the specific definition, and spin facilities, saunas, bath houses, wellness centres.”
From that barre moment, to some hilarious takes on the new wedding rules, here’s how Australia reacted to Tuesday night’s press conference.
(Because let’s be honest, we all need a little bit of light-hearted humour in our lives right now.)
Feature Image:
For more on COVID-19:
- “It’s a scary and uncertain time.” 22 women share what it feels like to be pregnant right now.
- ‘7 weeks ago, I left Australia for the adventure of a lifetime. Yesterday, I was forced to fly home.’
- “We could lose everything.” 10 women who have lost their job or income due to COVID-19.
- No, COVID-19 isn’t just an “old” person’s disease. Here’s what you need to know.
The Australian Government Department of Health advises that the only people who will be tested for COVID-19 are those with symptoms who have either returned from overseas in the past 14 days or been in close contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case in the past 14 days.
If you are sick and believe you have symptoms of COVID-19, call your GP ahead of time to book an appointment. Or call the national Coronavirus Health Information Line for advice on 1800 020 080. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, call 000.
To keep up to date with the latest information, please visit the Department of Health website.
Sign up for the “Mamamia Daily” newsletter. Get across the stories women are talking about today.
Top Comments
Boot camp wedding! Exercise while you say I do, then you can really enjoy the cake!
Some of the quips are pretty good, but I'm getting a little sick of people whingeing about mixed messages. Society and industry are big complex beasts, closures are staged. Get over it and on with it.
Mistakes have been made, but compared to other country's governance, at least ours is sane, responsive and moving in the right direction. Trump's ignorant unpredictability and rampant self-interest would be terrifying me if I lived in America right now. He's talking about getting the economy back on its old footing by Easter by reducing restrictions on movement and gathering.
Just nuts.
When compliance is essential to any social distancing model to work, it's essential that mixed messages are not sent out, and that half-measures are not adopted. The government was advised by an expert panel convened at their request that much greater measures and restrictions be put into place, now. The government has chosen to ignore that advice.
Staged closures did not work in many countries, including Italy. The consistent evidence is clear: shut everything down. It's all or nothing. Australia is currently settling for nothing.
Spatial distancing is the key. As people have demonstrated either their inability to understand it or their unwillingness to accept it, the govt has had to introduce measures that enforce it. They're complex because the situation is complex and evolving and can't be reduced to the sound bites that fit neatly into a Tweet or an Instagram post. "SHUT IT ALL DOWN!" is a simplistic response that still doesn't come to grips with the question of what are the "essential services" that would need to continue. I can't help but feel that people complaining about "mixed messages" are really just venting their own fears and frustrations onto the nearest convenient scapegoat instead of stepping up, using their brain, and working with the experts.
?
My entire family is at home, restaurants and bars are shut, gatherings have been banned.
The behaviour of your entire family doesn't = the entire country. The measures in place in Australia at this time are still half-cooked. The government was advised to adopt much greater measures than it has in place now. It has chosen to go against that advice.