Australia & Pacifics

WELLINGTON, Oct 13 (NNN-AGENCIES) — New Zealand Minister of Health Andrew Little said that the country’s health system is ready to implement the End of Life Choice Act, making assisted dying legal in New Zealand.

Little said the government had appointed a three-person specialist committee to oversee the operation of the act. The End of Life Review Committee members includes a medical ethicist, a doctor specializing in end-of-life care, and a health practitioner.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Sydney hairdressers, gyms, cafés and bars reopened to fully vaccinated customers on Monday for the first time in more than 100 days after Australia’s largest city achieved a vaccination benchmark.

Sydney planned to reopen on the Monday after 70% of the New South Wales state population aged 16 and older were fully vaccinated.

By Monday, 73.5% of the target population was fully vaccinated and more than 90% have received at least one dose.

Some businesses opened at midnight due to demand from people impatient to enjoy their freedom.

CANBERRA, Oct 10 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Australian children, as young as five, could be eligible for COVID-19 vaccines, before the end of 2021, as the country continues to battle the third wave of infections.

Allen Cheng, co-chair of the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI), said, “if all the stars aligned” children aged 5 to 11 could start receiving vaccinations in late Dec.

It comes after Pfizer confirmed that it will make an application to the medical regulator — the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA).

WELLINGTON, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand's Northland will move to Alert Level 3 restrictions from 11:59 pm Friday following recent information on the risk presented by a positive case initially tested there earlier this week and confirmed in Auckland.

The person is now in an Auckland Managed Isolation Quarantine facility, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said in a statement.

"Updated information provided by the police today shows the case moved extensively around Northland after travelling there" on Oct. 2, Hipkins said.

SYDNEY, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- The basaltic volcanic rocks, collected as part of China's Chang'e-5 probe from the Moon, were about 2 billion years old, marking the youngest volcanic rocks identified on the Moon so far, according to an international research published in the journal Science on Friday.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — International tourists won’t be welcomed back to Australia until next year, with the return of skilled migrants and students given higher priority, the prime minister said on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Australia was expected to reach the vaccination benchmark on Tuesday at which the country could begin to open up: 80% of the population aged 16 and older having a second shot.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand’s government acknowledged Monday what most other countries did long ago: It can no longer completely get rid of the coronavirus.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced a cautious plan to ease lockdown restrictions in Auckland, despite an outbreak there that continues to simmer.

Since early in the pandemic, New Zealand had pursued an unusual zero-tolerance approach to the virus through strict lockdowns and aggressive contact tracing.

WELLINGTON, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- Full vaccination will become a requirement for non-New Zealand citizens arriving at the country from Nov. 1, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said on Sunday.

Travellers will be required to declare their vaccination status when registering with the Managed Isolation Allocation System, as well as presenting proof of vaccination or a relevant exemption to their airline and to customs officers once they land.

SYDNEY, Sept 28 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Australia’s peak union body, voiced its anger at the government’s decision, to abruptly cancel its submarine deal with France, in favour of building nuclear submarines.

The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) said, the new AUKUS agreement with the United States and Britain, robbed Australia’s shipbuilding and manufacturing sectors of “decent jobs for generations to come,” said a report from the Sydney Morning Herald today.

CANBERRA, Sept 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, told state and territory leaders they owe it to Australians to reopen borders by Christmas.

Morrison said today that, there was no reason for state borders to remain closed, once 80 percent of adults are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, a milestone the country is expected to reach in the following months.

“It’s important that we move forward. We can’t stay in second gear. We’ve got to get to top gear in living with the virus,” he told Seven Network television.